how did we get here
title: monster
note: i started this in february so it takes place around the sasusaku reunion
summary: choose one. pick one. who does she save? who does she let die?
warnings: character deaths, spoilers, half-assed ending 8D
disclaimer: i do not own naruto
“Choose fast, Sakura.”
The world is rushing by, but Sakura is frozen still.
Pick one.
Choose one.
Sakura swallows, unsure. Choose one. She stares at Lee, unconscious, bleeding to death with a hole in his abdomen. The redness is seeping into the barren ground beneath him much too fast. Across the field is Kiba, groaning and writhing in pain as venom rushes through him. He clutches his leg where one of Sasuke’s deadly snakes bit him. She doesn’t have time to locate Akamaru, but she’s sure he too is dying.
Choose one, she tells herself. Pick one, she urges.
Sakura shakes her head, ignoring Sasuke’s taunt. “I can’t-I can’t just choose, Sasuke-kun!”
Part of her wonders how she can still call him that. Sasuke-kun. Sasuke-kun, Sasuke-kun, Sasuke-kun. This clearly isn’t her Sasuke-kun. This deranged monster in front of her, the sick bastard who can find amusement in making her choose one friend’s life over the other-he isn’t Sasuke-kun. He’s just some monster she’s meeting for the first time. Her Sasuke-kun would never do something like this.
He isn’t moved in the least by the hysteria in her eyes. But of course; such feelings are all too familiar. His smile is cruel.
“If you don’t pick, they’ll both die. Choose.”
“It’s not that simple!” she growls, glaring at him. Kiba or Lee? Sakura trembles. She whimpers. She doesn’t bother to care what Sasuke might be thinking right now. What matters is-
“Have you chosen yet?”
“Shut up!” Sakura screams. Who to save? she wonders. Who to let die? she adds. She looks down at Lee, but he’s overshadowed by the pool of red all around him. Sakura chokes down a sob and squeezes her eyes shut. Kiba had the better chance of surviving at this rate. Lee lost too much blood and Sasuke hit a vital spot. Kiba, on the other hand, was bitten on the ankle. She trembles furiously. It was a fitting attack from a snake like Sasuke.
He sees her resolve harden and he tilts his head knowingly. “So you’ve chosen.”
“Yes,” she whispers, almost inaudibly. She mumbles an apology to Lee and pushes past him to get to Kiba. She feels his eyes burning holes into her back as she speedily extracts the poison. When finally, after teetering on the edge for so long, Sakura deems him safe, she relaxes. She forgets Sasuke is standing across from her. “He’s going to be-”
She is cut off by a choked gurgle. Her eyes shoot open and she sees Sasuke blade in Kiba’s throat.
“W-w-why-” Sakura looks up at him shocked and terrified. She scrambles back as he approaches, carelessly stepping over Kiba’s corpse. “Why would you… wh-what is… why-why-Sasuke!”
He smiles at her cruelly. She tries to turn away but can’t help meeting his blood red eyes. “Do you still want to come with me, Sakura?” he whispers as the Sharingan takes it effect.
Her body loses its tenseness and suddenly, she’s paralyzed. Sakura tries to scream but can’t find her voice. When she can no longer hold herself up, she falls into him, resting her head against his chest. To an outsider it looks like an embrace between lovers, but inside, Sakura reels with disgust from their proximity.
Sasuke tilts her head back so that she is looking at him. She glares at him furiously, unable to physically express her anger. He smirks.
“Good choice, Sakura.”