Sakura sat stiffly on her father's throne, unused to the cold stone under her warm hands. Her father must have been cold-blooded to be able to sit on this throne all day; she was already freezing. But her mind was worried, eyes darting from one Sound guard to the other. Where was Kabuto? He hadn't been at Orochimaru's funeral yesterday, pleading illness, but he was a medical nin. What could have been so serious that he was not able to heal it? Looking over her laced fingers, she tried to keep her father's manner of aloof and angry leadership, but it was hard with the prospect of seeing Kabuto. He had been the closest person to Orochimaru, the one who knew the most about her late father and she had many things to ask him. Sakura just hoped her old companion would answer her questions. After another three tension-filled minutes, Sakura began raking her nails across her face, which was twisted into a pained visage. Where could he be? What was keeping him so long? He had never been this late in the sixteen years she had known him; ever since she had been born. Closing her eyes, she ran her hands through her hair, hitting snarls and ripping through them. At that very moment, a cloaked figure appeared in the doorway and Sakura snapped to attention. The man handed a pass to the guards, who let him through their spear block. Sakura's hands gripped the carved snake armrests of the throne as the man's footsteps echoed in the great hall. He stopped in front of her raised platform, then pulled his hood off.

"Hello, Sakura-sama." Kabuto's 22 year old face smiled with his usual "polite young man" smile. The girl had never really seen him without it, but from what she heard, it was frightening. She sighed in relief.
"Thank god you're here Kabuto. I hope you got out of Konoha without trouble?" His leg twitched imperceptibly, but he was still smiling, hoping she didn't notice.
"Of course not. I know that place as though it is the back of my hand." She settled back in her throne, put at ease by his presence.
"Alright Kabuto, tell me what I need to know. I've only been ruler for a day and already I know more than I learned in my academy years. Fill me in." Shoving his glasses back up his nose, Kabuto shifted his weight to one foot.
"I'll assume you already know how everything is run. All orders come from you; without you nay-chan, everything breaks apart." He said, using the old nickname for her they used as small kids.
"Our country is mostly small villages and rice farms, very scattered and remote. The few cities in our land are widespread. Our major city is Ongakushi, a little ways to the west of our hideout." Sakura nodded throughout the speech, watching his body language. She had known him for a long time, from ages 2-16. He was 6 years older than her, 22 now actually, but she still called him older brother: a relic from the days when Orochimaru took care of them both. From those years she now drew upon her experience with his body language. He was very difficult to read and the slightest movement could mean a lot. His position right now spoke of sadness, his hands kept by his sides. But his weight was shifted to one side, prepared for sudden action but currently calm.

"Kabuto nii-san, what about our diplomatic relations?" She asked, watching him with a sort of curiosity and fondness.
"Konoha, Suna and Kiri are still sore from our last attack. Iwa has sided with us and Kumo is still neutral."
"Anything specific from Konoha?"
"The country is reviving itself. With the fifth Hokage, they've finished repairs and are taking missions from other countries again." At mention of the Fifth, Sakura bowed her head. Her tutor would be wondering where she was. It had only been a few days but Tsunade would worry none the less. If only the woman knew that she was teaching the daughter of her worst enemy.
"Does Gondaime know about my….ancestry and current state?" Sakura asked hesitantly, carefully analyzing his face. He froze for a second, a bad sign, then pushed his glasses back up his nose. He frowned, an even worse sign, and tilted his head forward so he could peer at her over his glasses.
"Unfortunately, they do." Those words chilled her blood, compounding the shivers from the cold chair she was perched on.
"Gondaime is frighteningly aware that you are Orochimaru's daughter, because I told her."

Sakura's mind stopped in a heartbeat. Kabuto...told her? Why? He was a Sound nin, Orochimaru's most trusted agent and his right hand man. Why? She had barely contemplated what this meant when Kabuto's glowing blue hand shot forward, aimed for her heart. Her instincts, honed by her father, made her hand snap forward, catching his wrist before it hit her chest. She looked into his eyes with confusion, only to find pale purple irises glaring back at her. Shoving his hand aside, she watched as he leapt back, still keeping his Hyuuga eyes on her.
"Kabuto, what's going on?!" Sakura half-screamed, standing up and making a sweeping movement with her hands. He straightened up, not bothering with his glasses, which has slipped down the bridge of his nose.
"Just as you spied for your father when you were placed in Konoha, I've been a spy for a long time. A double agent, assigned by Sandaime himself." A pang of pain there, as the man had been killed by her father.
"I worked behind your father's back for a long time, working hard against my morals and hopes to gain his pure trust and confidentiality. But with his death, I both mourned and rejoiced. I was no longer connected, not a traitor any longer. But it was much more complicated than I expected. For instance, you assumed control of Sound country." He glared at her and she glanced at her guards, wondering why they were standing still, as though blocked at the doorway.
"But when one spy returns, the other has a chance to. And I'm taking it. I am a Konoha shinobi. Remember that, Sakura nay-chan." He barreled through the window, followed by broken glass and the guards who rushed after him.

Sakura collapsed in her chair, the cool of the stone no longer an issue for her quickly beating heart. After angrily swatting away a guard, Orochimaru's daughter settled her head in her hands. Letting loose a strangled gasp of air, she broke down, giving a few sobs as a tear stung its way down her face. Memories of Orochimaru playing with her and Kabuto, her self proclaimed older brother giving her a piggy back ride, this newly revealed spy taking care of her when Orochimaru was too busy, all burned in defiance of this new knowledge. But Kabuto had just tried to kill her, blocked her guards, and leapt out her window. How could the boy who took care of her so gently become a man who tried to kill her? Sakura didn't know and didn't want to think about it, so she drowned her face beneath her hair.

Kabuto sprang as fast as he could from one branch to another, barely keeping his focus on the obstacles ahead of him. He kept looking back, glancing over his shoulder as if expecting to see Sakura herself coming after him. But he knew she wouldn't. All the things he learned about her in those 14 years taught him that she couldn't go after him, a perfect example being Sasuke himself. It had been hard, putting on a show of trying to kill her. He grew up with her since he was 8 and she really was almost like a little sister. But his family and the home he lost for 14 years were more important to him, even if they didn't know it and didn't trust him. He had longed for this day for 14 years, mourning each lost hour, but never did he think it would come at the price of his childhood friend. There was bitter blood between them now and maybe Sakura would never forgive him, even let him into her sight. But even the bitterest blood is sweet when looked at with old memories.
"See you soon, nay-chan." He whispered to the trees as he left Sound country.