Unfortunately school's back, so hopefully I'll come around to updating sometime soon (I'll be writing constantly, just bit by bit). I'm planning on making slower updates while increasing the length of each chapter as compensation. Enjoy! :)
note - genres for this story have officially been changed to Action/Adventure + Romance. I feel that I want to focus more on Sakura's growth as a kunoichi and her mission first and put Romance second, both because everyone's technically still very young and it'll be quite a while before you'll be seeing some outright romance.)

Unwinding Time

by Reveri

Standard Disclaimer Applies

Chapter 16: Soaring Eagles

Inner Sakura

General Thought

"S-Sai?" Sakura had spoken faster than her mind could react. Jade eyes narrowed, taking several hesitant steps backwards. The three senbon she had taken out earlier were still positioned between her fingers, ready to strike.

'He might not be Sai - I could've mistaken him for someone else,' she reminded herself. 'Even if he is...'

"Hello," the boy responded, his voice treading lightly as if to test Sakura. He gazed at her straight in the eye.

"...What are you doing here? Who are you?" She shot out her reply as soon as the boy had spoke. Her tone was demanding, leaving no room for argument or excuse.

Sai, or whoever he was, looked confused. "You've just said my name," he pointed out. He did not answer her former command.

"So... you're Sai, then." The kunoichi did not let down her guard. She remained poised to strike, senbon glinting in the moonlight.

"...Yes." His eyes caught sight of the senbon, as if he'd only noticed them just now. Under the moon's glow, they glistened the strangest tint of violet, not at all the regular metallic silver shade. "You poisoned those?" He enquired curiously. His eyes displayed no intimidation; rather, he seemed intrigued.

Sakura scowled. He was attempting to determine her skill. 'Perhaps... Root is aware of my recent abnormalities? But that doesn't make sense...' "Why do you ask?" she retorted haughtily. "I haven't forgotten about my previous question, you know."

"I'm sure." The young Sai pulled a fake smile, causing the pinkette to grimace. She had always been uncomfortable with his attempts to mimic a natural smile, leading off to a bad start between her and the artist-nin when they had first met. It didn't help when he'd thought to call her Ugly or hag, either...

Irritated, the kunoichi lifted her senbon slowly, ready to release -

Completely ignoring Sakura's actions, Sai continued. "Sasuke Uchiha seems to lust for revenge."

His words caught her completely off-guard. She flinched, her hold on the sharp needles loosening. She muttered string of curses at her subconscious mistake. "I - er - yes, he's very handsome and adorable," Sakura attempted to pull off a deeply-enamoured expression, hoping it would suffice. 'This Sai is different. He might still be working for Danzo. I mustn't make him suspicious.'

Sai was a member of Root, however, trained to hone their ninja instincts since they were toddlers, and so he immediately caught on to the girl's reaction. "I see. Sorry, hag," and this time he gave a genuine smile, "but I needed to make sure."

"Wait - what?" This time Sakura lowered her senbon and returned to a neutral standing position, although she couldn't help but twitch her eyebrow at the boy's favorite description of her. "...Sai? Is.. that really you?"

"Yes."

"Prove it." 'He could still be using genjutsu of some sort, I know I'm still quite lacking in that area..."

"You are a formidable apprentice of the future Fifth Hokage. Dickless" - Sakura winced at the reminder of her deceased teammate - "assisted me in remembering my brother, Shin. But of course, I could have told you that if I'd bothered to probe your mind properly." He stuck his hand in a small pouch, looking for something. He pulled out a very familiar book, with a grey-haired boy on the cover. Sai flipped to the middle of the book and tilted it to face Sakura.

"Look."

The completed image of Sai's self-proclaimed brother and companion Shin holding hands with Sai met the pinkette's eyes. They were both grinning.

She looked up.

"Why did you come here?" She didn't mean her room.

"Tsunade-sama's orders, I'll explain. Have you received a message from her yet? She was... unable to replicate the messaging scroll she had given to you."

Tilting her head curiously to the side, she replied, "Yes, just this morning. Why?"

"What did it say?" 'Is she aware of the Godaime's condition?'

"The true catalyst behind the massacre was Uchiha... Madara," muttered Sakura, clenching her fists and gazing dejectedly at the carpeted floor.

Sai paused, having just been considering taking a step closer to the kunoichi. His gaze dropped to a photo frame of Team Seven. He knew of Uchiha Madara; in fact, prior to his departure, he had been debriefed about it.

"Nothing else?" He questioned simply.

A pink eyebrow raised. "So you've already been told... no, I haven't."

'So she doesn't know.' "Yes. Check your messaging scroll."

"Why?" Sakura queried, although she abided anyway, pulling out the jet-black device. When her former teammate did not reply, she unwrapped it herself.

Emerald eyes widened in genuine surprise. "W-what? But I didn't even... I felt nothing..."

The Root ninja's eyes widened, too, although he made a far smaller show of it. 'If hag wasn't able to detect a message, then the Godaime has already left the living world...'

"When the time comes, I'll tell Sakura myself... D-Don't tell her about my current state," the blonde croaked. The Sannin had had a reputation for their flawless, agile bodies and formidable skill despite their age. Whereas most shinobi retired nearing their fourties, their bodies battered and beaten by decades of combat and physical strain, Konoha's three had continued to stand. They were certainly forever youthful.

But things were different now, and two of the Legendary Sannin had fallen. The final, Tsunade Senju, lay bedridden, her chakra unable to hide the lines of age marring her face. No longer could she ignore the fact that the time for her petals to wilt had long come. The shinobi's end.

The former Root member stood before her tall and strong, not yet hindered by the test of time. "I understand."

"You will... stand by her side, relay the support I cannot give her physically. Also..." a cough. "You will investigate Danzo."

"Yes, Godaime-sama."

"I... am quite sorry to have to assign you this mission, Sai. You may be a part of ANBU, but this is still not a mere child's job..." The dying hokage inhaled and exhaled deeply, gazing out at the setting sun.

"I don't understand," Sai admitted. "A mission is a mission. It must be fufilled."

Honeyed eyes pierced jet black ones. "If I'd known earlier about Root, I'd have..." Tsunade coughed into her hand. When she lowered it, dark crimson blood stained her palm and lips.

Sakura finished inspecting the new message Shizune had written for her.

"It's... odd," Sakura muttered. "Lately, Shizune's been the one writing the messages. I suppose Tsunade-shishou is busy, though..." She wrapped the scroll carefully, setting it on her clothes' drawer. "I hope she succeeds in her trip."

"Trip?"

"Yeah, she said she's taking a several-month trip and won't be able to contact me."

I'll tell Sakura myself... D-Don't tell her about my current state... or I'll pummel you down to the ground floor.

Sai let out a resigned sigh, gazing out Sakura's window at the moonlight buildings ahead."I still do not understand how people work very well," he muttered softly to himself.

"What was that?"

"Nothing of great importance. But we need to talk."

"We are," Sakura could not help but retort.

"It is said that the sentence is generally stated when one wishes to take a serious turn in a conversation," Sai replied, no doubt referencing Konoha's limited supply of books instructing one on the arts of friendship.

The kunoichi snorted. "Alright... let's head towards the balcony. I could use some fresh air."

"It's too open, we could be heard. Especially since Danzo specifically requested for me to -" he spluttered. "The curse seal," he muttered, when Sakura sent a questioning look. "I no longer have it, but now that Danzo is alive again the remnants of it still react to his chakra."

Sakura nodded, frowning and turning to face the window to check for any possible eavesdroppers. When there were none, she continued, "This'll be a problem."

"Yes." He deftly performed several hand seals, a faint wave of chakra passing by Sakura, who shivered at the sensation. "The room should be secure from eavesdroppers. Let down the blinds and turn on a light."

"Okay..." Sakura complied, doing as the thirteen-year-old Sai instructed her. When she had finished, Sai had taken a seat on a small wooden chair accompanied by a desk stacked with Leaf Academy textbooks and several library books Sakura had borrowed as of late.

For several moments, the constant ticking of a clock and Sakura's muffled footsteps as she took a seat on the fluffy pink covers of her bed filled the room.

"So..." Sakura trailed off. She shook her head, as if to regain her composure. "I'm glad you're here, Sai. I really could use a friend who knows about all this right now."

Ever since her return, she'd been surrounded by those she'd loved and cared for - a time the most of her worries were being scolded by her teacher. But now things were undeniably different, and she could not help but feel a certain detachment towards her teammates.

Because, no matter how much she loved and savoured their company for the time being, she couldn't tell them. And when the initial rush of adrenaline wore off, the weary lifestyle of constant avoidance of suspicion and action from the shadows was bound to wear anyone out.

"Friend," Sai echoed. He had said it once or twice more, as if the word was foreign to his lips. "I suppose we are friends," he affirmed.

The pinkette couldn't help but stifle a chuckle. Although Sai had come a long way from the days of fake smiles and empty feelings, he still had much to experience. "How are things...there?"

"To be honest, not very well," Sai replied, truthfully. "Konoha is at a great disadvantage at the moment. Many nations no longer consider Konoha to be a threat. For now, everyone has merely been... "picking up the pieces," as Shizune-san mentioned."

If one had assumed this would've crushed Sakura's hopes, they were wrong. "When we complete this, no one needn't ever remember this again," the pinkette stated boldly, her eyes hardening under the dim light of a small lamp. "When we return, everything will be what it should've been." 'All I need to do is to defeat Orochimaru tomorrow in the exams, or at least prevent him from approaching Sasuke until the second stage is over. Then I can go back...'

Sai raised an eyebrow. 'Why did Tsunade-sama leave out that information too?' "I suppose."

"Speaking of which," Sakura disregarded Sai's expression, "When did you arrive?"

"When you left off for Wave Country," Sai stated matter-of-factly. "I did some research." He held up an orange book.

"Icha...Icha..?" Sakura crossed her arms, frowning at her teammate's choice of "novel".

"Kakashi-sempai had recommended it to me," Sai interrupted quickly, wincing in remembrance of Sakura's chakra-infused punches. "And also ANBU's archives."

"Aa..." Sakura responded, her arms falling to her sides, instead making note to lecture her teacher sometime in the future.

"I'd only approached you now because it seemed like the right time. I am to be... on good terms with you and the others."

"What! Did this happen last time?" Sakura jumped out of her seat, a small white rabbit plush toppling to the ground.

"Yes. Only... last time, I was merely asked to befriend Sasuke-san and Dickless. Sasuke-san knew the village would have monitored him closely, him being the last Uchiha and all, and thus interacting with him would have been difficult. It didn't matter, though. Kakashi-senpai prevented me from approaching them. The mission failed from the start."

'How had I not noticed that? Surely I would've known in the past if it had to do with Sasuke...'

'Whatever happened, we probably didn't pay too much attention to unless it was Sasuke-kun talking,' Inner added. She'd been subdued the entire day, only adding comments every now and then.

The pinkette grimaced. 'Probably...'

"I suggest you keep a low profile -"

"That's what I've been doing!" she retorted exasperatedly.

"Danzo-" he coughed haphazardly, his mistake earning him a painful jolt. When the heaves subsided, a hint of emotion on the artist-nin's normally emotionless visage came in. 'Is that... worry? Sai...'

"I... understand," she finally stated, partially because she knew Sai was right, but moreso the fact that her teammate's concern for her had humbled her to a certain degree.

"Good." Sakura shifted in her seat awkwardly while Sai began to take an interested look at the contents of her desk. A silence descended upon the two again; despite their familiarity, they had never quite been on incredibly close terms.

"Do you love him?"

"W-what?"

"Do you love Sasuke Uchiha, hag?"

"Why..." Sakura's green eyes narrowed suspiciously.

"You... once told me it was love that gave Naruto-kun power," he said quietly. "But when it comes to you and Sasuke-san, what you have told me doesn't seem to match."

"What's that supposed to mean?" The kunoichi was quite uncomfortable with the sudden change in topic; she squirmed in her seat. 'Calm down Sakura, it's not like he hasn't asked these kinds of questions without realizing what they actually mean before...'

"You and Naruto-kun have never considered giving up on Sasuke-san in the past. Dickless told me that his love for Uchiha-san was much like my... love for Shin, but your love for Uchiha-san was different." He paused to allow the pinkette to reply, but she did not, because she herself couldn't even come to terms with what the Uchiha meant to her anymore.

"Why is it that your love for Sasuke weakens you? He is the only person I have ever met that you spend tears instead of chakra on."

"He's... extremely important to me," the kunoichi whispered, moreso to herself than the Root member.

"Moreso than Naruto, who had been bullied by the entire village and orphaned but took it all in stride?" His tone was not angry, demanding, nor condescending; this, Sakura knew. It was only like Sai to confront Sakura about this for purely professional and/or curious reasons.

But she could not help but react angrily. "I... what do you know about relationships or love? You don't know anything, Sai. You shouldn't be talking." Sakura retorted angrily, a slight tremor passing through her.

"Friends help each other, even if it means telling them what they do not wish to hear," the Root member recited. "It's not only Sasuke you should be saving, hag. Konohais at stake. Naruto is at stake."

Sakura stared at Sai, ingesting his words. Then she suddenly brought her palm up to her forehead in defeat and sighed. "I... I'm sorry, Sai. That was out of hand."

"It's alright, I think. I do not blame you. I read in this book," Sai pulled out a thin red book, "this is a common reaction to being questioned personally." He flipped to his desired page. "See here, common reactions include: anger, grumpiness, defensiveness -"

"I think that's enough," said Sakura, who couldn't help but roll her eyes. Then she returned to seriousness. "I didn't truly mean that... you've come a long way, you know."

"It cannot be denied that I am indeed emotionally stunted... but thank you."

Sakura stood up from the bed and gave him a bear hug despite her petite form. Sai, feeling extremely confused, simply patted her back kindly, feeling somewhat uncomfortable with the sensation. Much to Sai's relief, she soon let go, perhaps aware of his discomfort.

Petite, pale arms embraced a small, equally pale infant. A tuft of jet black hair, the same shade as the long locks of the woman who held him, graced his head.

The artist-nin's eyes flared briefly. But his pink-haired teammate was too busy with her own thoughts to notice this rare event.

"I..." She paused. "Sasuke now... he isn't like Sasuke after he joined Orochimaru. True, he can be cold and stoic, but... he's not truly evil, or anything. The things he called me - annoying, weak - they were blunt, but they weren't false. It was one of the reasons I was so eager about this mission. All those years Naruto and I spent trying to knock some sense into him and bring him back home, we were digging for the Sasuke underneath all the desire for power and revenge. The... old Sasuke. Having him back right now, being able to come to the training grounds every day, seeing my team united and whole... it pleases me beyond words. And... if it means saving what could have been us, united as a whole, I'd gladly do this. Because I've slowly come to terms with the fact the Sasuke we once knew died a long time ago."

"Word has been spreading like wildfire," Tsunade stated, her gaze steely and hands balled into fists. "Orochimaru has been slain by Uchiha Sasuke."

"W-what?" What had remained of Team Seven produced what would have been comical, identical gaping expressions.

Naruto was the first to recover. "Baa-chan, that's great! Right, Sakura-chan?"

The pinkette nodded vigorously, her heart flaring, beating rapidly against her ribcage. "So... he's coming back, right -" suddenly, she halted. "Shishou?"

But the Godaime continued to frown, her mouth set in a grim line. "He..." She looked towards the jounin, Kakashi, who perhaps at least would not grace her with the same glaringly dejected look her favourite genin and chunin would be bound to give.

However, even the years in ANBU could not lessen the blow of Tsunade's implication. "He's not coming back," the ex-ANBU finished.

"...Yes."

Sakura froze, sending pleading looks toward her shishou, a blanket of dread surrounding her. "What? But..."

"Sasuke has joined the Akatsuki."

"N-no... no way!" the kunoichi gasped, knees shaking. She held onto Kakashi's sleeve for support, and for a moment, just a moment, the strong exterior Sakura had built since Sasuke's departure cracked, revealing the innocent, naive young girl she had once been.

Kakashi would not bear to look at his student, could not, because he couldn't bear the disappointment he would see reflected in his own eye. Because deep down, he knew that if only he had focused more on teamwork, or even sent them back to the academy that fated day, this wouldn't have happened -

"It's no surprise, really..."

Sakura and Kakashi immediately directed their gazes towards the blonde teammate, who was unusually sombre.

"He may have been part of Konoha," Naruto said quietly, gazing out the windows that revealed Konoha's vast claim over the land below. "But he will always be a part of the Uchiha."

She directed her gaze to Team Seven's photo frame. Kakashi, Naruto, Sasuke, and Sakura.

"I think I've known for quite a while," she admitted.

"The Sasuke I knew wouldn't have killed Naruto," she clenched her fists, "wouldn't have watched his best friend die without -"

Sai gripped the pinkette's shoulder firmly. "Sakura."

Sakura sighed, lids covering green eyes, holding back the onslaught of salty, wet tears. "I'm sorry."

A light tapping noise suddenly caught the two shinobi's attention.

"W-what was that?"

Sai's hand fell from the girl's shoulder. "It's Kaiya," he replied cheerfully, as if it were common for people to tap on windows at night.

"Kaiya? A girl? What's she doing here?" 'More reinforcements from the future? But that's not possible -'

"Not a girl," he lifted the blinds and slid open the glass window. A small bird perched on his outstretched fingertip. "A messenger bird." He gazed fondly at the small creature.

His gaze did not go unnoticed. "It's not often people respect the obedience of messenger birds," she treaded lightly.

Sai untied the string encasing a leaf-green message scroll bound to the bird's leg. "That's true," he replied, tucking the scroll into a small bag. 'Don't ask what this is.' The words were unnecessary; shinobi grew up respecting privacy. "He was Shin's favourite bird. Always tried to set him free from Danzou...sama." And then he stopped, and looked Sakura hard in the eye, trying to convey what he could not put into words. "I saw him today. Shin."

"Oh," Sakura replied lamely. She had never really known much about Shin, other than the illustrations Sai had done of his "brother". A moment of guilt stabbed her chest - she had never bothered to ask Sai just what had happened between her teammate and the gray-haired Root member. "Are you... alright?"

"I... think so. I tried to do that - what you did earlier."

"You hugged him?"

"I tried."

Sakura smiled. "The hardest step is initiation. How did it feel?"

"I'm not sure I can describe it." He clenched the thick fabric of the shirt that covered the location of his heart.

"You don't need to... I can already tell." Sakura grinned.

"It's not wrong to have emotions."

"It's... not?"

"Nope. I'd ask what your name is, but I know many don't remember. I remember mine, though - mine's Komatsu, but my Root code-name's Shin. Pretty awesome name, huh? Nice to meet you!""I wish I still remembered my name." A young boy, skin pale enough to be considered an unhealthy shade of grey, pouted, as he swung his legs on the dock. The orange flow of the setting sun enveloped him.

His collarbone-length ash-haired companion ruffled the young boy's ink black hair, chuckling as he did so. "But a name's all I have. At least you have the memories."

"But I only have two. I don't even remember the faces, or who they were... what if they aren't even real?"

"You'll remember them," Shin's tone left no room for argument. "And then they'll come for you, and -"

"I won't leave without you. " Charcoal eyes displayed utmost sincerity. "I won't ever forget you."

"They finally gave me a name," He informed his fellow-Root companion hesitantly.

"They'd better have given a good one," a menacing reply, no doubt ready to kill if his precious 'brother' had been named improperly.

"Sai."

Shin looked, really looked, at his friend. "That's a fitting name, Sai." He ruffled his companion's black hair.

I promised I wouldn't forget, didn't I? Look - see? It's us, on each cover."

"Us?" The word was echoed, hollowly, like it carried no meaning.

"Yeah - we get closer to our dreams each page! Isn't that great?"

"Closer to our... dreams?" A look of confusion.

"Shin...? What's... wrong?"

"I... don't know."

"He is a threat to the others. Emotions are crippling, terribly crippling. Shinobi are tools and servants to their master first and foremost. They musn't submit to emotions. Trim our... "roots"."

"Hai, Danzo-sama."

"Shin, I'm almost done... look, I'm at the page where we battled the samurai you always told me about, -"

"Shin... who is Shin?"

"Shin..? But... surely you must remember your real name, then - Komatsu!"

"That's not my name."

"What is your name, shinobi?"

"I have no name, for I do not exist. I live to serve Konohagakure from the shadows."

"That is correct. You will no longer need to perform missions under the Hokage - a name will no longer be necessary. From now on, you serve me and only me. No one shall know your identity, save the members of Root."

"I don't remember anymore..."

"Why did I draw this? Who is this person?"

I will remember, this time.

A small crow flitted through the trees of the Forest of Death. It chose to perch on a particularly thin branch, beady black eyes gazing intently upon the crowd of genin that had formed outside the chained fences humming with electricity.

Its shadow grew uncharacteristically large.

Before the bird was aware of any... unwanted companions, a large snake engulfed the crow with a single sweep of its head. Ink gushed from its mouth, dripping onto the bark below with a consistency thinner than blood. Irritated, the menacing creature spat out the jet-black liquid, slithering down the length of the tree, the width of its body almost enough to encompass the tree itself.

"There there, Ryousei," crooned Anko Mitarashi with a sly grin, perched on a branch herself. She brought out a stick of her favourite treat, sliding one dango ball out of its' wooden stick much like the snake had devoured its' ink-prey, licking her lips as she swallowed. "I'm sure you'll have many tasty little genin to devour upon once the exam starts. Save your appetite for then and quit preying on someone's attempt to spy on us, won't you?'

"Yesssss," the snake hissed. Upon closer inspection, one would have noticed the tell-tale jet black markings of a snake summon located at the base of its jaw. "Hurry up and let them in, now won't you, Anko-chan?"

"Just don't eat all of them, or Hokage-sama will have my neck," The special jounin added under her breath, although the admonished remark was half-hearted. "Just give them a bit of a scare, if you will. I'll desummon you in a couple of hours. Let them think twice about underestimating Konoha's chunin exams."

"You alwaysss had an excellent ssenssse of humor..." The serpent slithered further into the depths of the dense shrubbery.

Anko, on the other hand, walked towards the nearest entrance gate, muttering, "seriously, what was Ibiki thinking, allowing so many puny little genins pass..." She leapt over the tall steel fence, not bothering to make use of the deactivation jutsu that would allow people to cross. In front of her stood the seventy or so genin that had passed, all forming small groups of their own as they gazed upon the intimidating sight before them with uncertainty. Upon seeing the exam proctor arrive, they all stood a little straighter.

"Hello everyone," she greeted cheerfully. No one replied, to which she let out an audacious smirk. "In front of you is what we like to call the Forest of Death... and you'll soon find out why."

If Sai was aware that one of his Beast Imitation drawings had just been destroyed within the confines of an ominous snake summon, he didn't show it.

He had slipped within the confines of an underground base, deep under Konoha's prided Hokage Monument. He shunshin'ed a mile away from a sealed entrance, his Ink Mist Technique hiding his entire figure and the translucent white clouds billowing from under his feet. Leaping to the ceiling of a narrow tunnel encased with ashen gray cement, he masked his chakra. Sai frowned as the prickling sensation of chakra being sucked from his body enveloped him.

The boy unzipped a cotton pouch, unfurling a long scroll one-handedly and dipping a brush in a pot of ink glowing the faintest of blues.

"Ninja Art: Super Beast Imitation!"

Several mice leapt from the confines of the parchment. Their inky, beady eyes were focused on several seals, each stuck to a bone white ceramic tile strategically placed along the floor of the tunnel. They began to nibble on the edges of each seal gingerly, taking care to shred the black markings.

After several minutes, the mice evaporated like mist ascending the air. The black-haired artist-nin dropped to the ground, letting slip a shaky pant.

"He always favoured taking what was not his," Sai muttered, his tone showing great disapproval under his porcelain mask at the chakra suction tags embedded within the cement of ceiling. The chakra, once taken, would ultimately circulate through the system of tunnels, which would eventually be tested in several of Danzo's labs.

'Now that I think about it, he is much like Orochimaru in that aspect...'

Noting to inform Sakura of his suspicions later, he raced towards the entrance, where a large seal encased a smooth round stone barrier.

"The strength of a tree lies in its roots," he stated. The seal glowed and the ink dispersed, leaving a blank white sheet. Sai bit his thumb, swiping the digit across the sheet to form the kanji for root, his blood acting as his painting medium.

He slapped his outstretched palm onto the parchment, vivid blue chakra flowing from his fingers. They extended from his pallid fingertips, forming inky black lines that encased the surface of the rock.

"Kai!"

Rough stone and dusty tile gave way to polished wood and elegant marble, revealing a massive chamber of completed mission scrolls tucked neatly onto mahogany shelves, more and more yellow with age as one ventured towards the end of the room. The mixed scents of paper, ink, and the slightest hints of clear urethane spray paint wafting through the ventilated air radiated an aura of harsh rules and procedures. The blinding white light emanating from several lightbulbs added to the atmosphere.

Sai strode in, nodding curtly towards a masked Root member piling new, white scrolls in an orderly fashion on an empty shelf. Without further ado, he approached the tenth shelf, fingering the tightly wound edges of each scroll as he walked along.

'Sunagakure diplomatic mission... unauthorized Iwa assassination... routine Clan District patrol...' He frowned. 'I assume he found it risky to place them here.'

"Looking for this?" a bright red scroll was dangled, centimetres from his nose. Sai glanced upwards, raising his eyebrows curiously to meet Shin's gaze. A curtain of grey locks hung upside down from the boy's head. "...Where did you find that?"

"Nowhere you need to know about," the boy grinned. He stood, feet connected by chakra to the wooden ceiling, heads mere inches apart from each other.

Sai grasped the scroll with his right hand, slowly putting the object in his back pouch without breaking eye contact.

"I figured you were looking for that." Sai pursed his lips, the equivalent of a deep frown on anyone else.

Shin continued, "Besides, a little... adventure was certainly in order." He retracted his hand and leaped from the ceiling, performing a quick flip in midair to land gracefully in front of Sai, smirking as he did so.

"What's up? You look troubled."

Automatically, Sai began analyzing each notion in his head, recalling Sakura's recommendation of recognizing his own emotions. But a gut feeling told him now wasn't the time nor place, and so instead he replied, "I suppose so."

Shin tilted his head in brief contemplation. "You've grown, Sai," he declared. Without further hesitation, he walked past the artist-nin, patting his companion on the back without waiting for a reply.

Sakura sat against the steady surface of an oak tree, staring at a map in hand. Like last year, each participant had been given an extremely simple map to go by to give each genin a relative idea of the terrain they were to be covering. A black circle outlined the entire Forest, numbers marking the locations of each entrance gate. Sakura traced number 12 with her index finger, moving along a strip of green, pausing at an all-too-familiar stream and tapping the spot. She hesitated for a moment before sighing and lowering her hands back down against her hips.

"Urgghh," she groaned. 'There are so many ways this could go absolutely wrong, and I'm still debating on whether or not I should eliminate Orochimaru...'

'Nice to know they give chunin S-class missions on a regular basis in the future,' Inner retorted sarcastically, crossing her arms in annoyance.

'Yeah, well, that's what happens when some S-class missing ninja turn your world upside down.'

"Hey, Shirai, that bird looks... weird."

Sakura tuned in on what sounded like a female genin about her age, glancing over to the origin of the sound as she did so. A team of genin stood by a nearby tree, the female huddled over something Sakura could not see.

"I know you're a chakra sensory type and all, but do you really have to start pointing out each little chakra anomaly you see?"

"Oh shut up! It just seemed a little funny, that's all, I mean birds usually don't even have -"

"That's mine, thanks," Sakura interrupted, startling the three. Perched on each of her shoulders were two birds, much like the one the three were inspecting at the moment. "I suppose, uh, Mitsu... got lost."

"Bird-nin, huh? I don't see those too often, usually it's just dog-nin or -" The genin who had spoken, a sandy-haired male, was interrupted by the girl who had noticed the bird with an elbow to his stomach. Ignoring his wince, the female said, "Stop rambling, Shirai - anyway, he's all yours. Nice to meet you." She finished with a smile.

By the time Sakura had returned to her post by the oak tree, she had dispelled the light genjutsu she had placed around her shoulders. Taking care not to squish the bird, which had been surprisingly docile the entire time, the kunoichi opened an empty scroll and gingerly placed the bird on top.

The moment the bird came in contact with the paper, the animal seemed to literally melt into a puddle of charcoal black, the newly-formed liquid dancing across the white sheet like miniature black acrobats.

'Even the way Sai's message arranges itself is like art,' Sakura snorted with a tint of envy, gazing interestedly upon the message continuing to reveal itself.

Many years ago at the Uchiwa Festival,
From a single root of a tree I found Omoikane's sake.
Even in the lair where all aged wealth resides,
One will not find satisfaction.

'I've always had a knack for these,' the pinkette thought excitedly.

'Uchiwa... referring to Uchiha, of course. The first line's probably talking about some event in the past related to the Uchihas.'

'The massacre, I'm assuming. That sounds about right. The second line... if I'm correct, another member of Root gave Sai Omoikane-sama, the god of wisdom's "sake". Information, basically. I wonder who... Sai isn't the type to trust others so easily. Shin...? Well, anyway...'

'Lair where all aged wealth resides?'

'Secret Root lair, which is god knows where... One will not find satisfaction. So... what we're looking for isn't there. I wonder what Danzo had to do with the Uchihas which would make him deliberately hide information.'

'Okay. Well, that was totally helpful.'

Ignoring Inner Sakura, the pinkette continued, 'It's reconfirming what we know. And it's... also a warning, I reckon. A direct approach won't work. Well, at least it isn't as bad as it could've been...'

"We have finished assembling the stands. Please line up in your teams!"

"Let's go for that Rock Lee kid! I wanna pummel his ass!" Naruto shouted, grinning widely, his expression of set determination bared for all to see.

Sasuke, still bitter over his defeat, scowled. "No. First things first, we should cover some distance, get relatively close to the tower and then head for him. Let's get this over with as soon as possible."

Naruto, rolling his eyes at first, cheered in agreement once Sasuke had finished.

Sakura, on the other hand, sighed, simply muttering, "Let's just find a group we can take on easily, alright?"

"Aw, come on Sakura-chan, we're pretty good, aren't we? We can take on -"

"The preliminaries are soon after this. The sooner we arrive, the longer we'll have to rest."

"Preliminaries?" Naruto and Sasuke echoed, both sharing the same puzzled look.

Mentally cursing herself, she continued, "I, er, overheard some Chunin yesterday. There are a lot of us this year, more than expected. They're... uhm, thinking of having a preliminary round to weed the weaker ones out."

"Makes sense," Sasuke replied as the three neared their gates. They fell silent as they stepped within hearing range of the Chunin guarding their entrance, donned in the tell-tale monotone grey uniform.

"Sasuke Uchiha, Sakura Haruno, and... Naruto Uzumaki of Hatake Kakashi's Team Seven," the young man announced, looking up from the clipboard he held. After comparing the photos he had been provided with the genin standing before him, he nodded, but not before scoffing subtly at the blond demon container.

"Watch it, you," Sakura remarked harshly, both ignoring her teammates' questioning looks and the man's startled reaction.

Meanwhile, Anko, who had been looking at her watch, nodded with a smirk towards two of the administrative Chunin. They promptly deactivated the electrifying jutsu surrounding the steel barriers of the Forest, the dull hum of energy gradually dying down. Slowly, each genin team fell silent, tensing with awareness.

The Chunin patrolling each gate entrance pulled a key from their pockets, grasping the heavy lock and inserting the key into the heavy metal.

"Alright you three," he voiced cheerily as if the previous exchange between him and the pinkette had not happened. "Good luck."

"The second stage of the chunin exam has officially begun!"

They leapt like acrobats, dancing across the branches fluidly as they made use of the terrain they were given. While Sasuke and Naruto moved with excitement running in their veins, Sakura was incredibly apprehensive.

Ever since they had entered, she had been contemplating going an entirely different route than the direct one they had took last time in order to prevent their meeting with Orochimaru and hopefully delay it to a further time - for not even an hour into the exams, and already the three had begun to feel the strain of heavy travel. Not one of them, however, attempted to voice their physical strain. Sakura rolled her eyes - it was so typical of them, to treat even the Chunin exams as the basis for their rivalry. But she had to admit, even she was unwilling to complain. She grimaced. She did not want to be the one dragging them down this time. Doubt and indecisiveness plagued her, however; she fought a furious battle in her mind with Inner Sakura as an amused witness. But even her second half finally grew irritated of her constant mental mumbling, telling Sakura to shut up and just deal with the guy, already. Thus Team 7 continued to journey under the cool shade the large canopy of trees provided them.

But the longer they spent within the Forest of Death, the larger her doubts grew. Could she defeat Orochimaru, if necessary? True, she had grown considerably under the tutelage of Tsunade-shishou, but even she was simply a chunin, not an ANBU. Not to mention... she cursed as she nearly missed a branch - her shorter, untoned legs and arms had proven difficult to handle when travelling and throwing projectiles, hindering her performance as she slowly struggled to get used to her old body.

She sighed. "Sasuke-kun, Naruto," she called, not slowing the slightest hesitation in her step.

"Yeah, Sakura-chan?" Naruto replied just a branch away from her.

"I have an idea," she answered in-between pants. "Let's take to the mountains on the left."

"The mountains?" Sasuke, three branches in front, sounded utterly confused. "Why the - oh."

Naruto cocked his head. "Huh? But it'll be easier for us to be seen, and rocks are harder to travel on!"

Sakura nodded, "Exactly. With luck, most will avoid the area. But it'll also make it easier for us to avoid traps and spot enemies too. Most ninja are used to travelling by forests, anyway." And it'll make it easier for Anko-san and the others to spot us if - rather, when - Orochimaru finds us as well...

Sasuke frowned. "I don't know... It'll be hard." He glanced back towards his teammates with a smirk. "But it's worth a try. Let's go."

"Why hello there, Ryousei. I see Anko-chan's taken a particular liking to you now." The tone of the speaker's voice did nothing to contradict the unbecoming smirk it caused.

"Orochimaru-ssssama," the snake bowed its' head rather mockingly, gazing bemusedly down at the ninja before it. "You reek of Kussssa-nin."

Orochimaru - rather, the grass-nin licked her lips. "Tell Anko-chan I said hello, won't you?"

"You were alwayssss ssso.. ingrateful, Orochi-." The snake paused, its' sleek tongue flitting between its' jaws. "Ssseemss I've been ssssummoned. I guessss I'll be doing you a favour after all."

Smoke engulfed the serpent and the branches surrounding it. By the time the translucent clouds had dissipated, it was gone.

Glancing towards the two accomplices, he hissed quietly, "They're close. I've sent Ikaku after the others. With luck, the brat will be all alone, ready for the seal. Let's go."

Aaaand goodbye chapter sixteen! I'm really hoping to start fleshing out Sai as well as really have some Sakura-awesomeness now that we've finally arrived at the Forest of Death segment. Sai's return to his former body is approximately right before Danzo is aware of Sai and Shin's emotional bond, as illustrated by the flashbacks and Danzo's former actions last chapter. Hopefully something different will happen this time. :)