Disclaimer: Do not own.
This may or may not be my final fanfiction in the Naruto category. It was fun while it lasted, but I'll most likely post something eventually... just not in the near future.
On Remeetings
Sasuke knew that his body would move on it's own to protect someone important. His body had moved that way once, and he almost died. He had died.
He was protecting Naruto, then.
He steeled himself over the years to never be touched by the anguished cries, whether it was to ask for help or not.
But here he was again, he thought almost ruefully. He knew Sakura was strong now, though he wouldn't tell her to her face. But even so, here he was.
There was a certain sort of inevitability in this. A certain sort of inner knowing, though his mind tried to block it out.
How ironic it was that he is dead because of the girl who would give up her life for him. The girl who was willing to give up her village to follow him into the snake's clutches. The girl who stood staring at him now in disbelief, still immobile.
She was probably on a mission of Konoha, though he couldn't care less about what it was. He sensed her presence and had watched from a distance. He had abandoned his team temporarily, wanting to be alone for a while.
Fifty of her enemies against a petite, female Konoha nin. She had taken them all down, causing earthquakes and shattering the landscape. However, she hadn't noticed that one ninja coming onto her from behind. She was too wrapped up in the battle.
From behind, one man almost blended in the shadows. One man so perfectly camouflaged that the only reason Sasuke noticed him at his distance was because of his eyes.
The man barreled at Sakura just as she was finishing of the last two nin, and he knew she wouldn't get out of the way in time.
Without thinking, Sasuke lunged for his former teammate. In the split moment he was in the air, he knew he wouldn't make it in time. Sakura would get stabbed...
From his current distance, he could see the kunai the man was holding shine wetly, a sickly green gleam in the scarce light. Poisoned.
Sakura would get stabbed, and die. That was the thought that registered in his mind.
Even a medic with excellent chakra control was highly unlikely to be able to heal a wound and extract the poison on one's own body. Unless...
Without skipping a beat, he propelled himself forward once more, straight into the blade, not even thinking of the consequences, the pain. Not thinking that his action could cost him his life.
He trusted Sakura, that was all. It was a fleeting thought, barely conscious. All that time...
He trusted her.
Sakura half-twisted, her battle senses aware of the presence behind her. It wasn't enough, however, and she knew that chances were that she'll get hit. Punching the man in front of her, she simultaneously stepped around to face the man charging at her from the back.
Too many people at once. She was a good ninja but the sheer number was enough to wipe out the average three-man cell. More so for a medic, she supposed, but Haruno Sakura was far from average.
"Cowards," she hissed, noticing that he was extending the kunai until it was a few milliseconds from hitting her.
A blur of dark hair and steel and then she was pushed back with enough force to seriously hurt. Stumbling back awkwardly, frantically trying to stay upright, Sakura swore viciously.
Managing to find a good foothold, Sakura stared at the scene before her. "Sasuke-kun," she breathed, barely a whisper, as if anything louder would make him disintegrate.
If Sasuke heard, he gave no sign. He had been stabbed by the kunai, but he was up and killing the man before she could blink.
There was no one in the clearing but the two of them. There was nothing between them but silence. There was something profoundly deep in her eyes that made him look away from her jade-green orbs.
"Sasuke-kun," she repeated, and he struggled to pull himself upright, staggering. She was still immobile, and Sasuke considered the thought that she didn't know what to do. If so, then he... he had to find Karin.
Fast.
The poison was spreading quickly, his labored breathing and his erratically beating heart hastening the spread. If he rushed, he'd be that much closer to dying.
Managing to stagger to one end of the clearing, facing the north, he let a touch of grim humor touch his words as he said farewell.
"Still annoying as ever, Sakura." He stepped away from her, away from her life...
And then he was falling.
Sakura wanted to speak, wanted to call out his name, wanted to do something to stop him. Something to thank him.
He looked so tired, like something had happened that she hadn't noticed.
He had fallen, and though she hadn't caught him or anything, she woodenly stepped over to him. "Sa-Sasuke... kun..." Losing her balance, Sakura fell at his side. Taking a deep breath, she checked his vitals methodically.
Sasuke-kun, Sasuke-kun, Sasuke-kun...
Drawing chakra to her fingertips, she traced his body for anything wrong. She felt her panic surge and she ruthlessly quashed the emotion.
Calm, Sakura, calm. Do your job.
Clinically, she reached the grim was poison in his system, a quick acting variant that had been drilled to her memory by Tsunade-shishou.
'Remember Sakura,' Sakura recalled her mentor's words. 'This specific type can kill quickly if it is not treated immediately, should you not have the antidote at hand, - which is very likely, since the antidote is quite rare and must be prepared fresh - you will have to purge the poison from his body with your chakra. Of course, this isn't advised, and it will leave both of you drained.'
Her reserves now were average, not at her peak, not even at the recommended level for her to perform a purge. Reaching into her pack, she found the small pouch she brought as part of her supplies. She withdrew a soldier pill...
Sasuke's eyes opened in the middle of the procedure, managing to see Sakura, completely concentrated on her task. She was about finished, as he saw when she suddenly lurched back with a gasp and all but crumpled to the ground. He wanted to catch her, but he couldn't.
Too weak, he thought. What the hell did she do to him? Then he remembered. The poison. She'd probably used up her strength to help him, and he should probably leave now - his... team would be looking, and he didn't really want to start an encounter between his current teammates and his pink-haired former teammate.
He couldn't leave without saying goodbye, not this time, he thought.
And that was the primary reason that when Sakura woke up, she saw the Uchiha sleeping, leaning against a tree opposite her.
A sweet, slow smile spread on her lips. It mightn't last forever, but for now...
"Sasuke-kun."