Despite the anger, humiliation, and lingering fear, the sensations in Mei Terumi's stomach were undeniable. After finishing the last spoonful of congee, she unconsciously licked her lips. It actually tasted… quite good.
No, no, what am I thinking?! she immediately recoiled internally. This is my own flesh! My flesh!
"Full now?" Sakura asked, still smiling that unnerving smile.
"What are you planning to do?" Mei asked, staring warily at Sakura.
"Well, I haven't eaten yet," Sakura replied with a chuckle. "So, what do you think I want to do?" As she spoke, she put down the empty bowl and then casually flipped aside the small blanket covering Mei.
"You… you… you…" Mei's face, which had regained a touch of color, instantly turned deathly pale again. Is she… Is she going to take more meat right now?!
Sakura paid Mei's horrified expression no mind. Since Mei's wounds were on her legs and abdomen, Sakura had only dressed her in a simple top to facilitate changing the bandages. With the blanket removed, Mei's bare, snow-white legs were exposed to the cool cave air.
Noticing blood soaking through the bandages on the right leg, Sakura picked up a small pair of scissors and began carefully cutting them away.
The soft snip-snip sound echoed in Mei's ears like a death knell reverberating in her soul. Face pale, biting her lip hard, Mei tensed her entire body, desperately trying to draw out even a sliver of chakra from her weakened form to stop the demonic act she believed was about to occur.
"You'd better relax," Sakura advised, noticing Mei's rigid posture. "Otherwise, you'll make this difficult for me."
"Why… why do you eat human flesh?!" Mei forced out, her voice strained and harsh as she looked at the young girl before her.
Sakura glanced up and rolled her eyes, not bothering to answer. Ninja from Kirigakure really do have something wrong with their heads, she thought dismissively. If I actually ate human flesh, do you think you'd still be alive right now?
Once the bandages were off, Sakura inspected the wounds. The donor site on the right leg, where skin had been taken, looked infected and was beginning to fester. However, the graft sites on her abdomen and back, where muscle had been transplanted, were healing nicely.
Looks like some infection set in. Since that was the case, she decided against re-bandaging the right leg for now. After cleaning the festering area and applying a medicinal powder, she only re-wrapped the left leg, where the muscle graft had been taken from.
Mei watched Sakura's movements with trepidation, mentally bracing herself to witness her own flesh being cut away. But what came instead was… Sakura applying medicine?
"Lie down," Sakura instructed.
"What?" Mei asked blankly, still processing.
Mei wasn't unintelligent. She had simply been overwhelmed by fear and her own assumptions upon waking. The initial shock had convinced her Sakura was a cannibalistic monster. Now, it seemed she might have been wrong. This emotional rollercoaster was almost too much to handle. Just moments ago, she'd believed the congee was made from her own meat… but then why… why would this girl save her?
"I said, lie down," Sakura repeated.
Seeing Mei still unresponsive, Sakura gently pushed her back down onto the bed, then lifted her top to begin changing the dressing on her abdominal wound.
Hmm, the abdominal wound is recovering well too, Sakura noted internally, pleased. Looks like my medical skills have improved.
After redressing the abdominal wound, Sakura looked at Mei, who seemed dazed and lost in thought. Shaking her head slightly, Sakura helped Mei sit up again. Only the back wound remained.
Peeling back the gauze on Mei's back, Sakura frowned. Right, can't have her lying flat on her back. The pressure had caused the wound to fester; pus was clearly weeping from the site.
Picking up her scalpel, Sakura began carefully scraping away the infected tissue around the wound. The sudden, sharp pain made Mei suck in a breath, the shock seeming to clear her head.
"What are you doing?" she asked, her eyes now lucid.
"What do you think? Cutting off your meat to eat," Sakura retorted irritably.
Taken aback by Sakura's sarcastic reply, Mei felt a faint blush creep up her neck as she recalled her earlier accusations. "Why didn't you kill me?" she asked, genuinely perplexed.
"Would killing you benefit me in any way?" Sakura countered rhetorically, figuring Mei had finally realized how mistaken she'd been.
"I… I don't understand," Mei admitted. "You're clearly not a ninja from the Land of Water. With your strength, only one of the four other Great Nations could produce a shinobi like you. Wouldn't eliminating me—weakening an enemy's strength—be a prime opportunity?"
"Who told you I belong to one of those four nations?" Sakura shot back, rolling her eyes again. "You'd best stop prying into my identity. Otherwise, I might actually feed you your own flesh."
However, Sakura mused internally, her words imply she holds considerable status in Kirigakure. Not just any ninja can speak of representing the village's strength. Her saying that suggests she's likely among the village's upper echelon.
"Misaka Mikoto isn't your real name, is it?" Mei pressed, seemingly having forgotten she was supposed to possess the awareness of a captive.
"You talk too much," Sakura cut her off impatiently. "I didn't kill you simply because I don't want unnecessary trouble. So don't expect me to just let you go. Right now, you're nothing more than my prisoner."
"Then when will you release me?" Mei's eyes lit up slightly.
"I have some matters to resolve first. Once they're dealt with, I'll naturally let you go!" Sakura gave her another eye-roll. I'll let you go once my status as the Fifth Hokage's top disciple is restored, she thought. Then, even if you wanted revenge, you'd have to seriously consider your own standing.
"What matters do you need to resolve? Perhaps you could tell me, and I could help you," Mei suggested, the wheels in her mind beginning to turn. Despite our violent fight, she reasoned internally, there's no deep-seated hatred between us. If she truly isn't affiliated with the other four Great Nations, she might be someone worth contacting…
After finishing the wound care on Mei's back, Sakura helped her lie down again. Looking at Mei's curious expression, Sakura scoffed, "You couldn't even beat me. How exactly are you going to help me?"
"Erk!" Mei looked momentarily flustered. "That was only because your jutsu countered mine!" she defended.
Sakura nodded. "I know that. But you still couldn't beat me."
Desperate to escape her captor's clutches, Mei gritted her teeth. "I swear on the honor of Kirigakure, if you release me, I will help you resolve your affairs."
"Do you think I'm stupid?" Sakura curled her lip dismissively. "What's to stop you from bringing back a whole army for revenge the moment I let you go? Besides, when it comes to self-interest, the 'honor' of the Five Great Villages isn't worth crap. Just stay put and behave."
"Rest assured, I absolutely won't seek revenge!" Mei insisted. "This whole thing was just a misunderstanding! It was because you were asking about Kirigakure intelligence that I drugged you in the first place." She frowned suddenly. "Speaking of which, why were you asking about Kirigakure?"
Sakura ignored her. Crossing her legs casually, she lay back on her stone bed and closed her eyes to rest. Seriously, zero awareness of being a captive, she thought. Keep chattering. You'll run out of energy soon enough.
(Indeed, Mei truly lacked the typical mindset of a prisoner. Sakura's actions were completely unlike those of a normal captor. Any other ninja, once captured, would face brutal torture for village secrets or, at best, be locked away and left to rot. But Sakura? She was meticulously changing dressings, providing medicine, even feeding her – care more attentive than some hospitals provided. Though Mei initially mistook her for a cannibal, once that misunderstanding cleared and she realized Sakura was actively treating her, it became impossible for Mei to truly feel like a captive.)
Sure enough, after monologuing to herself for a while longer with no response from Sakura, Mei found it rather dull. A wave of weakness washed over her, and she finally fell silent, closing her eyes to rest.
Just as Mei was about to drift off, Sakura's voice came from nearby. "If you want to heal faster, I suggest you sleep on your side. It'll be better for the wound on your back."
Hearing the unexpected advice, a strange, inexplicable emotion welled up inside Mei. Logically, she should despise this girl who had injured her so severely. Yet, she found herself developing… favorable feelings towards her?
If Sakura knew what Mei was feeling right now, she would undoubtedly blurt out, Isn't this just the classic, world-famous Stockholm Syndrome?