Chocolate Roses

Summary: Sakura, adopted at 16 by a silver-haired man, finds that her life is beginning to change forever. No one told her about the mansion she lives in, or the Porsches and Lamborghini's that await her. Not to mention the six model-material guys that live with her. She wasn't supposed to have feelings for any of them, but when one of them begins to have feelings for her, her life starts spiraling downward. She finds herself in the fight of her life, and the only escape is the danger she'll face.

'To live was a privilege. You were given the opportunity and expected to live it to the fullest, to enjoy it, love it, but not take advantage of it. That is the mistake foolish mortals made. They love opportunities, enjoyed it, loved it and lived it to the fullest…but soon, they get carried away with this new power, and take this time to use it more than necessary. To abuse it. To hurt. And that is when trust is truly lost.'

Chapter 1

I was taught to run if someone I didn't know approached me. It was one of those hot, sticky summer days when your favorite mint chocolate-chip ice cream slipped off the cone and fell to the ground. The kind where you schedule a day to hang with your best of friends in the skimpiest outfits you could find at the bottom of your messy closet to show off your slammin' body. Yes, that kind.

I was a child when I went through the look-good-24/7 phase. You know, the one where you had to look unbelievably beautiful everywhere you went. I remember when I got my first horrible pimple smack-dab in the middle of my forehead. I borrowed my mother's hairdryer and blew it on my forehead, so when she came downstairs and found me in my bed with a flushed face and a high "fever" I had to stay home. This gave me the chance to treat the red devil on my head.
I thought the more skin I showed; the more boys would think I was pretty. So I begged my mother to buy me more accessories and skirts. Tube tops and purses. Bracelets, earrings, rings, headbands, and even frilly bras; even though I was used to my tomboy, laid back style.

'It's just a phase…' my mother would whisper to my father when she thought I was fast asleep, and not eavesdropping on the steps. I agreed with her secretly and shoo-ed it off. After all, it was a mere phase.

But here I was, 13 years old, wearing a revealing bikini and reading one of those popular magazines that told you which new celebrities were breaking up and your latest horoscope. I was in the middle of the magazine, seeing if new love awaited me in the future.

'Your new love will appear in the future, but beware, things that appear are not always what they seem.'

Not what they seem? Love was waiting for me in the future. That is what it seemed! Noise flared from the foundation behind me. I glanced the house quickly and, seeing no signs of endeavor, returned to my magazine. I looked at the latest bands in America that were rocking our worlds. Mm-hm. Yeah,yeah. Linkin Park, Shine Down, Aly & AJ, Flyleaf, Paramore, Panic! At the Disco…give me something new, fresh, out there-

I heard more disruption from my home. I took off my designer Chanel sunglasses and narrowed my emerald eyes. Through the small, round, window, and the long, brown vintage curtains that surrounded it, I managed to make out red spots of paint. I rolled my eyes. My mother was an art freak, and when she got a burst of inspiration, anything and everything became her canvas. I turned my head an put my glasses back on.

I flipped the page on the magazine and heaved. There, on this page, was the most beautiful, luxurious mansion I had ever seen, that took up two pages for the image and another two for the extra features. I guess my horoscope was correct because I immediately fell in love.

I glanced at the house again. The red spots were gone and all was quiet…a little too quiet. I lay my magazine face down on the lounge chair I was sitting in and put my sunglasses on top. Then I slowly and softly walked to the backdoor that led me inside the vast kitchen; quiet as to be immediately aware of the slightest of noises.

"Mother? Are you in here?" I called out. I frowned at the response I wasn't receiving.

That was weird.

I examined the kitchen counter that had the red smears and one wandering drop of paint. I looked closer, examining every little detail. Round, red, thick… I touched the paint with my finger and stared at it in horror. The way it stuck to my finger in a tiny bead, the density, the way it smeared when wiped instead of coming right up…

It could only be blood.

"Father? Where are you guys?!" I was now terrified. Blood and no parents. Why didn't I come earlier? Why? I swiftly ran into the living room and saw my mother's favorite China plates broken and strewn about on the floor, instead of the shelves they usually rested peacefully in. The priceless family photos were shattered and also thrown on the floor. The beautiful white leather couches were splattered with "red paint". But I knew better when I found the two bloodied corpses on the floor. The two I could only recognize as my parents. Dead.

"M-Mother…Fa…ther." I felt a presence behind me and, when I spun around, I was met with dangerous crimson eyes that I did not recognize.

And I ran.

I would always obey my parents, even though they weren't here to direct me, I knew I was in danger. And I knew I had to run. But what my parents didn't know was that in certain situations like this one, running only put me in more immediate danger.

Two figures appeared in front of me at the speed of lightning. I gazed in horror as they inched closer to me. Closer…. Closer…

"Is she of any use?" the man with long blonde hair asked to his friend next to him.

"No, you may kill her." The red head replied with no emotion.

These two men were gorgeous beyond belief. With pale skin, and eyes that pulled you in deeper and deeper, making it harder for you to breathe. Then realization hit me. No matter how beautiful they were, they were the murderers of my parents, and, according to the red-head, my murderers. I gasped and backed away from them Slowly but surely. As adrenaline hit me, I began running to the living room again, praying the other intruder was gone. But I slammed into a rock-hard body that made me fall to my bottom on contact. Then, I was surrounded completely.

"Let me go." I pleaded softly as hot tears ran down my cheek and ran into my mouth. I was being pulled up gently, then pressed firmly into a wall. "Stop. Please." I was feeling light-headed and woozy after seeing so much blood. All that blood was overwhelming. The crimson-eyed man pinned me down while the blonde buried his face in my neck. Then I felt something like needles penetrating my bare flesh, and I screamed. I could only take so much but I managed to hold on for a few seconds before I collapsed, unconscious.

:

It's been three years since the death of my parents. After the incident, I awoke in a hospital room not remembering a thing that happened a few days before; except for the fact that I was alone. I was put into an orphanage while going to school instead of living with my other relatives who wanted nothing to do with me. Whenever I was in school, people would look at me with secluded eyes, for-ever marking me as the outcast. As much as people expected me to cry and complain and slit my wrists, I remained the person to always cheer others on and be the sunshine on a cloudy day. You would think a girl who lost everything would fall apart. But not me. I was just glad I was alive.

Once again, here I was, 16,laying in my cot that was supposed to pass as a bed, staring at the dirty, cracked ceiling that sported several holes and even had a few loose, tattered wires hanging out of it. Safety hazard? I think so. It was adoption week, and the business was low. Unfortunately for me, I was the longest member at the Niban Ori (Second Chance) Orphanage for Young girls, being here three years and all.

This week was Adoption Week and so far, being it Thursday, only three young girls had been adopted, one eleven, the other ten and an eight year-old. I didn't stand a chance of being adopted since I was a six-teen year-old. Adults wanted younger children so it would be easier for them to brainwash them with rules and chores and bla bla bla. If a child were to be adopted, their name would be called over the "extremely high-tech" intercom.

So as I rolled over in my cot, accidently rolling off of it and falling on the floor, I crawled to my crate. Each girl received a crate to put their valuables in, although most people here had the usual: toothbrush, toothpaste, brush, comb, family picture ,which depended on whether you knew your family or not, several outfits, two pairs of shoes and books to read that you could check out in the library next door.

The owner of the orphanage used to be an old, ornery, woman, but sadly she died almost two years ago. The new orphanage owner was young, beautiful and kind. Her name was Kushina, but, out of respect, we called her Miss Kushina. Her insanely long red-orange hair and green eyes were unbelievable. Her age was still unknown among the orphanage because her appearance was of a twenty year old woman maybe even her teens, yet she told us she owned a home, she had a husband and a 16 year-old son. Although she owned no family pictures, the girls were excited to meet this boy one day since the mother was beautiful.

"Sakura, dear. Please come to the front. Someone wants to see you!" Kushina said over the intercom. I gasped and blushed as I felt the other girls' staring at me with green, envious eyes. I quickly glanced at myself in the mirror and hurried down the stairs and around the corner to the very front of the orphanage.

There I found Kushina talking happily to a man probably not any older than she was. He had spiky silver hair that was pushed to one side with a bandana covering his right eye. He was tall with broad shoulders and muscular shoulders. His left lazy eye that was shown was marked with amusement when he saw me. Did I do something wrong? Kushina turned to me and beamed.

"Hello Sakura! This is Kakashi Hatake and he wants to adopt you today. I'll go get your belongings while you two get to know each other, okay?"

"Yes ma'am. Thank you." I bowed formally and looked at Kakashi. "Hello father. M-My name is Sakura Haruno. I-It is very nice to meet…you." I whispered, sounding like an idiot.

"You can call me Kakashi. Father makes me sound old." Kakashi smiled.

"Yes sir." I blushed from embarrassment.

"So. Nice weather we're having, huh?" Kakashi said as an awkward silence filled the room. I looked at him confused just as Kushina arrived with a bag in hand.

"Okay Sakura. Here are your things." I reached for my bag but Kakashi's hand beat me to it.

"Don't worry about it, I'll carry it."

"Thank you." I turned to Kushina and smiled sadly. "I will miss you." I said honestly. Even though her appearance was young and naïve, she had become family to me. A mother.

Kushina wrapped her arms around me and sighed then giggled. "It's quite alright. I'll definitely miss you too Sakura. You know, you were really fun to hang around."

I nodded and smiled back at Kushina. Then, I laughed along with her while Kakashi stood trying to figure out why we were acting like amateur schoolgirls. He cleared his throat and made us look at him.

"Sorry Kakashi!" Kushina laughed. Kushina walked closer to me and whispered in my ear. "Make sure you stay away from blood okay?" I nodded. Over the years I developed a phobia for blood. Just the sight of it made me hyperventilate. As long as I couldn't see it, I was okay though.

"We shall be on our way now." Kakashi said. I gave Kushina a final hug before I followed Kakashi out the door to the parking lot. The silence was getting to me and I fished my mind to find something intelligent to say. Something….

"Um…Kakashi-san, I want to um, thank you for adopting me." I looked at the ground, avoiding his eyes. Kakashi looked at me and grinned with his pearly whites.

"You are quite welcome," he stopped walking and, as I looked up, I saw a Canary Yellow Lamborghini. It was beautiful. Absolutely amazing. I looked at Kakashi who pulled a keychain out of his pocket. Then he pushed a button on a key that was on it and unlocked the car. "Now then. Shall we go?"

I was still staring at Kakashi. Then the car. Then Kakashi again. "A-Are we riding…in this car?"

He nodded.

"This one? Right here?"

He nodded again.

If there was a better word in the dictionary to describe this car, I would've used that instead of,"Wow."

"What?" Kakashi put my bag in the trunk and hopped in the front seat. I lingered outside, but eventually hopped in the front seat with Kakashi.

"The car is wonderful."

"Hm. Not really, it's pretty old. I'm giving it away soon."I stared at him in wonder, but I couldn't help but feel a tang of jealousy because of the money he had.

We drove in silence for a while, but I completely ignored everything going on around me as I stared out the window looking at things I have not seen in ages. The elementary school, the skate park, the ice cream shops where the young boys and girls were excitedly pulling their parents in. I giggled and felt Kakashi's eyes boring into me, but I ignored him. He sighed when we stopped at a red light and I was ready to fall asleep, but I saw a couple, hand in hand, walking out of a Candy Shoppe. The woman stopped, looked around nervously and ran back in the shop, pulling out a toddler with a lollipop in his mouth. The woman scolded him and, before the toddler started crying, the man took the infant in his arms and spun him around, making the kid laugh. Defeated, the woman sighed and placed a kiss on both of the male's cheeks. I couldn't help but smile. Then, I was sad.

That kid had both of his parents to count on 24/7. They would always be there for him and, as much as I didn't want to, I began crying. I tore my eyes from the window and sniffed. Kakashi glanced at me and stopped the car.

"Sakura. Are you alright?" I looked at Kakashi and smiled weakly.

"Y-Yes, I'm fine." I nodded. Kakashi leaned out of the window and pressed a few buttons, then giant, elegant gates we stopped at opened slowly. I peeked out the window and gasped in disbelief, almost falling out of the window to get a better look.

"This…this is it!," I breathed."The mansion!"

Kakashi smiled at me."Yes. This is the mansion where we live." I almost choked a little.

"No…way! We live here?!"

Kakashi nodded and chuckled.

"This is wonderful…unbelievable. Oh my God." I laughed. It was the mansion of my dreams, the one I read about in my magazine all those years ago.

Kakashi parked the car under a large garage that was probably the size of the orphanage alone, if not bigger. Kakashi sighed and closed the trunk to his car. Whoa, when did he get out? Anyway, I got out the car and walked through the front yard that belonged in a dream. There wasn't one blade of brown or yellow grass in the yard. It wasn't overly decorated like most yards. It had a few rose bushes, small trees, and a vast fountain that sat in the middle of the yard, and was surrounded by concrete so it could be used as a pass way to the front steps. I looked back at Kakashi who was walking up to me.

This man was my new father. My only parent I could count on, and he's said more words to me today than my biological father said to me in a week. Knowing this man for only an hour, I trusted him with my life. I felt my emerald eyes blurring with tears then, like a dam, the water began to overflow.

"Sakura?" Kakashi frowned confused. Before I gave him an answer, I threw my arms around him and sobbed.

"T-Thank you! Thank you so much!" I cried. Kakashi's arms tightened around me as he held me in return.

"Shh. It's alright…now listen Sakura. You're starting a new life with new people and a new family. Anything that happened in your past shall be forgotten. So there is no reason to be sad now, because you have us now." Us? I shrugged it off and wiped my tears away.

"I-I'm sorry. I shouldn't have d-done that." I blushed and looked away.

That's alright. Aaaanywho, dry your tears and smile. You have to meet the others." He smiled as we walked to the front door.

"Excuse me Kakashi-san. What do you mean by others?" I finally asked."Not to pry or anything." I quickly added.

"Oops, I didn't tell you? I also have five sons that I have adopted."

I was quite shocked to hear this. I was probably going to be the only girl in the house. I hoped none of these boys are major perverted and annoying. I was afraid of what I would find behind these closed doors. A pig-sty? Underwear strewn about maybe. I held my breath as Kakashi turned the key in the lock and opened the door, revealing a surprisingly neat, tidy house. I smiled to myself. No underwear.

"Guys! She's here!!" I felt like a prize the boys were going to receive. I could make out a few voices, angry footsteps, mumbling and arguing as they ran down the stairs; then quiet when I reached the bottom.

Oh My God.

They looked…delicious. I hoped I didn't lick my lips when they came down the stairs, because that would've been embarrassing. Although I could only count four boys instead of five, I could still count my blessings for being the luckiest girl on Earth.

"This is Sakura Haruno. Treat her like one of us." I thought I sensed a tiny amount of amusement in his voice, but I was probably just imagining it anyways.

A blonde stepped forward and hugged me. "Hello Sakura-chan! I'm Naruto Uzumaki. Nice to meetcha."

"Uh, hello Naruto-kun. It is nice to meet you." I bowed slightly.

"And this is Neji," Naruto pointed to a brunette with stunning pearl eyes.

"Hello Neji-kun."

"And Shikamaru." Naruto then pointed to a dark brown-haired boy who wore his hair in ponytail and sported light chocolate eyes.

"Nice to meet you."

"And Sai. Be careful he's weird. Very." Last was a boy with short, pitch-black hair and piercing black orbs that were smiling back at me.

"Hello Sai-kun."

"Where is Sasuke?"Kakashi asked annoyed.

"Who knows?," Naruto spoke."Sasuke is the other guy who isn't here. He's a real asshole, but once you get to know him, he's still an asshole, but he isn't that bad cuz he lightens up a little. Or, at least to the rest of them that is. He still treats me like crap."

I giggled and looked at Naruto.

"See guys. She thinks I'm funny." Naruto pouted, wrapping an arm around me.

"Yeah Naruto. You're hilarious." Shikamaru said sarcastically. He pulled out a box of cigarettes from his pocket and sighed."I'll be back in five." Shikamaru said before leaving the room and out the front door.

Sai looked at me and smiled."I'll see you soon Sakura." And he left.

Neji merely nodded and went up the long, elegant, staircase. I turned to Naruto, waiting for him to say he was going to leave. After he didn't, I asked him.

"Are you leaving too?" I asked almost dejectedly.

"Nope. It's my job to give you the tour of this place. I hope you're wearing comfortable shoes because this may take a while." He smiled at me and grabbed my hand, leading me up the stairs.

:

I absolutely disagreed with the others when they thought Naruto wasn't funny. He made the most boring, dull things exciting and fun.

As we ended up in an endless hallway, he pointed to a bathroom that rested in the middle of two bedrooms.

"This where you go if you drink expired milk. Just make sure you check the dates." He grinned and I smiled, trying my best to hold my laugh in, but no such luck. I clutched my stomach and laughed. My poor stomach was abused at the time because I was laughing so hard, and so far, we only visited Neji's room, Shikamaru's, Kakashi's, Sai's and Naruto's own room.

"And this, my friend, is Sasuke's door." We had stopped at the end of the hall in front of a black door with a stop sign on it.

"This is probably the only part of his room you'll see. Which is a good thing." Naruto then turned his heel and walked in a bare, white room with a bed, dresser and a long, wide window in it.

"Last but not least, your room. It's kinda empty now. But you can do whatever you want to spice it up a bit." I completely walked inside the room and looked around, amazed. It was huge!

"Um, Naruto-kun," I turned to him and frowned."I-I don't think I have enough stuff to fit in here." I said, lifting the small bag up. I only had enough to fit in the first drawer of the dresser.

"Then we can buy you more stuff. It's no big deal."

"Oh ,no that's fine. I can always improvise." I shook my head, disagreeing with the idea.

"That's bull-crap. What's yours is ours and what's ours is yours. And I'm saying you don't have enough junk. You cannot live without junk."

"No, thank you Naruto-kun. I'm fine." I smiled and then frowned again.

"Is Sasuke-kun really that bad? I think he sounds okay." I said.

Naruto mumbled something inaudible.

"Huh?"

"You don't know Sasuke the way I do. He's changed a lot over the years." Naruto's face was serious, something I haven't seen since I got here. H e sighed and smiled. "Long story short, he's horrible."

"He can't be that bad. He's human after all." Naruto smirked. "What kind of person is he?"

"Well besides every I told you, he loves to "play" with girls, mentally and physically." I blushed but Naruto continued.

"He would say he loved you, but next thing you know, you see him making out with your best friend. Don't trust em'. He's bad news."

I jumped with surprise when I heard the door slam. Shikamaru? No, he came back in earlier.

"Sasuke…" Naruto muttered. I followed him out of my room. Before I turned the corner, I heard giggles and more mumbling from a deep voice. Naruto and I started going down the stairs and, just as we did, Sasuke and his visitor were coming up. He was…

Amazing.

He had obsidian, stoic eyes that, like a fisherman, caught me, and never let go. His hair was perfect. His bangs were even to the last strand of hair and it spiked up in the back, giving it the look of a chicken's bottom. There was something about him, something that told me he was dangerous. Maybe it was his stare, or his appearance, maybe even all the information Naruto gave me, but I knew it was something. And I wasn't crazy.

Sasuke glanced at me, and stopped walking. Naruto stopped walking, too. The girl that was walking behind Sasuke stopped and stared at me smugly. I bit my lip and looked away from her. She was pretty with her long black hair. Her dark green eyes resembled a cat's; sharp and piercing.

"Sasuke," the girl whined. "Who's this…girl?" she looked at me up and down and laughed to herself. "She looks like shit. You aren't messing with her too, are you?" Sasuke looked at me for a long second, then turned to the girl again.

"She's nobody important. Let's go." Sasuke said nonchalantly. They finished their hike up the stairs and retreated to Sasuke's room.

As Naruto and I finished walking down the stairs, I remained quiet. Once we reached the bottom, I lingered on the last step.

"Sakura. What they said…"

Naruto started. I looked at him and smiled slightly."I-It's okay Naruto-kun. I do look a mess ,huh?" I looked at my clothes. I was wearing an over-sized button-up shirt that belonged to my father. My other shirts were too small for me, and I couldn't afford some of my own, so I had to wear my parent's clothes.

Pathetic. I know.

The jeans I were wearing, were too small for me, so they stopped above my ankles. Even though I knew I looked awful, the girl's words still hurt. A lot.

"Sakura…" Naruto sighed.

"Um…I-I,uh, have to go." I said, starting to cry.

"Wait. Before you go, I have a question." Naruto grabbed my hand.

I spun around and looked at him, part angry and part dismal.

"What's the mark on your neck?"

"What?"

"I'm talking about those two marks on your neck. The holes, I mean."

Involuntarily, I stroked my neck, feeling the risen scar. I looked away and thought. Then looked back at Naruto. "I-I don't remember." I lied.

Naruto furrowed his eyebrows. "What do you remember?"

"I-I was running and…then, there were…red eyes…that is all I remember. I-I'm sorry Naruto-kun. I just can't…"

Naruto looked at me, except, it didn't feel like it. It felt like he was seeing through me. Through everything.

"It's alright Sakura. I just want to check one thing, okay?"

"O-Okay." Almost on cue, the guys and Kakashi came into the room.

"She doesn't remember." Naruto said simply.

Kakashi stepped forward and looked at me. "Just hold on."

I cocked my head to the side in confusion. He put his hand on my shoulder and sighed.

"Kakashi. You're scaring me." I whispered. Ignoring me, Kakashi reached above his head and lifted his headband. My breathing caught my dry throat, and I'm sure they could feel my harsh breaths.

'T-That's…that's the…red eyes." I slowly backed away from Kakashi. Was he the one who attacked me? No, he couldn't have been.

"Were these the eyes you saw when you were attacked?"

"Yes…" How did he know I was attacked? Why does Kakashi have those eyes when he never appeared at the scene of the crime?

Images and pictures began flashing through my head. The red eyes. The blonde who pinned me down, the red-head who gave the orders to kill me, my parent's corpses, the piercing pain in my neck that made me pass out. The blood. All that blood. Everything came back to me.

I was shaking and staring intently at Kakashi's red eye as best as I could since my eyes were blinded by a pool of tears.

"Why are you doing…this to me?" I started crying. I couldn't pull my eyes away from Kakashi's.

"Kakashi, we should stop now. We do not need her for information we already know." Neji finally spoke. Kakashi nodded and removed his hand from my shaking shoulder, then put his bandana back over his eye. I felt myself frozen. Unable to move because of the state of shock I was in. I was confused. Thoughts were running through my head like the newspaper hit the streets. The images of that day. Everything was overwhelming and, finally, I found my escape. I wobbled and staggered until I hit Kakashi's body, unconscious once again.

:

I awoke in a room that could only belong to me. As I sat up straight in bed, I felt the sudden pain of my headache. What happened last night? All I remember was Naruto's tour, the situation on the steps and…I guess I got tired and went to sleep. As I pulled the covers off of me and sat on the edge of the bed, I heard my stomach growl unattractively.

I sighed loudly and stood up. In the process, I accidentally stepped on an envelope that must've fallen off when I removed my covers. I bent down and looked at the clothes I was wearing. I was wearing the same clothes I had on yesterday and I sighed in relief as I was assured I wasn't "tampered with"

I picked up the envelope and looked at it closely, trying to guess what was inside. The envelope was normal-sized with a small, rectangle shape bulging out of it. A CD? No, a CD wouldn't fit in an envelope. Or maybe a video game. Not that either since I didn't have a game system. Hmm…what could it be? There was only one way to find out. I sighed and opened the envelope. I read the card in it first and smiled when I saw the doodle on the front with a girl with pink hair holding bags and smiling brightly.

I opened the card and read what was inside.

'Welcome to this house Sakura! I hope you slept okay and you like your gift. You seemed like the person who read the cards first so here ya go.'

-Naruto, Neji, Shikamaru, Sai and Kakashi

I put the card down and picked the envelope up again. As I stuck my fingers in the envelope, I gasped in disbelief at what I pulled out.

A Visa credit card.

"Naruto-kun…" I whispered, remembering our conversation yesterday.

'Then we can buy you more stuff. It's no big deal.'

I sighed and turned the credit card over to see the amount.

10,000 dollars.

I quickly got dressed and ran down the stairs.

"Kakashi-san?" I asked frantically. I started wondering if I was the only bizarre person in this house. No normal person gave a weird, unknown girl ten-thousand dollars for the heck of it.

"Yes?" Kakashi appeared around the corner with sweat on his handsome face and damp hair. Before I could ask what he'd been doing, he smiled at me. "Training." I was still confused, but then I remembered why I came down the stairs in the first place. I reached into my pocket and pulled out the credit card.

"I cannot accept this gift."I put the card on the counter and pushed it towards him. Kakashi chuckled and pushed it back to me.

"It's too much money. I'm not even worth that much, Kakashi-san." I pushed it back again.

" Buy yourself something good. Unless you're Naruto, you can never have enough stuff."

"Naruto does have a lot of stuff." I said to myself.

"Yeah, and you don't. So go ahead and get you something. You can even take your friends with you to shop."

I looked away at the ground." Um, that is not going to work."

Kakashi looked at me strangely." What's wrong with your friends?"

"N-Nothing, it's just…short notice that's all. Besides," I pit on the fakest of smiles. "I think shopping by yourself is better than having people thrusting stuff in your face."

"I guess. What are you going to use it on today?" I looked out the window and smiled at the peaceful blue skies and the butterflies dancing from flower to flower. It was beautiful.

"Hmm… I want to do something outrageous. Something no one expected me to do…"

Kakashi grabbed an apple from a nearby hand-woven basket."Outrageous, huh? How about…piercing your belly-button or your tongue?"

I grimaced." No thank you. That would be painful, wouldn't it?" Kakashi shrugged and tapped his long fingers on the table.

"How about… putting coloring in your hair?"

I giggled a little."I think my hair is naturally colorful enough. If I put anymore color in it, I'll end up looking like a rainbow."

"Your hair is naturally pink?" Kakashi asked in amazement. I nodded. "What color hair did your parents have?"

I hesitated and answered." My mother had red hair while my father had brown. When I was little he would always tell me my mother ate a lot of strawberry ice cream when she was pregnant, but that was just something to get me to go to sleep." I smiled to myself as I remembered how kind my father was until I hit thirteen.

:

'Daddy? Why do my hairs look funny?' I would ask in my baby voice, not completely learning how to form a correct sentence.

'What's funny about it? It looks fine to me.'

'No. It's pink. I don't like it. Why my hairs not like yours or Mommy's?'

'That's because mommy used to eat a lot of ice cream when you were in her tummy.'

I gasped as I "realized" my hair was made of ice cream.

'What kind of scream?'

'Strawberry. It was her favorite.'

'I have scream hairs? Does that mean I'm scary?'

'Of course not.'

'Sensei says it makes me ooneek.'

'You mean unique?' My father kissed my nose and put the covers over my shoulders.

'Mm-hm. That too.'

'Goodnight sweetheart.'

'G'night daddy.'

:

"Sakura? Are you alive," Kakashi was saying to me. I snapped back to reality and grinned, blushing at him.

"Sorry, I spaced out."

"Have you decided what you were doing with your money?"

"…Yes. I'm going to get a haircut."

"Good for you. Let me know when you're coming home so I can make sure you get in safely, okay?"

I smiled and nodded. I stuck the card back in my pocket and ran up the stairs, taking my shower, brushing my teeth and putting my hair in a ponytail. I settled in wearing my a pair of jeans and a T-shirt that said "Dracula Isn't the Only One Who Bites" and flip-flops. The shirt belonged to my only friend in the orphanage. We were exchanging clothes and I ended up with this shirt. She was adopted and never asked for the shirt back, so I kept it.

I left my bedroom and closed the door behind me. Just as I did, I noticed the moaning sounds coming from Sasuke's room. I looked his way and saw the door cracked and open, inviting the most curious of cats. Through the mirror that was in his room, I could see Sasuke kissing the girl's neck hungrily. I quickly turned away to give them some privacy, and I couldn't help but blush from embarrassment, What if Sasuke caught me spying on them? He would hate me more than he already did.

I found Naruto looking for something in the refrigerator and when he pulled several water bottles, and I noticed his clothes -an orange shirt with gray sweats, no socks, no shoes- I asked him what he was going to do today.

"Training." he told me.

"Is that what all of you do? Kakashi-san told me he was doing it too."

"Yeah. It's just to keep us in shape when the worst happens, you know?"

"Yeah… Maybe I can join you sometime." Naruto laughed at me." This is some hardcore stuff here. Only the toughest of tough people can withstand such a level of experience." Naruto glanced up the stairs and frowned.

"Does Sasuke do it too?"

"Yeah. He and I are the least experienced at this so we need all the training we can get."

I let that sink in. "Oh, then I won't stop you."

"Okay Sakura. See ya later. Oh yeah, by the way," Naruto smirked. "I like your shirt."

"Thanks." I replied. Naruto gave me a quick hug and went through the side door that led to the astonishing, outside work out center.

I grabbed one of my favorite books to read and started walking to the front door when I heard heavy footsteps coming down the stairs. I turned to see Sasuke and his girlfriend at the end of the steps. They shared a kiss and I heard Sasuke whisper something to her.

'See you tomorrow Ami. Love you." Ami was her name. She beamed at Sasuke, but frowned at me when she came my way.

"You're still here?" she spat.

"I…" I trailed off and looked away from Ami.

"Poor girl. I have her so whipped; she can't even look me in my eyes." Ami grabbed my chin and made me look in her cat-like eyes. "Make sure that doesn't happen again, got it, bitch?" I nodded.

"That's what I thought and do me a favor.," she pulled at my clothes. "While you're out, find yourself some new clothes. If I'm going to be over here a lot, I would want my undivided attention on Sasuke, not the shitty clothes you're wearing." She flipped her hair and left the house. I thought I saw something on her neck when she flipped her hair. What was it? I looked like the two holes that resembled mine, but I ignored it.

I turned to Sasuke and smiled a phony smile." H-Hello. I'm Saku-"

"I know who you are."

"Oh, w-well it's nice to meet-"

"Yeah whatever." Sasuke scoffed as he turned his heel and went out the side door, then slammed it closed with him on the other side.

:

I wasn't at the salon yet. Actually, I didn't even know where I was getting my hair cut. The whole idea just…popped in my head. Instead of chopping my hair off, I hid between two buildings in an alley way, hugging my knees and sobbing quietly. I was confused, yes. I was angry, that too. But I was also terrified of my entire situation. I wasn't wanted anywhere. My own family didn't want me around because they blamed me for the death of my parents, my old friends abandoned me, and my new family resented me. The only people I felt comfortable around were Naruto and Kakashi, and I knew in my head they just felt sorry for me.

Then there was Sasuke.

I never felt so terrible after a three second conversation. I tried to remember exactly what I did to make him so angry at me. I didn't say a thing to Ami either, yet she treated me like I stole her puppy or something. I knew one thing though. If it was up to Sasuke and his friends to make me feel better, they weren't doing a very good job at it.

"Excuse me?" I heard a high-pitched, soft voice rupture the silence.

"Hello? Are you okay?" another voice asked me in a worried, nervous tone.

I slowly looked up and sniffed, glancing at the two girls staring at me with bated breath. I wiped my tears and stood.

"What happened?!" asked a blonde-beauty with vivacious blue eyes. The girl next to the blonde sighed lightly. She had long raven hair that stopped at mid-back and incessant pearl eyes. I wondered if everyone on this side of town were so pretty.

"Are you okay?" the raven asked me softly. I nodded.

"What's your name, huh? I haven't seen you around here." The blonde pulled a tissue out of her sparkling purse and gave it to me.

"Me?" I asked, glancing over my shoulder.

"Yes."The raven smiled sweetly.

"Oh, I-I am Sakura Haruno."

"Hello Sakura. I'm Ino and that is Hinata."Ino smiled.

"How about we get some coffee? Then we can figure out an efficient way to make you feel better. Okay?" Hinata asked, smiling. Who were these people? And why are they being so nice? Maybe they knew Kakashi and he paid them to befriend me. I smiled back at her and reluctantly nodded, leaving with these two strangely friendly people; still unaware of what their intentions were.

:

"What were you planning to do today Sakura?" Hinata asked, placing the tray of drinks on the high table we were sitting at. We decided to go to a nearby café and talk. Jazz music hummed in the background and poetry was being read beautifully. It was all so peaceful and amazing.

"Actually, I planned on getting my hair cut a little but-"

"Really, that's where we were going. If you were up to it, you could come with us to our salon. It works magic."

"And it's expensive." Hinata added. I nodded.

"I can afford it."

Ino grinned."Cool. Let's go, let's go." She grabbed our hands and pulled us out of the café .

:

The whole process of getting my hair done was painful. I hadn't gotten my hair done professionally in so long, I wasn't surprised when the stylists were frowning and staring at my hair.

"Is this your natural color?" my stylist asked me. I nodded confused. "Um, okay. How did you want it today?"

"I planned on cutting it to right here." I said pointing to a spot on my back.

"Very well. I'll see to it you look as beautiful as ever." The woman smiled.

Then the torture started.

First I had to get my hair washed. Usually when I was 13, it felt relaxing when I was getting it washed. But now, they were pulling and massaging and scrubbing my scalp. It felt so bad, I was near tears. After that, she wrapped a white towel around my hair and dried it with her hands, which involved more pulling. When the whole washing process was complete, I could feel my entire abused scalp throbbing.

I was grateful to get a break when she put me under the hairdryer. Even though I had two hours to read my book I brought, I used this time to catch up on my much needed sleep. After that, my stylist blow dried my hair slowly.

'The slower you blow dry the hair, the more straight it gets.' She told me. Not only did my hair get straight while blow drying, but it almost felt good. As they straightened my hair and combed through it, I felt all the weight leave my hair. Then I felt snipping noises from behind me, so I assumed she was cutting my hair now. The woman spun me around in my chair so I was facing the mirror. I gasped and in disbelief.

I looked so pretty.

I got out of my chair and thanked the stylist. "It looks amazing." I smiled, feeling a new found confidence building inside of me.

"Sakura!" Hinata and Ino called out to me. They had gotten their hair done just like mine, and they looked just as good as I did.

"You look amazing!" Hinata and Ino shouted in unison.

"T-Thank you, so do you." I paid for my hair, grabbed a card, and left with my friends.

:

After a few more hours of fun with my friends, I remembered I told Kakashi I was only getting my hair done, not hanging out. They gave me their numbers, even though I didn't own a cell phone, and bid my goodbye. I took the bus back to the mansion, but stopped a few blocks down the road so I didn't seem all too weird. As I finally reached the mansion I typed in the code Kakashi gave me and walked up the driveway and to the front door, which was already open for me. The mansion had all of its lights off, and because of its massive size, it was kind of creepy.

"Where is everybody? Naruto-kun, Kakashi-san?" I whispered. I reached for the light switch that was supposed to be next to the doorway, but felt a clasp on my wrist. I gasped and wrenched my body away from the hand only to hit my knee against the edge of a table. I seethed as I felt something run down my leg. Blood, it had to be. Thank god I couldn't see it.

"Ow…" I moaned.

I stood and started limping towards the front door again. It hurt so badly. I managed to open it halfway before it was slammed closed and I was thrown against it. I opened my mouth to scream, but a hand was pressed over it. I muffled a sound and closed my eyes tightly.

"Shh." The voice was one of a man's. I still couldn't see a thing in the dark, but the only thing I could go on was that it was a male attacking me, I was being bound to a door with no one around to hear me scream, and I was bleeding, for that I began to cry and whimper behind the hand on my mouth. The man pressed me harder against the door, so the door knob was digging into my back painfully. He restrained my hands above my head and heaved a sigh.

"I'll remove my hand from your mouth. If you scream, I'll kill you. You hear me?" I quickly nodded rapidly. He slowly removed his hand from my mouth and as soon as he did, I began sobbing loudly. I was scared, my knee was throbbing and numbed in pain, and my throat was arid.

"D-D-Don't kill me. D-Don't p-please." I pleaded through uncontrollable sobs.

"Shut the hell up. Begging makes me more pissed off. This is a test, so cooperate with me and you'll live. I'm going to move my hands from your wrists now. Don't run because you won't make it very far. Got it?" The stranger whispered.

"Y-Yes. Okay." I bit my lip to stop my sobbing, but the tears still fell. When his hands left my wrists, I fell to the ground, crying.

"Now Sakura. I can't do much with you on the ground." I felt myself being forced to my feet. I felt hands on my shoulders and a hand around my waist, holding me up.

"You look different tonight." He said.

"H-How do you know m-me. W-What do you w-want with me?" Instead of an answer, I felt hands on my body again. I felt a hand sliding up my shirt and fingers running through my hair.

"N-No." I whispered pulling away from him. There wasn't a second I was close to free. He was holding me so tightly.

"Mmm…l-let me…go!" I grabbed something on a dresser and threw it at him. I heard a shattering sound and, as soon as his grip loosened, I ran at top speed, ignoring the tables and counters and walls I ran into. I groped the wall for a light switch or a phone or something.

"Someone help me!! Help!" I screamed. I tripped on a step that led to a formal dining room. I fell on top of a vase. It crushed beneath me and felt a stabbing pain in my back. I screamed and cried again. I tried to stand, and turned around but found myself staring into crimson eyes.

"No…" I whispered.

"I told you not to run." It was those eyes. The ones that haunted me every waking day of my life from when I woke up, from when I went to sleep.

"Please no." I cried. I felt a hard, pressured slap against my face and I fell to the ground again.

"We can do this the easy way or the hard way. It's up to you." I tried to crawl away but was yanked up by my hair and thrown into the wall with a hanging mirror. The mirror was cracked and several shards impaled my back and arms. I could feel blood trickling down my forehead, to my cheek and running into the corner of my mouth.

I could taste the blood. I started hyperventilating in choppy breathes. Just the thought of blood was enough to scare me. But the iron liquid was in my mouth. I couldn't breathe and…for some reason, I stopped trying to save myself. I gave up. I stood crying, wheezing and waiting for this monster to kill me.

I recall hearing from my old friends that the last moments of your life were the most peaceful. And that's how I felt. Even as the attacker buried his face in my neck and kissed it gently, then licked it, I was peaceful. Even as he traced his tongue over my neck and bit down just as his blonde friend did all those years ago.

I yelped at first while tensing. Then, all the pain dispersed. Unlike last time, it felt good and pleasurable. Comforting and addicting. Intoxicating. He pressed his face firmer against my neck and I couldn't help but moan loudly.

It felt so good.

"Aah…" I whispered.

Not only was I feeling something I've never felt before, but I was feeling light-headed and dizzy. I felt like if I didn't get away from this "thing", I would die for real.

"No…" I whispered coming back to my senses. I placed my hands on his chest when he ignored me.

"St-Stop. No!" I used the last bit of strength I had left to scream and push the stranger away from me. I gasped when I felt a murderous pain in my neck and winced when I felt blood running down it. I ran through what seemed to be one of the millions of living rooms and found the doorknob. I quickly swung the door open. I quickly ran out, but bumped into a hard body on the way. I closed my eyes as I felt calloused hands keeping me steady. Please don't be him, I prayed. I opened my eyes and thankfully found Naruto and the others staring at me with shock in their eyes.

"N-Naruto-kun. M-M-Monster…living room…e-eyes… I-I…" I stammered through tears.

"Shh, Sakura. Just breathe okay?" Naruto soothed. I stared at him wide-eyed. After that, everything started sinking in, and I found myself in a daze.

"Sakura?" Shikamaru touched my shoulder. I stood standing in Naruto's arms, not moving an inch.

"She's in shock, take her inside." Kakashi ordered. I didn't remember when I walked in the room, or sat down on the couch. All I knew was that as soon as we entered the mansion, Naruto disappeared.

"N-N-Naruto-kun… where are y-you?" I whispered.

"He's in the other living room to see what happened."

I froze." No. Get him o-out of there!" I ran out of my seat when I felt a strong, powerful blast of energy. I gasped when I heard several shattering glasses.

"No…" I whispered to myself.

I finally reached the living room and found Naruto in one piece. I looked around the room for the attacker. Except…all I found was Naruto with his hands around Sasuke's throat.

Well then people. This is the story with the longest chapter. I really hope you like it cause I love you all to pieces. Also, in the beginning, the quote is mine. I had a brain fart and...yeah. For those of you who comment on Sakura's quiet personality, i made her weak for a reason. It's so, throughout the story, you can see how her actions and personality grows and so she can become more outgoing. And, there will be a time in the story where she reaches her breaking point and fights back. Yeah. Oh, and Kakashi, Naruto, Shikamaru, Sai, Neji and Sasuke are vampires. Love you guys. Last thing. I want to apologize about the centering in the story. I thought it looked kind of cool when i was typing but when i went back over it when i got more comments, i realized it was confusing. So i apologize. Don't worry cause I'll update ASAP.

-Jazz Out