Disclaimer: You only get one, so cherish it. I don't own Naruto and no profit [except Reviews is made with this story. The idea was mine. Yes, I actually had an idea on my own for once ;D Love me! R/R!

Prequel

He stared at the note in his hand. A tear or two fell from his eyes as he squeezed his fist together, crumpling the note. She was gone. She was gone for good.

He ran through the house, hoping to find a sign of her. He pulled open the bathroom door, the door to the only room he hadn't checked yet. Since it was empty, it only indicated one – she was really gone.

He stared at the cup near the sink. Only one black toothbrush stood in there. She had taken her things. All of them. He had already noticed it in the bedroom where usually at least some of her clothes resided. A T-shirt on the stool or a few skirts in his closet. Now all of those were gone.

He stared into the mirror, raking his head for any place she could go. She said she had to take a trip. Take a trip to where? To her family? Her family didn't even live in Konoha! Nobody even knew where her parents were nowadays.

The image that looked at him in the mirror didn't remind him the handsome guys everybody referred to him as. Instead he looked … empty?

But he didn't have any time to dwell on that. Instead he pulled on his pants and hurried to the hokage's office. If she wanted to leave the village for good, without becoming a missing nin, she'd have to get a permission. Getting one takes time. He had no idea when she had left the house, but she had been there last night. Hokage couldn't decide the matter in hours, right?

He practically flew into the tower. Not bothering to wait until the guard ninjas informed the hokage, he hurried in.

"What the…?" Tsunade asked, looking up from the desk.

"Where is she?" he demanded.

"Oh."

"No, oh's," the man snapped, "Where is my girlfriend."

"She's gone," Tsunade said, looking rather sad herself. The man glared at her.

"Why did you let her go?" he asked. "Why didn't she tell me she wanted to go?"

Tsunade looked at him. "It wasn't my decision to make," she spoke.

The eighteen year old man in front of her seemed to double in size. "Where is she?" he asked. More like roared actually. His onyx eyes were replaced by red Sharigan ones.

"I can't tell you that," Tsunade said, "And like I already said, I couldn't do anything."

"Lady Hokage," Sasuke said with some forced politeness, "I know I owe you my life for taking me back to Konoha three years ago, but if you don't tell me where my girlfriend is…"

Tsunade felt sorry for him, but even she didn't know where Sakura had been placed. Finally she sighed, "It wasn't my decision to make because it was Shikamaru's department."

"Shikamaru's?" Sasuke asked. Shikamaru was the ANBU strategical leader and planner. If he sent Sakura somewhere…

"A mission?" he asked. Tsunade nodded wearily. A moment later Sasuke had run off, sure to find Shikamaru and get some answers from him. Missions were normal in Sasuke's life and in Sakura's as well. So why hadn't she just told him she was going off to a mission?

Something didn't add up. He needed answers. He found Shikamaru near the ramen shop. As soon as Shikamaru saw him, he groaned and muttered something about troublesome boyfriends.

"Nara," Sasuke spoke, closing in. Shikamaru nodded.

"Where's Sakura?"

"I can't tell you," Shikamaru said, casually crossing his arms and leaning against the shop's wall.

"I don't need any details," Sasuke amended, "Just… how long?"

Shikamaru closed his eyes. Now he looked like he was sleeping.

"She's a sleeping agent now." The answer came a good time later, as if Shikamaru was trying to decide if the most beneficial way was to tell him.

"A sleeping agent?" Sasuke exclaimed, "But those ninjas must stay put for months. Years even!"

"She knew the length of the mission when she accepted it," Shikamaru spoke, his voice even and completely emotionless.

"How long?" Sasuke asked again, repeating his question from earlier. He still had this nagging feeling in him.

"10-15," Shikamaru said, as he opened his eyes and got ready to move. "That's all I'll tell you about her mission."

"Wait, 8-15 months?" Sasuke yelled after him, clearly upset.

"No. Years."

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