Chapter 13

At dinner that same night, Fugaku spoke before anyone could begin eating, "I have some unfortunate news to share." Everyone gave the king their undivided attention, me included.

"Amegakure has sent a warrant for the attempted murder of one of their advisors, named Hidan."

My heart fell into the pit of my stomach and I temporarily forgot my manners, "What do you mean "attempted" murder? We watched him die, didn't we Sasuke?" I glanced at the prince and he nodded with an unhappy glare before turning his attention back onto his father.

"You must've been mistaken. The letter states that Hidan himself reported the crime. They request that both of you and Sasori return to Amegakure for sentencing."

Ino frowned unhappily, but her husband spoke up before she could object, "Should we not send a warrant ourselves, requesting the entire royal family to pay for betraying us? It was their queen who sent the girls to Sonokuni, was it not?"

I nodded, "That's true! What are they thinking?"

Mikoto and the king shared a look and I got the sense there was even more bad news. The queen lay a hand softly atop mine, the one closest to her, and spoke in a tone that told me she isn't happy about any of this news either, "It's not so much a warrant as an official end to our alliance, dear. They intend to hold our cousin hostage until their demands are met."

My blood ran cold, "Obito?" She nodded with a frown, squeezing my hand under hers.

Angry heat rose from the pit of my stomach to my chest and I felt an increasingly familiar tingling meet my face, meaning my eyes were likely turning red, "That's not fair! He has nothing to do with any of this!"

Ino tried to reason with me, "They know you care about him, Saku. They're obviously trying to get to you."

My disbelief only increased as I came to agree with her logic. My hand, the one Mikoto wasn't holding, clenched into a fist in my lap as I tried to comprehend the unfamiliar heightened amount of rage coursing through me. In the kitchen nearby, the sound of glass shattering suddenly came and then Sasuke reached over to place a hand on top of my fist in my lap, snapping me out of it.

Tears rose in my eyes as I realized what happened. I lost control of my emotions and unintentionally used Kaguya's powers to destroy at least some of the priceless dishes in the kitchen, "I-I'm sorry! I swear I didn't mean to!" Sasuke squeezed my hand and I turned my head to meet his eye. He gave me a subtle reassuring look, wordlessly trying to calm me down.

"Don't worry, sweetheart. You're still figuring things out." Mikoto moved her hand from atop mine to pull my head toward her slightly so she could kiss the side of it, "Don't worry. None of us intend to abandon Obito."

Fugaku spoke once more, tone final, "Tomorrow morning we'll gather and come up with a plan of action." My eyes widened when his dark brown ones met mine and I understood that for the very first time, I was included when he said "we".

After sending a militia member off in the direction of Suna to warn Sasori of Hidan's survival, dinner began. I found it hard to stomach much after such horrible news and after dinner I went into the kitchen to deal with the mess I made of the dishes. Sasuke followed me and we silently began collecting glass shards and pieces of crystal from the counters and floor.

My brow furrowed as I nicked my finger and watched as the injury healed itself in a matter of seconds. I wasn't lying when I told Sasuke that it felt right to be a vampire, but I still need time to adjust to the new urges and sensations.

"Stop." I turned to see Sasuke was standing next to where I'm kneeling down, looking down at me with a frown.

"I need to figure out how to control it before someone gets hurt."

He came down to my level and searched my face for a few moments before glancing down to the large piece of broken plate in my hand and taking it from me, holding it in both of his palms, "You should start small, then. Try to move it."

I shook my head, making a swipe for the item and glaring when he moved it out of my reach, "Not when you're so close. I could hurt you, Sasuke." With a sigh, the prince placed the glass into the rubber bin we were using to collect the sharp objects.

After a while, we finished and I intended to go upstairs for a bath before going to bed, but Sasuke grabbed my hand and pulled me with him as he walked outside. Before, it was hard to see in the dark, but it's much easier now. Things are still less clear than during the day, but I'm not blind in the pitch black night like I used to be.

"Where are we going?" He ignored me and we continued a ways away from the castle before stopping at a seemingly random spot in the dense forest.

"You can't hurt anyone all the way out here." Oh, that's what we're doing.

My face warmed as I looked around for something to focus on, eyes landing on a small log nearby. I silently motioned for him to get back, still concerned I'd lose control and somehow injure him, and he obliged.

Satisfied he was safe, I faced the piece of dead wood for a long time before getting embarrassed, "I…don't know what to do."

Sasuke heard me from where he was and mused, "Well, you were pissed earlier. Maybe try that."

I turned in the direction his voice came from to see he'd climbed a tree and was sitting on a branch casually as he looked down at me, "I don't know about you, but I can't just get angry on command."

A smirk tugged at his lips and he tilted his head, making me frown, "Want help?" My eyes narrowed and he must've taken that as confirmation because he continued, "Remember when you and Karin fought in the family room?"

The rest of my body turned to face him as irritation bubbled up in my chest, "Yeah, I do. I also remember you stopping me from kicking her ass."

"Do you also remember the hot spring in Ame?"

Teeth grit together, I turned back around and focused on the log I'd chosen as my target. No matter what I tried or how hard I focused on my negative emotions, nothing happened. His attempts to get me mad were working, but none of it made me as angry as I was earlier because the things he was mentioning are trivial.

I groaned after multiple minutes of wasted effort, "It has to be something more serious. Come on, don't hold back." My legs bent as I crouched, hoping that physically making myself smaller would somehow help.

There was a long pause before Sasuke spoke again, "I remember overhearing you and Karin the day she and Tayuya…" My head turned slightly so my ear was in the direction his voice was sounding from as I waited for him to continue. "You sounded angrier than I've ever heard you that day. She said she was feeding on Naruto."

Just like that, the branch exploded into a million little pieces and I'm completely sure my eyes were glowing. My canines were long and sharp as I groaned loudly, "Damn it!"

My chest heaved as I recalled the memory he spoke of. I was bitten probably a hundred times that day, but learning that my best friend was being treated that way…that affected me more, both then and now.

The wild heat of rage thrashed around inside me and I brought my hands to either side of my head as I tried to think of something else, something positive to distract and calm me, but it's easier said than done.

The rest of that day was awful, too. Kabuto forced himself on me and Sasuke…Oh God, Sasuke looked so awful behind those bars. They treated him like an animal!

Gasps of breath panted past my lips and it felt like energy was crackling through my veins like electricity. It felt both amazing and terrible at the same time.

"Sakura, calm down."

Sasuke's cautious voice sounded much closer than I expected and I turned my head to see him approaching with his hands up, reminding me of when I'd just killed Kaguya and he appeared the exact same way, just covered in blood and tattered clothes.

My voice was animalistic and raspy as I barked at him and squeezed my eyes shut while shaking my head, "Get away! I don't want to hurt you!" The lust for violence was threatening to take over.

I want blood. I want to see it, drink it, bathe in it. If Sasuke, or anyone for that matter, gets near me when I'm like this, I could very well tear them to shreds. I'm physically capable of doing so with ease, too.

The sound of a twig snapping made my eyes open once more and the moment I lay eyes on him, barely a few yards away, my body set itself in motion. Unlike last time, when he stopped me from draining one of the Militia men in Kaguya's hideout, he didn't sit still and let me attack. No, he wrestled against me with impressive expertise and a look on his face that said he expected this and knew what he was doing.

The reins on my control were flying around inside me so quickly that I couldn't get a hold on them again, so my instincts took over. My vision was red and my blood was pumping so quickly in my veins that it shouldn't be possible for me to be alive right now.

I've known since the day Sasuke had to save me from an out of control Obito that he's strong, but I didn't realize just how much strength he has until now. The memory of fighting Kaguya is still clear in my mind, to this day, and I know I have incredible physical abilities. Tearing a limb from a body wasn't all that difficult.

My strength seemed almost exactly equal to Sasuke's though. That, and the fact that he has hundreds of years of experience, led to him pinning me to the ground, hands holding my wrists almost too firmly to the dirt as we breathed heavily. His glowing eyes bore into mine as he panted and I all but growled at him as I tried to free myself.

It suddenly sounded like an explosion went off nearby, but then I heard a tree fall loudly to the ground a few meters away and realized it was me, losing control once again. My brow furrowed as my senses vibrated wildly with rage, "Sasuke, go!"

For a moment, he seemed unsure of what course of action to take as I writhed and fought against his strong hold, but then a look of realization dawned his beautiful face. To my surprise, he released his hold on one of my wrists and brought the inside of his forearm to his mouth. My nails dug into his other one, the one still pinning my second wrist to the ground. When I realized he wasn't budging, my hand shot to his throat.

The moment it circled it, he swiftly pressed his forearm to my mouth and the familiar taste of his blood met my lips. My teeth latched over his own bite mark and a strangled moan choked out of my throat. My murderous grip around his throat loosened and I instead grabbed his arm to keep it in place where I could drink from him.

Steadily, the boiling rage sank away, only to be replaced with unbelievable lust. Once I got to the point where I was sure I wouldn't mindlessly try to kill him again, I released my hold on his arm and pulled my teeth from his skin.

He searched my face for a few moments, both of us still breathing hard, and then his lips were on mine and my free hand was trying to unbutton his shirt. My skirt was pushed up as I hooked my legs around his hips and then he reached between us to undo his pants and lower them just enough that he could slide my underwear to the side and heatedly shove himself inside me. His free hand gripped my hip so tightly that I'd surely have bruises if it was still possible for me to get them and mine snaked up to wrap into his messy hair.

Quickly, he found that oh so sensitive spot deep in me that makes my mind go blank and the moment he first recklessly hit it, my mouth tore from his and I cried out in surprise as my head fell back in pleasure. Hot breath dusted my skin with each desperate thrust of Sasuke's hips, turning me on further.

My eyes locked onto his and I gasped out between moans, "That could've ended badly." His brow furrowed and a low, pleasured sound rumbled through his chest as he closed his eyes, making the burning arousal in me beg for even more of him.

My fingers tugged lightly at his hair and I pulled his head lower, "Bite me, baby." I didn't need to ask twice. Teeth sinking into my skin used to hurt and terrify me, but now it just feels good.

Before long, I was thrown right over the edge and Sasuke followed soon after, leaving us to stare at one another as we caught our breath and reflected on what just happened. I moved my hand from the back of his head to his cheek, frowning, "Did I hurt you at all?"

He ignored my question entirely, "If you lose control in the future, I'll let you bite me."

I have no doubt that his logic was sound, but there's just one glaring issue with it. "We can't have sex every time I get overwhelmed."

Sasuke pressed his hips into mine, still having not pulled out since climaxing, and my mouth clamped shut as a blush rose to my cheeks, "That's the only thing we know works for now. Until we figure something else out, it'll have to do."

He kissed me before I could come up with an argument and after a few moments, I felt him begin to re-harden within me and grinned against his lips before expertly rolling on top of him and pinning his arms to the ground like he had mine earlier. When I parted our kiss, his eyes were glowing again and I felt mine follow suit. Then I straightened my spine and began moving.

When my hands released his, Sasuke gripped my hips and rasped out between deep breaths, "I'll never get used to this."

I gripped my hands over his and gazed down into his eyes as I continued moving, "And I'll never get tired of it." His lips turned up into a smirk, making me smile knowingly.

I was already head over heels and stupid in love with him before being turned. I was positive my feelings couldn't possibly get any stronger, but I was wrong. A new level of understanding has risen between us and it's like we're suddenly on our own wavelength.

I'm his woman, by all understanding of the word, and he's my man. Any who tries to come between us will die a horrible death, something I'll personally ensure remains fact.