See the Light

Month 8…the date was getting close. The due date of May 20 still seemed like a desperate far cry. Sakura was very very pregnant and she was feeling it. She could no longer bend over and Sasuke had been having great fun watching her drop things and then try to pick them up. Although, she wasn’t as large as most pregnant women 8 months along she felt the way other pregnant women felt. Sakura was finishing up her day at work. She had been having hot flashes all day and her back was absolutely killing her. Sasuke was staying late at the academy that evening. Normally, he would walk her home after her shift and push her from behind so some of the weight would be taken off of her. Sakura said goodbye to Shizune and left her joint examination room. She couldn’t wait to go home to the cool air conditioning and flop onto the couch. She had actually been keeping the air on in the apartment when in all actuality it was still a little cool for the air. There were a few days when she simply froze Sasuke.

Once outside, the evening air just made her want to get home and get her clothes off so she could cool down. Sakura hadn’t walked far from the hospital. The lights that evening on the street were dimly lit. They must have not been working properly. Suddenly Sakura felt a hand over her mouth and she let out a horrific scream at the sight of the kunai pointed at her stomach.

“What makes you think you deserve it all? You’ve always been spoiled…a bitch like you doesn’t deserve it all. I suggest you shut up and listen very carefully.” The sinister female voice hissed at her. It was Ino…a very psychotic Ino… “Don’t you scream, don’t you move an inch…in fact I would appreciate it if you would barely breathe. If you try and escape, you’ll have a kunai in your heart…your other heart…the one that’s beating right here.” Sakura trembled as she felt Ino touch the pointed tip of the kunai to her stomach. She traced her stomach with the kunai blade. “Only speak when I ask you to speak.” Ino paused and loosened her grip on her only to get a better grip on her.

“Tell me…Sakura…is it a boy or a girl?” Ino asked sinisterly. Sakura was starting to cry.

“It’s….a boy…” Sakura was shaking. Ino smiled behind her.

“That’s nice…I heard that you got married…I bet you’re fucking happy aren’t you!” Ino said spinning Sakura around and slapping her as hard as she could in the face. Sakura screamed. “I told you to shut the hell up, Sakura! We aren’t done here! It’s supposed to be mine! Everything you have right now should be mine, you nasty whore!’ Ino was screaming like a banshee at this point. She hauled off and slapped Sakura again. There was blood dripping from Sakura’s nose and lip.

“You think you’re soooooo special because you’re fucking pregnant with the Uchiha heir and you’re married to the Uchiha prodigy! Well, Sakura you’re not! I swear I will take everything from you! Your husband and your child…I’ll have them both…but it wont’ be easy…so I’ll have to beat on you a little first.” Ino smiled wickedly. Sakura, being so pregnant was a pretty helpless Ninja and Ino started beating on every part of her she could get to that wasn’t her baby…for some reason she didn’t go after her infant at this point. But Sakura was in tears and bleeding. Ino had Sakura lying on the cold ground.

“Ino what the hell is wrong with you? What the hell happened to you? Why the fuck are you like this?” Sakura said still sobbing. Ino completely ignored her question.

“It’s time to make a choice, Sakura. Someone’s going to die tonight…it’s going to be you…or your baby…now choose…or I’ll choose for you.” Ino had a horrible look on her face…a look that appeared soulless. Ino moved the point of the kunai from Sakura’s heart, down to her round stomach and then back to her heart. She continued this motion as if the kunai were the point of a clock pendulum. She was implying that time was ticking away. Sakura was still crying.

“Aww, what’s wrong Sakura…feeling selfish because you want your baby to die so you can keep him? Or is it that you can’t kill your baby because you’re afraid you’ll lose him if you lose his child?” Ino said mockingly. “Decide bitch! You have 7 seconds…start thinking!” Ino shrieked. Hate was burning in her eyes. Ino started counting down. “Seven…” Sakura’s mind spun how the hell was she going to get out of this? How was she going to protect her child?

“Six…” Sakura looked around her...there was no one to help her. No one knew what hell she was going through.

“Five…” Sakura started to frantically scoot her body backwards, but Ino stepped onto her helpless ankle.

“Four…” Sakura started to breathe hard and she felt her pulse race out of control. She didn’t know what to do.

“Three…” Ino was still swinging like a pendulum over her. She was swinging faster and closer.

“Two…” Ino smiled a wicked smiled.

“One…say goodbye to your baby boy!” Ino drew back her arm, kunai in hand. She threw her arm toward Sakura’s stomach with every intention of making a deadly gash down the center of her. She honestly didn’t care if Sakura and her unborn child were both dead. Sakura screamed a bloody scream…or at least Sakura thought it was her screaming…

“Sakura’s eyes widened and her mouth was open…but she was in such a state of fear that when she screamed nothing came out. However, Ino was screaming bloody murder now. There was a kunai through her hand. It had been thrown from a distance. A figure came rushing toward the scene…an irate figure.

“I don’t know what your problem is…but you better leave Sakura and her baby alone! I’ll kick your ass and I don’t care if you are a girl!” Sakura was relieved to see Naruto looming over her. She was so happy and her tears were now of joy. Ino was helpless now with a kunai in her hand. Naruto managed to send her in another direction moaning in pain.

“Sakura-chan…are you okay?” Naruto asked her.

“No, I’m not…I mean I am…but I’m bleeding and I think I’m going to have bruises…but the baby’s okay.” Sakura said drying her tears. Naruto pulled her up. He put her arm around his neck so she could support her weight on him. Slowly, he walked her back to her apartment. Once at her door, Sakura handed Naruto the key and he unlocked the door. Sakura immediately went to the couch while Naruto began to look at how beaten she was. Her eye was already beginning to blacken, her lip was swollen and Naruto feared that her nose may be broken, but he wasn’t certain. Sakura refused to go into the hospital before seeing Sasuke and her child was indeed alight so she wished to wait on him.Naruto examined Sakura’s ankle. It was slightly swollen.

“Sakura where is your sterilized wrap? I’ll take care of your ankle.” Sakura pointed Naruto into the utility room. He soon returned with wrap and a clean washcloth. He finally got Sakura comfortable and he went upstairs to get her something to change into. Sakura wasn’t self conscious about changing in front of him. After all, he had just saved her life. Naruto went into the kitchen and prepared a bag of ice for Sakura’s lip. He returned and sat across form Sakura. She was really a mess…but at least she was safe now.

“Naruto, you saved my life tonight…but most importantly…you saved my baby’s life.” Sakura started to cry again. Naruto hugged her and tried to calm her once more. She was pretty shaken from the whole thing. Naruto called Sasuke at the academy and told him what happened. He was home in a matter of moments. Now Sakura had her team by her side, her husband and her friend. Sasuke had never felt this much anger…and he had to be careful about getting this angry. He had a cursed seal and he knew it and he absolutely had to control his rage.

Sasuke looked at his battered wife. His heart sunk to think that he wasn’t there for her when she needed him, but Sakura didn’t hold that against him. He couldn’t help it. Sasuke held on to her on their couch while Naruto sat across from them. Naruto had stayed with them most of the evening. Sakura was getting very sleepy and she was still high strung and nervous about what had happened that evening. However she remembered something…

“Naruto, come here…come feel the baby.” She reached her hand out and took Naruto’s hand and placed it on her stomach. She managed to smile a sore smile.

“He’s active. Just leave your hand there…he’ll kick.” Naruto left his hand on Sakura’s stomach he felt nothing for a while. However, he had never felt a pregnant woman’s’ stomach before, this was weird. It was his friend’s pregnant stomach which made it even stranger. Finally, Naruto’s face lit up. The baby moved.

“Sakura-chan! Sakura-chan! Can you feel it? When he does that?” Sakura actually managed to laugh.

“Of course I can feel that. He’s inside of me isn’t he?” Sasuke didn’t let Sakura out of his arms for the rest of the evening. The baby was okay…and Sakura would be okay in due time…of course her time was almost due so she hoped she would heal quickly.