Chapter 11

The next few days were so busy for Sakura that she barely had time to speak to anyone, much less Madara. Exams were right after the holiday break, so classes have been demanding. The holiday season is also the season for shopping, so her job was forcing more hours on her.

She didn't mind all that much because the gift she purchased for Madara was a little pricier than expected. Add that to her plan to buy a new TV, and she could use all the extra money she could get. It was a watch, the present for the Uchiha man. After spending time with him, it became clear that he didn't have one. Well, he did have one, but it was broken. She saw it on the dresser in his bedroom a while back. The face was cracked with what suspiciously looked like a bullet grazed it, but she didn't allow herself to think about that too hard lest it gives her anxiety.

By the time she'd arrive home at the end of each day, she was so tired that she'd fall asleep shortly after showering.

'Just two more days, and then it'll be Christmas, and I'll finally get to spend some time with Madara,' Sakura encouraged herself as she carried a large delivery box toward an intimidatingly large gate with security personnel manning either side of the entrance. Her plan is to hold off until after the holiday to ask him the what-are-we question.

It was December twenty-third, and she brought the freshly altered party dress to the address the customer named Danzo provided. It was the final delivery of the day, and then she could finally go home and rest.

When she approached, a security guard stepped up to stop her, his black suit and stoic expression intimidating the pink-haired woman. She shivered, primarily due to the heavily falling slow and chilling winter wind, "I'm, um…. I'm here to deliver a dress for Mr. and Mrs. Shimura."

Soft buzzing sounded behind the man, the gate opening. He glanced at the other guard, who nodded, and then she was walking through an extravagantly decorated garden. White lights and silver bows lined a massive fountain and the many small Christmas trees.

A warm feeling fluttered in her chest. 'It looks like something out of a holiday movie. It's so beautiful!'

The large door at the top of the wide staircase opened as she struggled to balance the box to knock. Danzo smiled calmly as he stood to the side and gestured for her to enter, "It's lovely to see you again, Sakura. Please come in from the snow and warm up."

"Oh, thank you for the offer, but I'm just here to drop off your wife's dress," the pink-haired woman offered in a friendly tone, stepping inside anyway because the man seemed adamant.

The gentleman gestured behind him, turning to look at a pretty blue-haired woman with bright orange eyes, "Angel, be a dear and take this package upstairs," he grinned at Sakura again once the box was out of her arms, "Do you need to return to work? I'd love to sit and have a cup of tea if you're available. It's no problem."

Sakura glanced around nervously, taking in the extravagant marble floors and expensive paintings lining the foyer's walls and feeling like a country bumpkin compared to such class, "I-I don't know. I wouldn't want to burden you…."

"Really, it's no bother at all! In truth, I have a daughter around your age that won't be coming home for the holiday. I suppose this is me attempting to comfort myself."

Then the woman felt too guilty to say no, so she hesitantly allowed an orange-haired butler to take her purse, coat, scarf, hat, and gloves before following Danzo through the massive mansion, "Thank you, then. You're very kind."

'This is a little awkward. Where is his wife? I'd feel more comfortable with another person around.'

Once they arrived in an office with a small table near the wall, the pair sat down and waited for someone to bring tea. While they did, Sakura anxiously wrung her wrists in her lap, glancing between the table and the gentleman across from her a few times, "So, um, I bet you're excited about the Christmas party, huh?"

"Oh, yes, indeed I am! Usually, the place isn't decorated this extravagantly, but it's to be hosted here, so there wasn't much choice," he didn't give her time to respond before asking a question, "What about you, Sakura? Do you have any plans for the holiday?"

Madara crossed her mind, and a small smile tugged at her lips, "A friend and I plan to spend the day together, but other than that, no."

The door to the office opened, likely someone delivering the tea, but Danzo's smile widened and distracted the woman from their approach, "Oh, perhaps it's your boyfriend? I remember spending many Christmases with girlfriends when I was young."

Blush dusted her cheeks, lifting a hand to delicately touch one, feeling bashful, "He's not my…. We're not dating or anything, no." Sakura glanced up at the butler who poured a cup of tea for her to offer a smile of thanks, only for it to fall and her to do a double take when the dark-haired man standing there looked extremely familiar.

'Where have I seen him before? I can't put my finger on it….'

She was distracted by the older gentleman once more, "I see; well, I wish you a happy holiday regardless."

The pair sipped the warm tea in silence for a moment, the woman looking at the dark-haired butler again as he placed a small plate of cookies on the table, still unable to recall where she'd seen him before. When he put the empty tray under his arm and turned to leave, she nearly choked on her tea because she'd finally figured it out, "S-Sai! You're name's Sai, right?"

The young man turned to offer her a polite smile that didn't reach his eyes, bowing slightly, "That's correct, Ma'am. I'm surprised you remember my name."

Sakura returned his grin, tilting her head to the side as she joked more casually because being able to identify him made her less nervous, "Ino wouldn't stop talking about you." Realizing she might be keeping him from his duties, she slightly bowed her head, "I shouldn't bother you at work. It's nice to see you again, though."

"Likewise. Farewell," Sai turned to leave with the same emotionless expression as before.

Once he was gone, the pink-haired woman began to feel very hot and a little dizzy. With a hand to her forehead, she frowned, "I-I should be going, Sir. Thank you so much for your hospitality."

"You look rather pale. Are you sure you wouldn't like to rest for a moment? I'd hate for you to faint or get into an accident." Danzo stood as she did, reaching to hold her arm when she swayed to the side.

'Something's wrong. I've fainted before, and it felt nothing like this.'

Sakura's eyes darted down to the table, wondering if maybe she was allergic to something there, only to land on the cup of tea. A horrible, terrifying thought crossed her mind, and she lifted her gaze to Danzo's face. She didn't say anything, but the look in his eye wasn't nearly as surprised as it should've been.

'I have to get out of here!'

All of her alarms were suddenly going off. Even if she was wrong, the chance that she was correct and this man had slipped something into her drink was too scary to risk it, "Really, I need to go. My friend is expecting me." Swirls of haze and dizziness made her vision unsteady, and she had to reach over to place a hand on the table to prevent herself from falling to the ground.

Danzo didn't remove his grip on her arm, instead speaking in a tone much less light-hearted than before, "Madara should've known better than to keep you a secret." Sakura's eyes widened, searching his scarred and slightly wrinkled face in disbelief as she tried to put the puzzle pieces together.

"Honestly, I'm surprised he lets you out of his sight at all, knowing the potential dangers."

"How do you know him? Let me go this instant, or I'll-" "Or you'll what? Call for help? You don't have your phone. Hit me? You're going to pass out any minute from the drugs, dear."

Tears filled her eyes as terror froze her limbs. The woman's voice was unsteady and quiet, "When he finds out about this, he's gonna kick your ass."

The hand around her arm tightened before pulling roughly to the side and releasing so she fell dizzily into a heap on the floor, struggling to lift her head and glare at the man.

"You don't know him as well as I do. That man only cares about himself. He knows what'll happen if he defies me, so he'll fall in line like always."

Sakura's tears overflowed, and she shook her head, closing her eyes as she fell, fighting the drugs with all she had to stay awake, "Y-You're wrong, he…he wouldn't do that…." Danzo replied, but it was only a murmur in her ears as she finally lost the battle and fell into a restless sea of black.

~

All of Sakura's senses were on high alert the moment she came to. It was cold wherever she was, and the ground was hard beneath her cheek. The distinct smell of some unknown chemical filled the air, similar to that of floor wax or furniture polish but not precisely the same.

Her eyes crept open when the sound of multiple people whispering met her ears, and the panic in her blood rose further when she saw numerous strangers looking at her from across the room, all women.

Groaning, she slowly sat up. They all had one wrist cuffed to the metal bar on the wall and a look of dread on their scared faces. Looking at her own, she knew she was also cuffed before seeing the metal around her wrist.

Her shoes were also gone, likely a security measure to ensure she wouldn't carelessly leave the building if she got loose because she'd surely lose toes in the cold. They were in some kind of storage room that seemed underground but might not be. There were no windows, so it was impossible to be sure.

Across the room, away from her and the other women, lay a dozen or more expensive-looking items like paintings and jewelry. One of the paintings caught her eye. Her heart sank. It was the one she'd seen at Madara's apartment. The one he said he'd bought for a friend.

'Danzo wasn't lying after all. Madara does work for him.' The Uchiha man lied to her about his job, but she already found that out the night he woke her up with a bullet wound, half-dead.

"Sakura…."

The air in the woman's lungs left as a familiar voice met her ears, and her neck nearly hurt she turned it so quickly. It was Ino. She was just more than an arm's length away, with her pretty blond hair messy around her shoulders and the skin around her cuffed wrist appearing red and raw. The girl looked exhausted.

Sakura tried to reach her, suddenly crying, "I-Ino! What…?"

Ino reached for her, too, but they couldn't reach and ended up staring at one another tragically.

"It was Sai. He texted me after I left your place and asked to meet up before I left Konoha. I was an idiot."

"He must be using your phone. I got a text saying you made it there safely," she glanced at the other women silently listening to their conversation, "What's going on here?"

Ino brought her knees to her chest, wrapping her free arm around them, "There's some creepy ass auction party tomorrow. They're gonna sell us."

Suddenly, the other items in the room made sense. This was the storage room for the property they'll be auctioning off. Everything inside was to be sold, human or not.

Sakura's hands fisted angrily, disgusted by the maltreatment of these women and herself, "There's no way they're going to get away with this."

"It's Madara's fault, isn't it? Did you know he was involved in dangerous stuff like this?"

"I knew there were holes in his story, but human trafficking…. I never expected this kind of thing."

It was true.

Even after realizing that Danzo was Madara's boss and she'd been targeted because of her proximity to the Uchiha man, she still believed he was unaware of what was happening. Sakura thought he'd come to rescue her, no matter what. Now that she knew the buying and selling of humans was involved, she felt betrayed, humiliated, and full of rage.

'I never in a million years thought he'd be involved in something so disgusting. Being a thief for hire? I'd eventually palate that, but this…absolutely not. When I get out of here and find him…. If he knew about this, there's gonna be hell to pay!'

For hours, Sakura tried to devise a plan of escape. Three women were captured besides her and Ino, so five in total, and none could swallow their terror enough to speak to Ino or the pink-haired girl. A pair of guards checked on them once an hour, the blue-haired woman and the orange-haired man she saw on her way into the mansion.

'Whatever I do, it's going to involve either tricking or overpowering one of them.'

Finally, while the other girls were asleep, Sakura had an idea. If she could get the woman to separate from her partner, there was a potential to steal the gun on her hip and blaze her way out. She'll find a phone, call the police, and, if she hasn't been caught by then, she'll try to remain hidden.

In truth, Sakura was scared for her life. She could barely keep her limbs from trembling as her eyes remained trained on the door, waiting for the guards to come. Ino was sick, likely with a cold, due to being in that cold room for days without proper clothing or blankets. The fact that her best friend's life hung in the balance helped her grin and bear the terror.

'No matter what, she's getting out of here alive, even if I don't. It's my fault she's here at all. If I hadn't gotten close with someone so dangerous, none of this would've happened.'

Though she tried with all her might not to think about Madara, she simply couldn't help it. It hurt, realizing a man she trusted, a man she broke the law for by getting rid of the evidence, wasn't the good person he appeared to be. It almost hurt as much as walking in on Sasuke cheating on her.

The door to the room opened quietly, the pair of guards finally coming to recheck the women's cuffs.

"Hey, I need to use the bathroom."

The man looked down his nose at her, "Hold it."

Sakura feigned embarrassment, giving the woman a pleading look, "It's…. It's the time of the month," the couple glanced at one another, so she added, "Please. I'll be quick."

Sighing defeatedly, the woman pulled a ring of keys from her belt with a deep glare in her orange eyes, "If you try anything, it might just be the last thing you do, understand?"

'Yeah, right. Danzo wants me alive, or else he'd have killed me already. I know too much,' the trembling woman tried to comfort herself with reassuring thoughts, praying she was correct.

The cuff was unhooked from the metal bar on the wall, instead clasping around her other wrist, then Sakura was led out of the room. A hand was on her shoulder, guiding her down a hall to the left, took another left turn, and pushed her into a bathroom. The woman entered with her.

When she met her eye, she placed a hand on the handle of her gun with a narrowed gaze, "Go on. You wrapped Madara around your finger, so I can't leave you alone. Who knows what you'll try?"

A tinge of anger boiled in the pit of Sakura's stomach when the woman dared mention the Uchiha man in front of her, but she bit it back in an effort not to ruin her plan, "...Can you at least turn around? This is embarrassing."

"God, you're obnoxious. Make it quick."

When she turned her back, the pink-haired woman kept a strict eye on the back of her head, trying to keep the conversation going, "What's your name? It's not really Angel, right?" Sakura grabbed a sanitary pad off the small table beside the toilet to hold in her hand so the sound of the wrapper would trick her captor into thinking she was actually using the restroom.

"Why would I tell you?"

"Well, I wanna know who I need to hunt down when I get out of here." She gingerly pulled her shirt off over her head. It couldn't get past her wrists because of the cuffs, but that was part of her plan.

Slowly, she inched up behind the woman, who scoffed, "Cheeky. No dice, though."

Holding her breath, Sakura shoved her second guesses away and lifted the cuffs over "Angel's" head, pulling the shirt tight around her neck while pushing her against the wall. A choked sound of surprise left her lips, and she frantically tried to reach back and grab onto the pinkette, unable to intake a breath.

'Twenty seconds, Sakura. Just don't let go for twenty seconds, and she'll pass out!'

Nails scratched the skin of her arms as she clawed at her hold, soft choking sounds filling the air. Tears overflowed in Sakura's eyes when she finally fainted. For good measure, she held on for a few extra seconds in case she was faking it. Then she gently guided them both to the ground to avoid making much noise. Her wrists were bleeding from the metal cuffs digging into them, but she ignored it.

First, she undid the cuffs with the keys. Pocketing them, she stole the woman's gun, her fingers shaking with anxiety as she looked over it and tried to remember all the movies where people use guns. Tucking it into the back of her pants like Madara had when she first discovered he carried one. Then she handcuffed the woman to the pipe beneath the sink and tore a strip of cloth from her shirt to tie around her head, acting as a gag.

Unfortunately, the woman didn't have a phone, only a pocket radio, which she couldn't use, or else the other guards would hear.

So, after putting on the remains of her ripped shirt and tying it at the back so it appeared as a style choice, Sakura took a moment to listen for footsteps in the hall before taking a calming breath and stepping out. Her heart pounding in her ears, she crept through the hallway, the gun in her hands and ready to be used if necessary.

Eventually, she made it to the office where she'd had tea with Danzo and felt her hopes rise because she knew how to get to the exit from there. In the back of her mind, she wondered why she wasn't running into anyone else, but with freedom so close, she didn't pause.

Once downstairs, on the floor level of the mansion, the woman looked around while behind cover, verified no one could be seen nearby, and made a break for the large door in her sight. Adrenaline pumped through her as she tugged the door open. When she stepped forward, though, two points of sharp pain dug into her lower back, making her cry out.

Sakura turned to see the orange-haired man with a taser gun. Teeth gritting as she saw his finger near the button on the side of the weapon, the woman pointed the gun at him. Electricity shot through her, and her grip tightened on the trigger as she folded to the ground in pain. A choking sound left her mouth as her limbs felt like they were being lit on fire. The gunshot echoed loudly in the foyer, but she couldn't move her eyes to see if she landed it.

Someone kicked the gun away from her hand, and then the taser stopped its shocking. Breathing heavily and barely managing to remain awake, Sakura rolled onto her side to glare up at the man that'd shot her and Danzo, who was miraculously there.

"I see why Madara likes you so much," he mused with the same calm grin on his mouth as always.

'Fuck.'