#sakura xx crew | Explore Tumblr posts and blogs

skadventuretime · 5 years ago

Text

Hello, the Sakura xx crew started our haunted house oneshot and I had to capture our opening antics. Ako is mine, Satsuki is @scarfblogs, Kaguya is @xxwolfpupxx, Hitsuki is @kurisuumakise, Kimiko is @eerna, and our lovely GM is @starrycereal.

(Also check out Jo’s art of where this story leaves off when you’re done)

///

Why won’t she stop talking? Why won’t she stop talking? Why won’t--

“And so I say to her: Orange you glad I didn’t say banana?” She pauses, waggling her eyebrows like she has a painful itch she can’t use her hands to scratch. What does it mean? Why is she still here? Why couldn’t he say no?

“I agree,” he says carefully, still not sure what kind of response she’s looking for but almost positive that people like to be agreed with.

Her laugh is like a dying clown. “You’re so funny! Thanks for helping me find this place, I’m still pretty new so I don’t know my way around town yet.”

“I didn’t help you,” he says, a little desperately. “You grabbed me after class and told me to come along, I don’t even remember your name--”

“Oh look, I think this is the address!”

Ako glances up at the large stone gate before them. It’s a simple arch with cast iron doors that open inward, as if left that way to welcome someone in. There’s a stately Victorian house at the end of a chaste gravel drive, but something about the way it looks a little too pristine puts him on edge. Before he can analyze the feeling further, though, the girl drags him through the gate and marches him towards the front of the house.

He feels the chill as they cross the threshold and knows they’ve made a grave mistake.

“We should leave—“

“That’s strange, the stairs looked a lot sturdier from the street.” The girl — Sateki? Tsukiko? — prods the lowest stair with her foot, and an errant gust of wind blows her skirt up.

Ako, red-faced and definitely beginning to panic, looks away and tries again. “There might be foul magic here and—“

“Oi Satsuki, what are you doing here? Thought you had band practice today.”

A girl with shoulder length white hair lazily spinning a yo-yo walks through the archway. Two other girls, one short with pink hair and the other taller with red hair, follow. Ako’s protests die on his tongue; it’s too late now.

“Kaguya!” sings Satsuki while she scans the other two. “And Hitsuki and — KIMIKO!” Ako feels a small gust of wind as she launches herself at the tiny pink haired girl and scoops her into her arms. This is quite a feat, because now Ako can see that the tiny pink girl is holding a katana taller than she is. “What are you guys doing here?”

“Got a job,” Kaguya says cryptically, and Ako glances back at the decaying house. Is she a plumber?

“I saw her leave class early and tagged along!” Kimiko says, appearing to be perfectly at home in Sastuki’s never ending hug.

“I wasn’t following Kimiko, you’re all stupid,” said the last girl, Hitsuki. She’s blushing for some reason, almost the color of her hair, or perhaps she’s just winded from the long walk from school.

They begin to chat about something or other, which Ako promptly tunes out because he needs to confirm if his fears are valid. He takes a deep breath, sinking his awareness down through his feet and up through the top of his head -- a bird, a bug, a body -- and on the exhale, opens his eyes.

The world looks dim and slightly grey, like it was about to thunderstorm despite the afternoon sun. Threads of pulsing light flicker in his vision, writhing around the entrance in a giant tangle that obscures the entrance. So they wouldn’t be able to leave -- that’s the tightest abjuration spell weave he’s seen in some time. There’s something off about it though, something that he can’t quite place, so he turns his gaze to the house itself.

It looks about the same, except the threads have a creeping darkness that whisper his name. There’s that something else here too, something that taunts him but he can’t place. Distantly he hears Satsuki squealing about a squirrel. He squints and refocuses.

“Abjuration, necromancy, and...something,” he mutters to himself. Perhaps the answer lies inside, and since they can’t leave the way they came, he might as well try to find out.

He starts up the short stairs onto the porch landing and belatedly realizes the girls are following him. “There’s magic preventing us from leaving, but I can’t get a good look at it from here. I figured I’d try inside…” His voice trails off from the intense attention he’s getting from both Satsuki and Kimiko, who seem to think he’s the most interesting creature in the world. He begins to sweat.

“All you had to do was say you wanted to go inside!” Kimiko says with a smile that could summon a rainbow. She bounces to the door and removes a hairpin from her hair.

“I’ll help,” Kaguya says, squatting at eye level with the lock.

A minute goes by. Then another, and another, until Hitsuki says, “Here, let me try.”

Kimiko looks mildly annoyed that she didn’t get it, but hops over and passes Hitsuki the hairpin.

Ako glances back at the entrance while Hitsuki grumbles to herself at the lock. The magic seems to swirl faster, much faster than its earlier sluggish pace.

Almost like it’s waking up.

His pulse beats faster and he looks back to see Hitsuki getting increasingly frustrated trying to jimmy the lock. She pokes it over and over again until she jams the hairpin in and bends it at such an angle that it falls, useless, to the ground.

They don’t have time for this. Something set these wards, something controls these grounds, and they need to find out who or what that is as soon as they can. He inhales again, deeper this time, eyes sliding shut while he reaches out to his magic. The air begins to tingle around him, microscopic snaps of energy that he can only feel because he’s searching for them.

This is the nature of his destruction.

“Woah woah woah, what’s that kid doing?” Hitsuki says. She must also study magic, to sense what he’s doing.

Kimiko hums. “There’s just a little green cloud around his hands, that doesn’t look so bad.”

“No really, he looks like he’s gonna blow us all up or something, someone get the door quick.”

“Don’t worry, I’m helping,” Ako replies, voice slipping an octave lower, green energy dripping out the corners of his mouth. He’s forgotten what power feels like, the raw and unfiltered freedom of it. For a moment he could almost understand the decisions his parents made.

But they’re gone, and he’s got a door to disintegrate. Like his teacher told him so many years ago, he imagines the bonds between atoms snapping, sundering, coming to dust. The difference between is and is not is smaller than most think.

“Anyone?” Hitsuki groans.

With a sigh, Kaguya shoves off of the porch railing where she’d been leaning. Hands still in her pockets, she spins and lands a solid roundhouse kick that shatters the door completely.

Perplexed, Ako looks at his hands. The energy of unmaking is still curled, unreleased, around his fingers. He shakes it away.

“Door’s open,” Kaguya says, faint sparks of electricity leaping from her fingers to her hair.

“Thank goodness,” Hitsuki mutters. “We almost had a situation there.” She shoots Ako a nasty look and heads in, trailed by the others.

Heat rises in his cheeks. What’s wrong, there was a problem and he was going to solve it!

Shaking his head, he follows the group inside. Heavy darkness assails him -- the table, the knife, the goblet -- so he gasps and scrabbles for his journal. It’s the largest item on him and thus the biggest catalyst for his Light spell.

Sweet, safe light bursts from his journal, now held aloft like a lantern. Kimiko claps delightedly.

They’re inside a large entrance foyer, with rows and rows of framed portraits on the walls. A pair of wide staircases that connect at an upper landing takes up most of the room, and sheet-covered shapes are dotted around what must have been a small sitting area.

He breathes in again to focus his vision. Threads of illusion tinged with that same necromancy from before cloak each of the paintings. Nothing seems to be affecting the sheet-covered shapes, so he walks a little farther in, holding up his notebook to create the largest ring of light possible.

The sense of something unfinished makes him scan the portraits again. One of them is woven more heavily with illusion, a tricky weave that even he would struggle with. He takes a step closer.

Shrill, booming cackles emanate from the portrait’s mouth, startling him so badly he almost drops his journal.

“What’s that?” Kimiko yelps, drawing her gigantic sword.

“I’m not sure,” Ako replies nervously. Something is very, very wrong.

“I don’t like it!” she yells and dashes forward. One clean slice is all it takes to cut it in half, the bisected pieces clattering to the floor more loudly than they should.

The laughter continues, less amused, and Ako swallows. It sounds angry now.

“I don’t like this,” Hitsuki mutters.

“Do you guys hear that?” Kaguya asks quietly. It’s the volume of her voice that makes the hair on the back of Ako’s neck stand up.

They listen for a beat. Kaguya says, “Someone was thumping around in a room down the hall, but it just stopped.”

A wave of fear ripples through Ako. He siddles over to the wall near Kimiko, who has proven herself more than capable of slicing bad things in two.

“I don’t like this either,” she whispers as the rest of the group gathers behind her, eyes trained on the gloom down the hall, backs against the wall.

It’s quiet except for everyone’s ragged breathing. Satsuki crouches down and hugs her knees to her chest. All of Ako’s senses strain to hear something, anything, and then --

“Hey, how’d you get in here?”

Ako snaps his head around to see a faintly glowing hand emerge from the wall, and tries desperately not to pass out.

///

1/?

#sakura xx crew #dnd #ocs #i love these kids like burning #'haha let's do a joke anime girl oneshot for fun and have them do some cliche haunted house'#/all of us get super attached to our kids: oh #madi tries words

20 notes · View notes

silverfootstepswrites · 7 years ago

Text

title Up summary Wishful thinking gets you nowhere. pairing Itasaku, Tobisaku rating hide the children

If there was anything she wished she had known before this life, it was to get used to strange ceilings. Sakura couldn’t even begin to count the number of times she had squinted up, not recognizing the water stains.

But this time, as her eyes opened, she recognized the crystal chandelier. The eggshell ceilings. She remembered specifying to the designer that she hadn’t wanted white. The walls of her mother’s apartment had been painted too white. It was probably to make the run-down place look cleaner somehow. But the harsh color seemed to repel life. Repel them.

As she blinked, she saw a wisp of smoke rise up toward that not-white ceiling.

“...wei...” she said. There was a pause. And then she heard a sigh.

“Shit. I forgot.”

The mattress dipped. She heard him roll out of bed. The door to the balcony opened. Cool air gusted in for a second before the door closed. Sakura sat up in time to see a very naked Tobirama puffing on his cigarette outside. He sucked in a few breaths before he flicked the lit cigarette over the edge of the balcony. Down onto the city below.

Their eyes met when he slipped back into the room. He waved the rest of the smoky air out behind him as he shut the door.

“I forgot,” Tobirama said again, “My bad.”

Sakura rubbed the heel of her hand against her temple.

“Diu,” she cursed. And then she looked toward the window again. The waters of Victoria Harbor were black, same as the sky. “Did I sleep at all?”

“Maybe half an hour. Thought I’d finally screwed you unconscious like I promised,” he sighed, almost sounding wistful. Sakura laughed, rolling onto her stomach. She liked this side of him- a little arrogant, just a little crass.

“Dumbass,” she muttered under her breath. She reached for her phone on the nightstand. There were a few missed calls. A text from Tenten letting her know that the night market was okay. Which made her remember something.

“I hear you had some run-ins with the Red Arrows. Something about them smuggling girls out Causeway Bay,” Sakura commented. Tobirama snorted. The mattress shifted when he sat down.

“It was some brats. Blue lanterns that aren’t even technically part of his crew. I had my boys teach them a lesson but it’s nothing to kill over,” he replied.

“I bet he did it on purpose. Kabuto’s been pissy ever since Hashirama gave you Happy Valley when we took it from the Suns,” she sighed. She looked at him again. He was sitting up against the headboard, arms crossed behind his neck. He had the same tattoo of Guan Yu as his older brother- only it was on the opposite arm. The ancient general glowered his judgment on her so she turned back to her phone.

Inuzuka-kai wants 15 keys a week. Should I cut a deal? Charlie texted her.

“Technically, Happy Valley is run by the city as part of Wan Chai. And since Wan Chai is mine...” Tobirama trailed off, his self-satisfaction obvious. Sakura rolled her eyes.

Fuck them, she typed back. Let them know that the Hyuuga’s would be happy to pay double for that.

Said deal as soon as I said Hyuuga. Thanks, boss, Charlie messaged back.

“Sure. Why don’t you run for city council while you’re at it?” she scoffed. He moved. She felt his weight settle half on her back. She immediately tossed her phone aside before he could read over her shoulder.

“Relax. How many times do I have to tell you that I’m not trying to spy on you?” he chuckled against her shoulder blade. He kissed it once. Moving up to kiss the back of her neck. She swatted him aside.

“I’ll believe you when you’re dead and your ghost confesses the same thing to me,” Sakura sniffed. Still, she didn’t resist when he rolled her onto her back. His hands rested on either side of her head. His shadow loomed over her.

“Look, Kennedy town is Kabuto’s, Central is yours, Wan Chai is mine-”

“You know. I helped you take parts of Wan Chai,” Sakura interrupted, her eyes narrowing. She reached up, caressed the side of his face. Tobirama caught her hand, holding it tighter against his cheek.

“And who supplied the guns you needed to take the Mid-Levels? Don’t forget that,” he said in the same, silken voice. She smirked. She pulled her hand from his grasp.

“Oh, I thought I’d already showed my thanks.” Her hand slipped lower. A short hiss escaped through his teeth as she squeezed.

“But I don’t mind doing it again,” she added. She laughed as his full weight fell on top of her. Her hands linking behind his neck. And the laugh turned to a gasp when his teeth sank into her neck.

It was only later, hair even messier, that he got around to asking his question. They had known each other for long enough. She could tell when he was trying to get at something.

“So tell me about your new man,” said Tobirama,

Sakura twisted her head around to look at him. The tattoo of the serpent on his left forearm had always bothered her. It glared like it was hiding something. She nudged it with her foot until Tobirama turned to look at her too.

“You got any more smokes?” she asked. Tobirama just stared. She jerked her head toward the window.

They sat on opposite ends of the balcony, facing each other. Sakura hunched her shoulders against the chill. She leaned forward, her eyes already asking. Sighing, Tobirama met her halfway, lighting her cigarette with the end of his.

“You know, your lighter works just fine. Why do you always do that?” he asked, sounding more annoyed than he actually was. He leaned back, exhaling a stream of smoke. Sakura leaned forward, elbow on her knee. Her nipples tightened in the cool breeze.

“It’s kind of sexy, don’t you think?” she replied, grinning around her cigarette. She shivered again. The wind tousled her hair.

“Put on some clothes if you’re cold,” nagged Tobirama. She shook her head. She pulled her cigarette from her mouth, pinching it between her pointer and middle fingers.

“I like it. Besides, you’re not wearing anything either,” she said, gesturing toward him with the cigarette. He flexed the muscles in his chest and stomach when he saw her looking. Sakura rolled her eyes, pretending not to smile.

“Big, tough man,” she snorted.

“Are you done avoiding my question now?” questioned Tobirama. Sakura lifted her cigarette. When she exhaled, she let it leave her mouth in a cloud. Smoke engulfed her face for just a second until the wind stole it away. She rested her forearm on her knee.

“I don’t have a new man. I just saw the waka-gashira of the Uchiha-gumi when he stopped by my shop. Only now he’s the Kumicho,” Sakura finally admitted. She smiled around her cigarette. “The head honcho. The big man.” But Tobirama was unsmiling as he listened. He lifted his cigarette to his lips, turning his head away from her to look out at the water.

“You always had a thing for high-ranking men,” he remarked.

“Who?” Sakura said, voice innocent. Tobirama turned his head back to stare at her.

“My brother. Me. Now this kid,” he listed.

Sakura tilted her head. “He’s probably a little older than me. Then am I a kid too?”

Tobirama made a face. “Don’t remind me.”

And then it was Sakura’s turn to frown.

“Also I never slept with your brother. I don’t do that shit anymore,” she said. Her tone drew his attention again. He studied her. His eyes were sharp, like his brother. But he was sharp in a different way. Like he was reading some invisible words written across her forehead.

“You never even considered it?” he questioned, like he was afraid of the answer. Shaking her head, Sakura thought back.

“Hashirama needed my skills and I needed to be needed. Sex had nothing to do with it... although I might have said yes if he asked,” Sakura responded. Tobirama glared at her for a moment longer. And then, heaving a sigh, he snubbed his cigarette out on the edge of the balcony.

“Look at us two lonely losers,” he lamented.

“I’m lonely. You’re just an idiot,” she corrected, smiling. She looked out at Victoria Bay with him. At the blinking lights of the city that continued to live and breathe with or without them.

“Hurry up and find a nice girl, Tobirama. A man like you shouldn’t be alone,” Sakura urged. Tobirama closed his eyes.

“Fuck you, Sakura.”

“You already do, Tobirama.”

They laughed together, leaning towards each other. Their foreheads almost touching. Sharing that one incredibly intimate space. Like she was Hong Kong island and he was Kowloon. Within sight, but an alien city looming in the distance.

When she left for Japan in the morning, he didn’t wake to say goodbye.

Tenten came to pick her up, packed suitcases already in the trunk. As Zabuza drove them to the airport, Sakura stared up at the grey skies. She was grateful that Tenten didn’t bother her with small talk in the car or on the plane.

Her apartment in Minato had a view of the Rainbow Bridge. She didn’t remember how much Uncle Hashirama had paid for it. The big figures didn’t really faze her anymore. All she knew was that it had heated floors and the doorman never asked questions. That was enough to keep her happy.

The city of Tokyo certainly had a different feel from Hong Kong. Everything in Tokyo was too clean. Immaculate subway lines and sparkling buildings. If Hong Kong was eggshell, then Tokyo was the purest white.

She napped on the tatami floors. Finally able to bask in the absolute silence that came with being alone. Chin tucked into her chest, she let the living hum of the city buzz under her cheek. News playing low on the TV. The blue glow outlined her as she slept.

She was glad when evening rolled around and she finally had an excuse to leave her apartment. She entered the club through the back door. Sai was already sweeping and moving boxes of liquor up from storage.

“Ah, welcome back, Mama. How was your trip?” he greeted her, pausing in the doorway to the basement. Sakura smiled.

“Same old. Nothing interesting,” she answered. And then she looked around the club. The girls wouldn’t start arriving for a couple more hours. Some of them even arrived with customers on their arms, which always made the club look busy.

“I’m going upstairs. Drop in before it gets too crazy. I’ve got to catch you up on some things,” was all she said before she headed upstairs. She unlocked her office door and slipped inside. She snapped the lock shut behind her.

Her office was eggshell- just the way she liked it. The left side of the room was made of glass. It looked out on the streets of Ginza below. The flickering neon signs were already lighting up. Their brazen pinks and purples blinking in unsynchronized patterns. She was thankful that she had followed Tenten’s advice and gotten the tinted glass. It prevented her office from lighting up like a disco ball. And when even that light got annoying, she had blackout curtains to drown it all out.

There were two black sofas facing the windows. On one of them sat Tommy Wong. He twisted his neck to look back at her.

“Wai, Mama,” he greeted her. And then he pointed toward her desk.

“Pick one. It’s a gift for you.”

“Stop breaking into my office. One day I’ll be in a bad mood and I might shoot you,” Sakura warned, voice flat. He shrugged.

“You said to use the key during emergencies. Every day I don’t see you feels like an emergency,” he quipped. Sakura grimaced. Throwing his head back, he laughed.

“The rumors are true. You really do hate smooth-talkers. Okay. Relax, Aunt Cheng. Seriously, go look.”

There were three sets of car keys lined up across the tabletop. She stared at them, eyes narrowing.

“Where did you get these from? I’m not driving around some Yakuza’s stolen car and getting shot for it,” she began to scold. He wagged his finger from side to side.

“No way. Remember a couple years ago when we set up that chop shop near Aberdeen?” he reminded her. Sakura nodded. She remembered how she had lent quite a few of her best men for that. It was a little too close to their territory for the Suns and their boys had gotten into several scuffles until she had cut a deal with the Red Pole in charge.

“Been sending parts out to my buddy in Germany. He sent these over for us as thanks,” he explained. And then he looked up at the ceiling, thinking.

“Actually, you can have all three if you want, Mama. I can always get more,” he amended. Snorting, Sakura grabbed the keys and tossed them back to him He caught two out of the air. The other set he just barely missed. He stooped to pick it up.

“I don’t know what I’d do with three either,” she responded.

“Sell them. Go talk to Tobirama. I’m sure he knows some new money who’s looking to splurge. I’ll let you keep most of the profit. Just give me 20%,” she instructed. She moved behind her desk, sank into her chair.

“Is that all, Tommy?” she then asked. He got to his feet, stretching his arms above his head.

“S’all for now. Just wanted to brighten your day.... night. Whatever. I’ll stop by tomorrow,” he announced, heading to the door.

“Why don’t you stay for a drink? Moegi’s working tonight,” she called after him. He paused in the doorway. Like he wanted to say yes. And when he turned to her, it was with a cheeky grin and empty eyes.

“Nah. Always keep the ladies wanting more. Right, Auntie?”

It was business as usual for a while. The calm was a little disconcerting, to be honest. Although, calm was a relative term. In comparison to her beginning days in Tokyo, things were calm, perhaps.

“Huh... you think it’s gotten boring around here?” Sakura suddenly asked, looking over at Tenten. The woman gaped at her. And then stared pointedly at the man writhing on the ground. Cusses and spittle flew from his mouth. His dislocated arms jerked around like two flopping fish. The noise irritated Sakura enough that she grabbed her gun and unloaded two bullets into his skull. The silencer didn’t really silence the noise. Just sort of muffled the sharpness of it so it didn’t echo as far.

She looked back at Tenten, still waiting for an answer.

“Boss, you just shot a guy in the eye. How can you say this is boring?” Tenten demanded. Sakura took a closer look.

“Oh. Didn’t even realize,” she replied, voice flat.

Sakura wiped her gun clean with the end of her coat.

“Clean this up. I’m going for a walk,” she ordered.

Before her underlings could reply, she brushed past them. Down the narrow alley. There weren’t even rats or garbage to kick aside. That was how sterile this city was.

When she emerged on the main street, she melded into the crowd. The smells of alcohol and fried food assaulted her senses. Music pounded out from clubs. Guys and girls stood outside with their flyers, harassing people to come inside. The stink of sweat, cologne, and perfume brewed together to form the fragrance of the city. In her youth, she had called all this glamour. Now she knew a better word for it all.

“Shit.”

She glanced around. This wasn’t territory that she was unfamiliar with. So many signs had changed as businesses went under and new ones were born to take their places. But she did catch the flickering blue sign for a place that she knew. With one last glance over her shoulder, she ducked into the alley and walked down the stone steps into the bar.

“Welco- ah. You’re not dead yet?”

“Pinot Noir,” she said, not looking at him. She pulled off her coat, tossing it onto an empty barstool. And then she climbed into the one beside it. Elbows up on the bar, she let out a deep sigh.

“Good to see you too. How’ve you been? Wow, your conversation skills are great as always, Sakura-san,” the bartender said, dryly as he placed the wine in front of her.

“Sik si la lei,” she snorted in return as she took the glass. She took a sip, finally looking him in the face. Kankuro put his hand on his chest.

“Chill out, daai lou. You know I don’t speak Cantonese,” he said.

“I said, eat shit, Kankuro,” Sakura translated for him. Kankuro nodded, pretending to take notes on his palm. Even her prickliest attitude never seemed to faze him.

And then he noticed that the bottom of her coat was dark and stained with something.

“Didn’t see rain in the forecast. Is that what I think it is?” he asked, expression wary. Sakura looked him dead in the face as she drank more wine.

“Why bother asking me if you already know the answer?” she said in return. He made a noise of disgust. Reaching under the bar, he found a bottle of air freshener and spritzed her coat. Sakura watched all of this with a faint smile. Like a little lemon scent would suddenly make everything better.

“I’d figure a bigshot like you wouldn’t have time to visit anymore. Is it a special occasion?” asked Kankuro, fanning the air with a folded up menu. Sakura shrugged, swirling her wine around in the glass.

“Just taking a breather,” was all she said. And then she pulled her box of cigarettes out of her coat pocket. Held it up for him to see.

Kankuro sighed. Tossing a towel over his shoulder, he gestured toward the mostly-empty bar.

“Like it’ll bother the other customers. Just let me know if you need anything. Take it easy,” he answered, moving further down the bar to chat with the other customers.

It was a quiet, little place. Clean and a little elegant. But not snobby enough to attract a crowd. The people that knew it liked it. And the people who didn’t never bothered to find out. It was a shitty business model and Sakura had wondered more than once just how they kept this place open.

Kankuro said nothing else to her that night. He stopped by once to refill her glass but that was it.

She lit up her cigarette. She waited for the paper to sizzle before she let the flame die. She rubbed her thumb along the dragon on the side of the lighter. It was begin to wear down, smoothing away at the edges.

The stool to her left scraped against the floor.

A man settled into his seat with a sigh. Sakura glared at him out of the corners of her eyes. There were plenty of open seats at this bar. She regretted wearing such a skimpy black dress- it always drew attention. But it couldn’t be helped. The second-in-command of the Sarutobi-gumi was a notorious womanizer. A little skin always did wonders to persuade him.

The meeting with him hadn’t gone perfectly, but he had been kind enough to point out a rat to her. The rat that was probably being dismantled by Sai as she sat here drinking her wine. She wondered if he would toss the pieces into the ocean. Or would he dump the corpse in Kennedy Town as a warning to Kabuto? His creativity always impressed her.

“Say, onee-chan, have you got a smoke?”

That voice.

Puckering her lips around her cigarette, she turned to look. Uchiha Itachi looked back at her, his cheek in his hand. His eyelashes were lovely and long as he blinked. She blew her smoke out at him just to watch him blink again. Holding her cigarette between her pointer and middle, she smiled.

“Hou ma, daai lou,” she replied.

“Oh, I know that one. That’s hello, right?” Itachi guessed. When she didn’t respond, he pulled a cigarette out of his coat. He put it in his mouth with a pointed look at her lighter sitting on the bar. She leaned in instead, pressing the tip of her cigarette to his. Eyes locking as the paper glowed red. Straightening, she leaned her elbow on the bar.

“The boss of the Uchiha-gumi stopping in for a casual drink?” she asked. She reached for her glass. Spinning it on the bar until she found her lipstick stains. Itachi watched her fingers.

“You’re in Uchiha territory, Sakura. How long did you think it would take for me to notice you?” As he spoke, his eyes traveled up to her face.

“What makes you think I wanted you to notice me, daai lou? That’s pretty arrogant of you,” she teased. And then she lifted her glass to take a sip. Her eyes never leaving his. She saw his lips quirk downwards.

“I wanted to ask why people reported hearing a gunshot not too far from here.” His voice was suddenly all business. It soured the mood. Sakura clicked her tongue, leaning back.

“Who knows?"

“Does it have anything to do with reports of your meetings with the Inuzuka-kai?” he pressed.

Sakura sighed.

“Look, since you’re cute, I’ll give you two pieces of advice.” She dunked her cigarette into her wine, listening to it fizzle and die.

“The first is to stop looking at the Inuzuka-kai all the time. If I were you, I’d be keeping an eye on the Yamanaka-kai. My boys tell me that they’ve been buying up big stocks. I don’t know how you yakuza run things, but my boys at least tell me whenever they move money that big,”

She watched Itachi’s forehead wrinkle. He looked down at the backs of his hands, as if they somehow held all the answers.

“Yamanaka Inoichi and I exchanged sake cups. We’re sworn brothers,” he stated as if she wouldn’t know that already.

“Itachi, I’ve seen mothers sell their own children and sons kill their own fathers. This world is fucked up. Don’t put your faith in absolutes,” she replied. Itachi lifted his chin, meeting her eyes again.

“What’s your second piece of advice?” he demanded.

She lifted her hand to her chin. A coy smile spread across her mouth.

“There’s a reason why the smaller, rattier Inuzuka-kai is still surviving after all this time. Think of who their friends are. And when you have the right questions, come find me again.” When she had finished speaking, she leaned forward. Itachi was very still as she kissed just above his left eyebrow. She left an obscenely large amount of money on the bar.

“Kankuro, when you get a chance, burn that for me,” Sakura called out, pointing at her coat crumpled up on the stool.

“Aw, come on! Not again!” griped the bartender, throwing his hands up in the air.

“You’re a peach,” she said, pretending not to hear his complaints. And then, turning back to Itachi, she smiled.

“Bye-bye, handsome.”

She walked back into the cold. Brazen, shoulders bare. Lingering on the sight of Itachi’s face. She liked that look of surprise on that normally stoic man. Liked how she could shift those expressions with a word or two.

She had barely made it a block when a black car pulled up beside her. Driving so obscenely slow. The back window rolled down and Sai peered out. His face was still flecked with red. Even the collar of his grey shirt was stained dark- almost black in the wettest spots.

“You finished early?” she asked, still walking. The car rolled along with her.

“Of course, Aunt.”

Sakura stopped. And the car jerked to a stop too. The door opened.

“Look into all the executives of the Uchiha-gumi. I’m getting a bad feeling,” she ordered as she ducked into the car.

“Of course, Aunt.”

#writing #eastern suns #itasaku #tobisaku #wtf is wrong with me #but no ragrets #i srsly need to pace myself #but i can't stop #triad!sakura x yakuza!itachi #triad!au

167 notes · View notes