Obito-Sensei Chapter 102
Finds Peace
Team Seven You'll pass and they'll fail You know Sakura, you really remind me of myself sometimes back when I was a genin You're all going to drown in a river of blood His hand was warm Just go That's the stuff you said you liked She didn't have clarity now Did you think we weren't friends She'd always been prepared to fail I'm probably meant to kill you, right Kabuto Yakushi Suigetsu Hozuki Haku Yuki Haku Yuki Haku Yuki Haku Yuki
Killing someone is a terrible crime terrible crime TERRIBLE CRIME
The only service shinobi can offer is violence Maybe you could look at all this and come up with a better answer than me SAKURA HARUNO - - - GAARA OF THE DESERT If I'm going to be a ninja I want to be the best I gotta get stronger Tomorrow I'll go longer A ninja can't murder or be murdered If you step foot in the arena with Gaara he will kill you All this training has been nothing Holy shit, Sakura I'm definitely going to fight By mutual knockout, the match is a tie You picked up a sword, Sakura, you know what that means Kick his fucking ass, Sakura You're the only one worth killing around here You might have taken it too far Honey, we're worried Just write on that paper Where one of you goes all of you will She's hunting a real beast I'm really glad I met you guys
Rain wouldn't do that
The problem is that once one person is practicing Ninjutsu everyone around them only has two choices
Take up Ninjutsu themselves
or have their life held at the whim of those who have
I have a mission for you, Sakura Tales of a Gutsy Shinobi I really like it, Ino What the hell kind of friends would we be if we let you do this alone You'll be a traitor to both Leaf and Rain It's not that easy to redefine yourself But if you're loyal to ideals and reality doesn't meet them, where will you go I guess it's kinda like Rain Are you guys happy? You can't run off and leave us all behind I wonder why they changed We were all chasing after you ARCHER A failure to the end Gaara's coming You can't run today Sakura Haruno Today you're going to die I hope you know this is all your fault
The next time her hands were left empty they needed to be ready to cut someone down with all the violence of a sword
He's so damn cool Towards peace This is my best try You've got something that other people don't, Sakura
She missed.
She missed.
You okay Take them Don't forget who you are, where you came from Let's go home None of my clothes fit anymore
Haku…
Sakura, please… you need to come back to Rain
Haku…
Before it's too late
Haku…
I can't forgive you for that
Haku…
That's not what I meant to do!
Haku…
If I had the ultimate weapon
Haku…
I wouldn't have let this happen
Mom… This is just for me But even if you do convince Rain to sue for peace once and for all, everyone here is going to remember what they did Naruto, Sakura, Sasuke What're you doing here Sakura, you're not a murderer You never will be They're going to fire the Cannon The largest mass grave in history Ninja shouldn't exist And then, it will be us dictating terms Just Us Next time, I'll actually hurt you It ends today A shinobi can't be murdered I'm almost there I need to finish this That's not that's not that's not that's not the kind of girl I fell in love with it's not it's not it's not IT'S
NOT
NOT ME
IT'S
THE SHADOW
###
Sakura woke up to an unfamiliar sky.
She sat up, expecting pain. She'd stabbed herself in the heart, after all, which was probably supposed to be incredibly painful. But there was nothing more than a vague ache in her chest.
Oh, Sakura thought dimly to herself. Right. She was probably dead. Dead people couldn't feel pain. Hopefully, anyway.
She looked around, wondering if she was in hell. It was dark and warm, and a fire flickered nearby. Curious and seeing nothing better to do, Sakura rose to her feet, astonished by how solid and real her body felt.
There was a scattering of stones surrounding the fire, and Sakura sat down on one of them, staring into the flames and wondering where she was. Was this a dying dream, some kind of pointless hallucination? It was pleasant but lonely, and she closed her eyes, finding herself basking in the warmth of the flames. The Land of Iron had been cold; dying had been cold. But the fire was warm and friendly, almost to the point she wanted to fall into it and burn away.
"Do you mind if I sit?"
Sakura opened her eyes, looking back over her shoulder. Her throat closed up; her eyes stung.
She nodded.
Haku sat down on the stone next to her, shifting his haori as it bunched around his shoulders. He didn't speak again, just staring into the fire as well.
They stayed like that for a while, Sakura listening to the familiar sound of his breathing while she fought to control her own. That just wasn't fair. If she was dead, shouldn't she be beyond stupid things like breathing?
"Are you…" she eventually managed to whisper, before her voice cut off. Haku turned, patiently watching her as Sakura struggled to control her words. Eventually, she breathed out, calming herself enough to speak again. "Are you mad at me?"
"No," Haku said, not instantly but not hesitating either. Sakura lowered her head, looking back towards the flames.
"Maybe you should be," she whispered, and Haku chuckled.
"I knew I could die from the start," he said. "I accepted that outcome. It's not your fault we were put into a position where there was no good decision."
"I don't think you were." Sakura couldn't stop herself, and moreover didn't see any reason to. "I think if you had listened to me instead of Yahiko, it would have turned out okay."
"Maybe," Haku acknowledged. "Maybe. But I wasn't brave enough to make that decision." He shifted towards her, and Sakura turned back to him as well, marveling at his beautiful brown eyes, his friendly, loving face. The ugly black rods that had pierced his body were gone, leaving him unblemished. "I didn't know how to, just like you didn't know how to stop moving forward."
Sakura shuddered, feeling her face twist up. "I'm really sorry," she said, on the verge of choking on her tears. "I didn't mean to kill you. I really didn't. It was an accident."
"I figured," Haku said with the same gentle smile. "I was surprised, but it was pretty impressive. Though I could see when it happened that there was something strange about you. Your shadow came to life: it pulled out all my senbon. I had no idea you could do that."
"I couldn't," Sakura says. "It wasn't me. It was…" She searched for the right words, giving up: no matter what, Haku would understand her. It had always been like that. "It's called Black Zetsu; some old shadow, no, a Shadow, that attached itself to me. Some kind of demon, like the Bijuu. But that doesn't really matter anymore."
"Oh?" Haku asked, leaning forward. "What do you mean?"
"Well, it's not my problem now," Sakura said, managing to laugh and shrug. "It took control of my body, so I killed myself. I'm dead, so it can't use me anymore. Naruto and Sasuke and Hinata and Obito-sensei will kill it. They already had a plan too. And if they fail…" She looked around the endless, lightless space. "I guess I'll see them here?"
"Oh…" Haku said, his smile fading. He shifted over, and Sakura made room for him on the stone. Haku settled in next to her, and put his arm around her, squeezing her shoulder. It felt like the most natural thing in the world. Sakura tried to lean into him, but Haku stopped her. She turned her head towards him curiously.
"Sakura, it's important you understand this," he said with a serious look. "You're not quite dead."
"Huh?" There was no way she could have thought up a more considerate question.
"This isn't the afterlife," Haku said in the same educational tone he'd used when explaining so many other, ordinary things to her. "It's a border space: a land between life and death. I've been waiting for you here."
"Wait, all this time?" Sakura asked, and Haku laughed. "And what do you mean, I'm not dead?! I stabbed myself in the heart!"
"What's a month when infinity is on the other side?" Haku said, and Sakura was forced to concede that point. "And as for you not dying, I'm not sure. I just know it. I couldn't tell you how." His smile appeared for a moment, and then faded again. "Which may mean that if it was controlling your body, you'll have to face the Shadow nonetheless."
"If it still has my body, everyone's still in danger!" Sakura said, struggling away and standing up: Haku followed her. "The Cannon could still be fired! How do I get back?!"
"You'll find your way," Haku said with a shrug. "You'll need help to do so, but I believe in you, Sakura. That's why I was waiting, so I could tell you this." He stepped closer, and despite her panic Sakura found herself unable to turn away. "I'm glad you're not dead."
He took her hands in his. "It's selfish of me, but I wish we'd known each other for longer. I'm happy with the time we did have together. Even if things seem hopeless now, please keep going. Don't forget what's gotten you all this way. It may have led you wrong sometimes, but it's still what makes you a great person."
He bent forward, and Sakura unconsciously did as well, a happier memory overlaying the infinite darkness and flickering fire. They were on her bed in Amegakure again, trying on her Akatsuki uniform for the first time.
Haku gently kissed her, and then pulled away. The darkness and fire returned, Sakura's lips stinging with the kiss that had never happened.
"Haku…" she said, but he shook his head, already knowing what she was going to say.
'Should I come with you?'
"I think you'll make the world a better place, Sakura," Haku said. "And I hope not to see you again for a long time."
He squeezed her hands and then let go, turning and walking into the darkness. Sakura watched him go, yearning to run after him but knowing what it would mean. The fire was life: the darkness was death. If she left this place of warmth, she would never return.
But Haku did, fearlessly striding into the abyss and disappearing forever.
Sakura's chest hurt, like she was being torn open and hollowed out. She clutched at it, baring her teeth and crying silent tears as she nearly doubled over. Behind her, the fire grew larger and hotter, a roaring pillar of flame that filled the endless black with burning light. Within moments, it was like she had the sun at her back, illuminating an unexplored twilight that stretched infinitely in every direction. Her shadow grew as well, stretched farther and farther by the fire. It danced and shook, given life by the flame, like there were a thousand different distortions of her out there in the half-dark.
It felt like she was being watched.
"You're here, aren't you?" Sakura said, speaking out into the dark. She stood up straight, hand falling away from her chest, her eyes hard.
"Show yourself."
And all of her shadows stood up to face her.
There were more than she could count, all so dark that they were nearly featureless and warped by the fire to be different shapes, sizes, and heights. But they all shared two things: her green eyes, glowing in the twilight, and a smile too wide for her face, stretching from ear to ear and suggesting long, impossibly sharp teeth.
The fire behind her guttered, nearly going out. All she could see were countless glowing green eyes in the dark.
"I've always been here," it said in her voice, the voice of a legion, and Sakura felt fear prickle across every inch of her body. She rooted herself in place, unwilling to step back as the army of shadows leered at her with her own eyes. "From the beginning, you've had that little voice pushing you forward. Giving you the courage and ambition to be the best you can be." All of the shadows' smiles spread even further, splitting their heads in half. "I am the whisper that tells you to take what's yours, Sakura."
"Why are you bothering with this now?" Sakura asked, crushing down her fear. Despite that, it refused to die. "I'm basically dead. Shouldn't you just move on?" She took a step forward, the fire behind her roaring back to life, but it only made the shadows larger, more definite. "Or are you dead too?"
"I cannot die," the Shadow laughed, and Sakura's fear swelled. "But we are bound together." The eyes narrowed, considering, appraising. "Your will is strong. Certainly stronger than anyone I've bonded with before. You have trapped me here, soldered me to your soul, at least for a moment. So there is no harm in this conversation. It is an… opportunity. For you to accept an offer."
Soldered it? Sakura blinked, remembering the panicked feeling in her last moments of latching on and refusing to let go. She'd accidentally dragged it down with her into this place on the edge of death: so long as she lived, the Shadow couldn't leave her body. It couldn't use the Cannon.
"Why me, though?" Sakura asked, desperate to know and not hiding it, and desperate to buy time to figure out what to do. "Why choose me in the first place? Was it really because of my plan for the Bijuu?"
"Yes. Your ambition," the Shadow said, always smiling. "And children are easier."
Sakura felt her gorge rise. "Easier?"
"They have a less defined sense of self." The Shadow's stare was unwavering. "But you're special, Sakura. Consider how long it took Itachi to suspect me, when you managed the same in a month. Like so many, I underestimated you. In that sense, consider my offer an apology."
"I don't think I should accept any sort of offer from you," Sakura said, feeling like she was going to throw up. Whatever this thing was, she instinctively understood that it had no connection to humanity: it was a wholly alien intelligence. It felt down to the deepest recesses of her soul as if she were speaking with pure evil, speaking with something that had never understood anything but itself. "I think you've been steering me wrong for a while now. It must have been after Rain was destroyed, like Sasuke said." She grit her teeth. "You're the one who made me-!"
Her laughter poured over her, a whole world of her own shadows deafening her with mocking cackles. The fire behind her flickered, stretching them yet farther and higher until they seemed to encircle her, wide smiles and flat, glittering green eyes everywhere she looked.
"Made me, tricked me, steered me wrong," the Shadow repeated in a simpering mimicry of her voice. "That's what humans always say. Always looking for an excuse or a scapegoat so they don't have to consider their own actions with clear eyes for even a second." The endless eyes narrowed, cruel beyond sanity. "It's been the same throughout all of history. Every shinobi all the way back to Hagoromo and Hamura, their sons, their clans and all their descendants. Even the Bijuu, infected as they were by human failings. No matter how many terrible things they did, they always looked for something to blame it on other than themselves. My father should have given me more; my clan should have been more obedient…"
The eyes gleefully drilled into her, the smile so wide the corners almost met. "Haku should have listened to me."
Sakura felt like she was drowning in darkness. The Shadow was still there, so the fire must have been as well, but she couldn't see it. The abyss covered everything. Even the unfamiliar names barely pricked her curiosity, buried as it was beneath the dark.
"But it's always only them, and it was always only you, Sakura. I can't make someone do something they don't already desire. My job is only to enhance what already exists."
"That's a lie," Sakura said, hating how feeble her voice was. "You're lying."
"You wanted independence. I gave you the strength to strike out on your own. You wanted to experience what ninja really are. I kept you safe while you did. You wanted to punish Haku for betraying you. I made your deepest wishes come true."
The Shadow grew closer, nose to nose with her, still wearing her own face: Sakura saw her own terrified features reflected in its flat green eyes, so without detail it was like they were painted on. "You're thinking I'm not human. And you're right. But I'm no demon, Sakura. I'm your savior."
"You tried to blow up the whole Summit," Sakura stammered, desperately trying to anchor herself. There was no ground or sky anymore, only the Shadow, and only one pair of eyes. It circled her, and she spun to keep up with it, filled with a primal fear of the dark that she had thought long forgotten. "You-"
"Weren't you listening? It was your plan, not mine," the Shadow simpered. "And a good plan. It was the perfect solution, the one you've been looking for since you woke up to the truth of the world. Killing all the Kage, decapitating the Villages, and…"
If it had lips or a tongue, Sakura felt the Shadow would have licked them. "Merging all the Bijuu."
"What?" Sakura struggled to keep hold of herself. She could feel the fire beyond the darkness going out. When it was gone, she would be too.
"Your sensei knew this, having achieved Eternal eyes," the Shadow said harshly, "but he fearfully concealed it from you, frightened by your strength of conviction. I tried to tell you, but you refused to listen. The nine Tailed Beasts are fragments of a greater power, the Ten-Tails: a power beyond any other, even the Cannon." Sakura felt her feet lifting off the ground, carried away by the promise of unspeakable power. "But the Cannon, through some accident of its creation, is the greater emissary for this truth. Its maker considered chakra nothing more than a weapon, but it was born as a medium for connection. I felt it in the Land of Frost through you, though you did not have the context to understand what you witnessed. Its mindless chakra can rebind the Tailed Beasts. It can reunite that which was broken."
Sakura reeled, unable to imagine something of the scale the Shadow was talking about. It continued to speak to her, its voice dropping to a soothing whisper that poured over her like hot spring water.
"With all of them here, the Cannon would bring them together into a simulacrum of their original form. The devastation in Frost was the result of the chakra lacking a guiding consciousness. But we could substitute for such a thing. Then, it would be a simple matter of retrieving the Juubi's original body, imprisoned and starved here on Earth. The greatest and most terrible power in history would be reborn."
The Shadow was right there, on both shoulders, whispering in both ears.
"And that is my offer. Let me in. Do not resist. Let me guide you, so that you could guide it. You could be a god, Sakura."
"A god?" she said faintly, visions of every mistake, every failure, every embarrassment she'd ever suffered flashing across her mind. "How do… how do you know this? What are…"
"I know because I was there, at the beginning of everything. I am the forgotten son," the Shadow said, its enticing tone suddenly filled with gravitas, and hatred, hatred like Sakura had never imagined, such hatred that it burned her and she shied away, suppressing a cry of pain. "Hagoromo, the one you know as the Sage of Six Paths. Hamura, the unseen sentinel. And me. Me. The only one that did not betray, as shinobi do, debase, as shinobi do, forget, as shinobi do."
The Shadow's hatred intensified, surrounding Sakura and searing her. "Humans aren't born with a purpose," it said. "I was. Fate has unfailingly guided me right up to this very meeting. Join me, Sakura, and you too will have a destiny. You could be more than a cosmic mistake."
'Everyone ends up where they are because of who's around them, not because they're born with a purpose or something. Have you been worried about that this whole time?'
Sakura blinked, hearing Tenten from across an impossible gulf of space and time. The Shadow didn't seem to notice, but a voice that wasn't hers had pulled her from the abyss at the last second. The burning pain of the Shadow's hatred receded; she felt a measure of coherence return.
"You could be reborn in the image of our creator, our beloved Mother. With that power, you could do whatever you desired. Life and death would be as clay to you. You could resurrect anyone you desired; create or erase memories; bend space and time; enforce your will without check or equal. You could create a world of your own perfection, populated only with those you desired. Even your sensei would be nothing compared to you."
The Shadow drew back, its eyes still painted on, its smile satisfied, beatific. "Isn't that what you've always wanted? To be the one that everyone else had to respect?" The smile shifted. "Had to fear? Why else would you have struck out at Gaara like you did, killed his father like you did, joined the Akatsuki like you did? No matter how many ideals you cloaked everything in, those were just words you devoured without understanding in your search for meaning."
Sakura felt herself start to buckle again, and refused. She stood up straight, staring the Shadow dead in the eye. It sneered.
"Peace, freedom, safety. These are all just worthless human disguises for power, and power is inevitably expressed through violence. You have known this from the start, Sakura. Why deny yourself? Embrace it!"
"That's not what I want anymore!" Sakura suddenly shouted, the words ripping out of her chest with such force that it felt like they bruised her lips. "I don't know what I want, but I know it's not that! All that matters now is for the people I love to be safe!"
She lunged forward, the pure instinct of someone trying to scare off a wolf that had found them in the night, and the Shadow slithered away, reforming beyond the ring of firelight. Suddenly, she was free. Sakura kept screaming at it, pacing in the sudden sanctuary formed by the flames.
"I want to see my mom and dad together again! I want to make Naruto smile, not look at me like I'm a monster! Who cares about being a god?! It won't do any of that! Even if they don't, I'll know it's fake! I'll be left alone, forever!"
"All human desires are false!" the Shadow said with a laugh. "Love has no quality that marks it as authentic. How could it? It doesn't exist." It paced with her, matching her step for step. "Do not think you have any other option, Sakura! You killed a Kage, mutilated your friends, humiliated your family. Even if they survive, you'll be a criminal of international repute. You will never see your family again. You will never see Naruto again. I gave you this generous offer out of pity, seeing how deep you've dug yourself! Beyond recovery, beyond sympathy, and I am the only one kind enough to throw you a lifeline!"
The Shadow had raised its voice, her voice, but now, it spoke more calmly, stopping its pacing in the same moment. Sakura stopped too, her chest heaving as she stared out at her dark doppelganger. A familiar burning anger was filling her aching heart, but doubt followed it. Anger had gotten her here; how could she ever trust it, or herself, again?
"You would be a true fool to reject it."
"I think you're lying," Sakura hissed, trying to marshal the flame of anger inside her. Don't just let it run wild, like it had in the past. Shape it, forge it: not like a shinobi would their chakra, but like anyone would hammer out a shield. "I think your game's about to come crashing down. Sasuke and Obito-sensei figured you out."
It came to her as a thunderbolt, lighting up the whole infinite space for an instant.
"I think you're scared."
"Ridiculous," the Shadow said with a chuckle, but Sakura could have sworn there was a hesitation there that hadn't existed before. "Relying on others, who have betrayed you so many times? Your sensei did not fight for your promotion, and sent you off to Rain despite knowing how much harm it would cause you." It mirrored her, leaning in with a mocking smile as it dug up long-suppressed and rancid grudges. "What you speak of is Ninshu. You learned of it through that oaf Jiraiya. Who better could be the epitome of failure? He has no children, and yet his sons and daughters have torn this world apart nonetheless, Sakura. Do you really want to tie yourself to that wretch? Just like every other human that's sought salvation through others, you'll be disappointed."
"Who cares about a stupid promotion?" Sakura laughed, throwing her arms wide.. "They were right! I was immature! I couldn't get over myself; I would have gotten killed if it weren't for the Hokage! And Jiraiya did his best; it's not his fault if his students failed to take the real lesson! They should have read his damn book!" She pointed at the Shadow, her heart hammering and fanning the flames. With every beat, it hurt more and more, like it was tearing itself and her apart. "And you know what, asshole?! I think life might be about being disappointed! Nothing goes right, not all the way! Everyone just has to work with what they have!"
The Shadow shrank away for a moment, its mocking smile fading, and Sakura pressed forward, her anger becoming sharper with every word. She grabbed hold of it, letting it clear her head but not letting it take over. "You said fate brought you here, but how long have you been sneaking around, you creepy little shit? Keeping to the shadows, trying to get the Tailed Beasts back together for a god or the Infinite Tsukuyomi or whatever… and now, it's all gonna be for nothing!"
Another thunderbolt; a storm brewed above, lightning painting blinding arcs in the dark. Sakura could have sworn she could see other figures in the distance patiently watching the confrontation: countless men and women who she didn't recognize, but knew nonetheless.
Other children who had been waylaid: other victims of the Shadow. More than she could imagine.
"You're lying about the Cannon too!" she said, her anger finally controlled. It covered her like a second skin, beating back the Shadow, dampening its whispers and further defining it. The amorphous shape resolved into a perfect mirror of her. "It'll put the Bijuu together, but it'll kill me, won't it? It'll kill everyone here, but not you. It'll leave you behind, to steer whatever comes out of the fusion."
She stepped forward, and the Shadow did as well, striding to meet her. The mocking grin had returned; it seemed totally unconcerned with her lucidity. And why not? It was apparently a peer to the Sage of the Six Paths. For all her yelling, Sakura had no idea how to resolve the standoff.
"Delusional as humans ever are," the Shadow said smugly. "But even if I were lying, could you truly believe you deserve to live after what you've done, Sakura? You know as well as I that I was not lying about that. What you did was your true will."
"That's true," Sakura admitted, breathing out and resisting the urge to cry again. "That's why I'm gonna have to ask for a lot of forgiveness."
"There are those who could never offer it," the Shadow laughed. "Why, what would Haku think of that?"
Sakura twitched.
It hadn't seen. It didn't know. That moment had been hers and Haku's alone. That should have kept her calm, knowing the Shadow's words were empty.
And yet, the fact it would try at all-!
She didn't care that this thing was impossibly beyond her anymore. As her anger started to burn the world away, she seized it once more, trying to keep it from running out of control.
But she was hurt, and frightened, and fed up, and so she failed.
Sakura leapt forward, beyond the heat of the fire, and fastened her hands around the Shadow's throat, around her own throat. It watched her, bemused, as she started to squeeze.
"I wanted to kill him," she said, the truth so painful it could draw blood. "But I never would have if it weren't for you. Maybe it still wouldn't have ended well, but you made the blade sharp. Not me."
She felt tears in her eyes, and squeezed as hard as she could. "It killed my heart to do that. And that's your fault."
"Are you truly this idiotic? I had higher expectations of you," the Shadow said with an inhuman sneer. "How could you ever strangle a shad-"
Then, it choked.
Sakura's skin, she realized, had become translucent. Her muscles, blood, and bones were all visible through the flesh; she had transformed into something out of a medical textbook, an unapologetic display of humanity: the total opposite of the featureless Shadow. Her heart burned, so hot she thought it would explode, and something painful slipped out of it. Like a parasite or a rogue worm, it rushed through her body and filled her with fleeting, immortal strength of a kind she'd never imagined wherever it passed.
She squeezed even harder, crushing the Shadow's throat. It gagged and flailed, its hands, her hands, coming up to bat and scratch at her arms and face. Sakura kept going, driving the thing down to its knees, filled with an insane urge for her palms to meet in the middle of its neck.
Whatever else she was, she was still a shinobi. She knew how to strangle something until it died.
"What was that?" she asked it, the same mockery that had filled its voice echoing in hers. "You sound a little short of breath."
"I-impossible!" the Shadow gagged, trying to push her off. Sakura held firm. She was flesh and blood, while the thing was just malice and spite. It couldn't budge her no matter how hard it tried. Her fingers sank deeper and deeper into its neck. "How could… where did you get this chakra?!"
Death, Sakura realized. That's what was running out of the wound in her heart that she hadn't known existed, infusing her entire body.
Pure death.
She tasted blood, felt crushing heat, but was too focused on her task to give it any mind.
"Who knows?" she said, her whole body shaking with effort. The Shadow squealed and shifted, whirling beneath her as it tried to escape. She remorselessly bore down on it, crushing it beneath her will and continuing to strangle the life out of it.
"Stop this! You are dooming yourself!" the Shadow screeched, but Sakura paid it no mind. "I am your only hope!" It sounded like it was in pain. After the suffering it had caused, that was all that mattered.
"Don't care," Sakura said with a smile.
"Pathetic, delusional little girl!" it screamed back, trying to buck her off. "You will be nothing without me! All you love will abandon you and die!" She squeezed harder still; her fingers interlocked, such was the force of her grip. "You know what Haku's last words were! You know! How could you keep going?! Lie down! Give up! Die! 'Sakura, I hate you!' He hated you, he hated you, I hate you, I HATE YOU! GET OFF OF ME!"
"That's not true. I know what he was trying to say," Sakura said quietly. "It's the same thing I was going to say to Naruto."
'I love you.'
Her palms met: she completely flattened the Shadow's throat. It collapsed, wheezing and scrambling away, a terrified little thing before the force of her fire. If it weren't what it was, Sakura might have pitied it.
She stalked after it.
"You don't seem like you can understand that, Black Zetsu," she said, uttering the name like a curse. "Considering that…"
She raised her foot high, the Shadow staring up at her in horror. She met her own eyes for the last time.
"It's no wonder you're going to get killed by a delusional little girl."
Sakura stomped down as hard as she could, and crushed the thing's head into a pulp.
The Shadow died. Sakura felt it so clearly that she would never be so sure of anything else in her life. Crushed by her will and poisoned by the chakra that had hidden in her heart, Black Zetsu vanished from the world forever.
The ground shattered, and Sakura fell into infinity. The fire fell with her, surrounding her, consuming her completely, and she welcomed it.
###
Sakura woke up to an unfamiliar sky, and immediately vomited what felt like ten pounds of blood. She was lying down, and most of it ended up on her face and chest.
"Sakura?!" Naruto was there, his hands on her, working the wound in her chest. "Sakura, Sakura, Sakura-!"
He kept saying her name, a meaningless mantra, and Sakura groggily looked down at the hole she'd torn in her chest. Her heart had been shredded.
But it was still beating. Torn to pieces, damaged beyond repair, but impossibly beating nonetheless.
Sakura sluggishly looked back up. Naruto hadn't realized she'd regained consciousness, as engrossed in his work as he was. He'd used the Adamantine Rebirth on her, she realized; she could feel his impossibly alive chakra pouring through her. But her heart wasn't mending. The deathly chakra that was leaking from it was what was keeping it beating, but it was total anathema to the Yang chakra Naruto's technique used.
She reached down, her hands feeble, and took his hands. His head whipped towards her, and Sakura could have died at the hope and fear in his eyes.
"It's a weird chakra," she said, sounding more than half dead. Well, she was. "Rebirth won't work. You have to use-"
Sakura gagged, her throat full of blood, and collapsed, the pain that shock had delayed crushing her. White agony washed out the world, and she spasmed, so tortured by the feeling of her torn heart that she wished against rationality that she was dead.
But Naruto understood her.
Naruto would always understand her.
With the ordinary medical jutsu that he'd tirelessly honed to keep his friends alive, he reunited her broken heart.
It stopped beating on its own about halfway through, and Sakura died for the second time, though only for about eight seconds. The second time she woke up, it was with Naruto's mouth on hers as he breathed for her.
Once more, she vomited blood from her mended lungs; Naruto pulled back just in time to avoid the worst of it. Sakura writhed and whimpered in pain on the ground for what felt like hours, coughing until she cried and bruising her body against the cold stone of the Fortress roof. The whole time, Naruto held her, stroking her hair and muttering nonsense to her.
Eventually, Sakura was able to take a full breath. As soon as she did, she burst out into uncontrollable tears.
A month of grief and guilt crashed into her all at once.
"I'm really sorry," she sobbed. She was vaguely aware that Sasuke and Hinata were there, and Karin too; by some miracle, none of them were dead. All of them were covered in blood; hers and theirs both. "I'm so sorry. I'm so sorry-"
"Sakura…" Sasuke seemed to have no idea what to do; she couldn't see his face. "It's okay. We know it wasn't you. What happened to Black Zetsu?"
"It was me!" she screamed. There was no self control anymore. For so long, she'd stayed in control even when she shouldn't, suppressing everything. Now, she was disintegrating, collapsing, falling apart. If not for Naruto holding her, Sakura was sure she would explode. "It was me! Always me!"
"That doesn't matter," Naruto said, and Sakura stopped, reduced back to sobbing. "But Sakura, it's important. What happened to the Shadow?"
"It's dead," she sobbed, and she heard everyone take a breath of disbelief. "It's dead. I killed it. I killed it before it could kill us all."
Then she was completely beyond any hope of being coherent, and remained weeping in Naruto's arms for a long time.