Per Aspera Ad Astra
A/N: The fic takes place after the occurrences in the manga, with a few alternative changes. It is also unbetaed, so feel free to point out any flaw that you come across, outstanding or no.
It had been a long time since she had seen much of anyone, and to say that Uchiha Sasuke was the last person she'd ever think of running into was a complete understatement.
Sakura was now twenty-five and the head of Konoha's medical department, playing a large role in terms of alliances above practically all else. At such a tender age, she was nearly untouchable.
Emphasis on nearly.
Much had changed over the years. Sound had gotten past all the legal mumbo-jumbo in order to be recognized as an actual village, but that didn't mean that it was all flowers and sunshine in regards to relations with Konoha. Seeing as how Sound was still in its infant stages, there were many legal proceedings that they had yet to tackle.
An up-to-date medical department was among one of them.
Kabuto had guardedly set up a meeting with Haruno Sakura, seeing as how she had been a considerable benefactor in that particular area. She was not only prominent within Konoha, but also within its neighboring villages. He figured that he might as well try his luck – at least for Sound's sake.
And that was where the pink-haired kunoichi found herself: standing in the middle of Sound's newly erected town hall, eyes locked undeniably with the dark stare of one Uchiha Sasuke. Too many things passed between them within those mere seconds – at least, according to her.
Sasuke approached her, blatantly looking her over. "You're late," he said tersely.
Sakura fought the urge to roll her eyes. "Hello to you too, Sasuke. The guards gave me some trouble."
The Uchiha nodded in understanding. He gestured for her to follow him with a tilt of his head before he began his stride. Sakura fell into step, walking in tandem only when they were required to pass through a narrow doorway.
Sakura looked at him askance, sighing internally at his characteristic muteness. It seemed as though some things never changed. "So how are relations going?" she asked; she never was fond of awkward silences.
"As well as anyone can imagine," he replied gruffly.
She chuckled. "I can't for the life of me imagine the Uchiha heir doing much paperwork."
He scowled. "I try to avoid it as much as possible."
They stopped at the last door down the hall. He knocked briskly, opening the door with a quick jerk of the doorknob at Kabuto's "Come in!" before making an abrupt exit.
Kabuto leaned back into his chair. "Ah, Sakura-san. I see you've run into Sasuke-kun."
She smiled kindly. "Yes, and it seems he has yet to pull that stick out of his ass."
The bespectacled man chuckled jovially. "Well, that's Sasuke for you." He adjusted his glasses. "I appreciate you coming here. Please, take a seat."
Sakura nodded, doing so. "I was wondering when Sound would request my assistance." With a grim smile, she added, "Not to sound too arrogant."
He dismissed it with a wave of his hand. "In the position you are in now, it wouldn't surprise me too much." He busied his hands, stacking a pile of documents in front of him. "Would you care for some tea?"
She shrugged. "As long as it isn't poisoned," she joked.
"Oh, trust me. That wouldn't sit too well with relations," he laughed. He poured a cup for each of them.
She gently blew on the contents of her cup, eyebrows slightly drawn. "I hope it isn't just me thinking about how ironic this is, if not a little bizarre."
Kabuto cleared his throat, managing an awkward grin. "Believe me, my mind has had some trouble connecting things together." He leaned forward, steepled his fingertips. "I devised a checklist of what Sound ought to have by now, but doesn't," he said sourly. He pushed the stack of documents towards her. "Feel free to object, assent, and the like."
Sakura nodded as she looked them over, touching a finger to her lips thoughtfully. "These are very basic and valid, which at this point is most important. I would like to observe the clinics and the hospitals that are already up and running though, so I can get a feel for what Sound can do with."
"Very thorough, and just what I had in mind." He stood, his knees cracking as he did so. Kabuto grimaced. "We can start now, if you'd like. I've been cooped up in this office all day."
The kunoichi stood, drumming her fingers on the back of her chair. "Sounds like a plan. Although, I haven't eaten much since I arrived. Do you mind…?"
He waved his hand again. "Oh, not at all. I do apologize, though. Sound is under heavy construction and isn't so pleasing to the eye just yet."
"It doesn't bother me in the least," she assured. What did, though, is that she didn't know entirely what she had gotten into. While Tsunade-sama did in fact allow her to answer Sound's appeal, it was with considerable caution did she allow her to leave at all. It wasn't too much of an encouragement when the guards at the gate weren't as welcoming as she thought they'd be. There had been some unease in their demeanor after they had set their sights on the Hidden Leaf hita-ite fastened to her forearm.
They made their way through the stuffy building and out into the streets. Sakura inhaled deeply, alerting her senses to the distinct smell of spring and the aroma of roasting meat wafting from nearby food vendors. She was surprised to see children romping about, being chastened by their parents for not keeping within view, snacking on dango and rice cakes. It gave her some assurance. Perhaps Sound wouldn't be a bad village after all.
Sakura's observations were disrupted by Kabuto's airy chuckle. She blinked, looking at him. "What?"
He smiled. "You thought Sound would be full of missing-nin and criminals, didn't you?"
She scowled at herself for being so transparent. "It was a passing thought."
"To be entirely truthful, I wasn't too sure if Sound would be able to pass as an adequate village." Kabuto admitted. He led her to a booth specializing in cold soba noodles. "You should try their yamakake soba. It's quite good."
Sakura and Kabuto took their seats, taking their orders before resuming conversation. "Why would you think that?" she asked, intrigued. "About Sound, I mean."
"This village wasn't much to begin with, and lower classes practically didn't exist. We were making something out of nothing, so to speak." The bespectacled man fiddled with a pair of chopsticks. "In the beginning, Sound was a place of refuge. We built a couple of shelters and hostels, and it all started from there. Whenever we were low on money or supplies, Orochimaru's disciples – who've become the chuunin and jounin – just earned them through completing missions. It wasn't long before those nameless faces became our civilians."
"You wouldn't believe everyone's surprise when we found that instead of Orochimaru claiming Sasuke's body, he'd made him a part of his inner circle." Sakura mused. She sighed. "And I thought that Naruto would've been disappointed with all the overzealous training he had to undergo. But it did prepare him quite a bit for everything that happened in place of it."
Kabuto smiled. "And how is our number one hyperactive ninja?"
She rolled her eyes. "As hyperactive as usual, it seems. He's grown a lot since you've last seen him, though."
"And so have you," the Sound medic-nin appraised, smiling kindly.
"Oh – Well…" Sakura flushed. "Intrinsic talent, and all that," she joked.
Their food was served to them shortly, and the two medic-nins ate in a companionable silence.
Everything around her seemed so surreal nowadays, Sakura thought. While the years of her childhood seemed to have gone by in a blur, her teenage years had gone painstakingly slow. With all the dilemmas that had surrounded her – her teammates leaving her behind for strenuous training that she couldn't endure or even keep up with, Akatsuki's scavenger hunt for the jinchuuriki, Sasuke's abrupt reappearance and then disappearance – well, it seemed as though everything had been moving at lightning speed while she moved as if in tar.
"Kabuto-san," a familiar voice deadpanned behind them.
The medic-nin swiveled around, grinning at Sasuke. "Ah, Sasuke-kun! What can I help you with?"
"Orochimaru-sama requests your presence," the Uchiha replied.
"I see. Is it urgent? I already notified him of our guest." Kabuto said, nodding toward Sakura.
Sasuke scowled. "Stop stalling, Kabuto-san. Orochimaru-sama has told me to take over your meeting. I already went over the checklist in your office."
Kabuto gave Sakura a sheepish smile as he stood, quickly paying for both their meals. "I do apologize."
The kunoichi nodded in understanding. "All in a day's work," she replied cheerfully. She watched the medic-nin leave, her heart fluttering even as she resented the Uchiha's presence somewhat. She smiled amicably though when he spared her a glance. "Practicing your suffixes, I see," she teased.
"Are you done?" he asked, not bothering to mask the annoyance in his tone.
"Yes, yes," she sighed, dismounting her stool. Sakura gave him a sly grin. "Tell me something, though."
Sasuke gave her his trademark bored expression that implied that he was listening.
"Is this you avoiding paperwork?" she sniggered.
He shrugged, his face a mask of indifference. "Kabuto will find out eventually."