Heart-Shaped Box

Kakashi was still having a hard time accepting that he wanted to have sex with Sakura. He was also having problems with the fact that it was something that was definitely going to happen again. There was no way he wasn't going to sleep with her.

Yes, it was part of the mission parameters. He accepted that. What he couldn't accept was his body's willingness to be with her. What did that say about him? That he was one sick individual? He couldn't even console himself with the thought that he had to do it because Sakura had suffered because he had stayed away from her for so long—although that did trouble him.

What exactly had been done to her in his absence? A part of him wanted to wring it out of her, but another part dreaded the answer. It was enough that he was abusing her, she shouldn't have to experience it from someone else. Just thinking about it make his body run hot with anger. His nails dug into his hand drawing blood. This was something that he couldn't put off for long. He would find out what happened to Sakura during his absence and he would make them wish that they never laid eyes on what belonged to hi—on Sakura.

He was really going to have to do something about his freakish obsession with a child. And that was when Kakashi realized that he gave Sakura a task. A task that was probably going to be very difficult for her to accomplish.

He had forgotten that she had close to no ninja skills. Kakashi backtracked to the brothel so fast it was as if the hounds of hell were on his heels because he knew beyond a shadow of a doubt that she was in trouble.

 

:::

 

Sakura was in deep shittake mushrooms...and Kakashi was going to kill her. Her earlier exhaustion disappeared and was replaced by a wave of panic. Her clone had been caught in the act of searching the Madam's office by none other than the Madam herself. Her clone tried to escape but had been unable to pull that off without being dispelled.

Thankfully, she had the foresight to put a henge on the clone, but that didn't mean she didn't make the mission a million times harder. There was no way she'd be able to slip in and out of the woman's office now. Her guard would be up so high now that it would be ridiculous. Sakura cursed herself and her ineptitude. Why hadn't she thrown a genjutsu on herself and concealed her presence? Why did she just stand there like an idiot? Why did she think she could be helpful on this mission? She should have turned it down and let the Hokage send someone who was more suitable because anyone would have been better than her.

Sakura curled up on her bed and buried her face in her thighs. What was she going to do? How could she have messed up so quickly and so badly? Sakura took her bottom lip in between her teeth and bit it until the warmth of blood filled her mouth. Pain flooded her senses and pushed back some of her self-hatred.

She was not meant to be the person she currently was.

Sakura slowly uncurled her body and sat up because she was not going to wallow in self pity any longer than what she already had. Not this time. The Hokage, one the greatest kunoichi in the land, had chosen her for this mission because she thought she could do it and she could. So her first plan failed. Then she would think up another plan before the night was over. She wouldn't sleep until she had accomplished the task that Kakashi had set out for her.

She'd make him proud, but more than that she'd make herself proud.

 

:::

 

The bad thing about staying in a brothel was that there was never really a time where they were free of people. In a little over a month she couldn't think of one time where that was the case.

Sakura had it better than most. Kakashi came during the afternoon whereas most clientele came at night. So that meant the others spent the evenings servicing clients and not sleeping. It was because of this that she was pretty certain if she slipped into the halls that she wouldn't run into one of her...she didn't know what to call them that wouldn't be undignified so she pushed thoughts of what they were...and what she was aside.

If she slipped into the halls that meant she was taking the chance of coming across a client—and unfortunately she knew from experience that some clients didn't care a wit about the rules. She didn't want to take any chances like that. She had two options, really. She could go out the door or the window.

If she went out the window she didn't know how she would make it into the Madam's office. The house was huge and trying to find the right room would be tedious. The longer she was out there the greater her chance would be of getting caught. Not to mention if she tried to sneak into the wrong room things could end badly for her on so many levels.

On the other hand if she went out the door then she would take the risk of being raped. Sakura suddenly felt queasy. The chances of that happening were technically great. Since she the Madam had orchestrated such an incident before there was no reason why she wouldn't do it again. A wave of rage washed over Sakura that she swallowed down. Getting angry at the Madam wouldn't help her at this moment. She would save it for the right moment and then...she would tell Kakashi exactly what had happened to her and he would share her rage, her pain, and her disgust.

And if their--her enemies died because of it...so be it.

She headed to the window, but first made a clone of herself and sent it to her bed just in case anyone came looking for her. Thereafter, she opened the window, cast a small genjustu on herself that made her blend in with the shadows and then walked down the wall of her current place of dwelling.