Atashi no Tenshi, Atashi no Ouka

A/N: Warning! Shoujo Ai ahead. Now that thats out of the way...

I'm not really sure if there's room in the fandom for this type of story, but that's never stopped me before. The characters have been aged quite a bit, so they're in their late teens. I believe their personalities would have matured over the years, and the story reflects that.

I don't own Naruto, otherwise my car wouldn't be as crappy… yada yada. Happy reading!

Japanese Translations:

'atashi no tenshi' – My Angel, often shortened to 'tenshi' for just Angel.

'atashi no ouka' - My Blossoming Flower, often shortened to 'ouka' for just Blossoming Flower

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Sakura ran her hand through her pink locks in agitation, waiting for her ward to arrive. Ever since being promoted to ANBU, she hadn't been given any missions other than routine patrols and escorts inside the walls of Konoha. Life moved slowly, which meant lots of time to think, and considering the disarray her personal life was in, she had no desire for contemplation. She had requested a difficult assignment from Tsunade-sensei, and she had ended up with a baby sitting job.

Two sets of intricately carved and painted chopsticks rested next to a pair of oaken dishes, each filled with a healthy portion of chicken okonomiyaki. Miso soup simmered in the pot at a temperature to keep it warm. A fully array of healing scrolls, herbs and bandages were laid out in the desk… all in preparation for the unknown ward she was supposed to receive and care for inside this carefully chosen dwelling deep inside the territory claimed by Sound Village.

All of her meticulous preparation left her with nothing to do. Her fidgeting betrayed restless agitation, each finger drumming in sequence on the thin wooden surface of her ANBU mask resting on the table. The location of her hideout didn't worry Sakura so much… if it came to it, she was more than confident in her abilities to deal with any Sound Nin who might find and attack her. Nor did her worry stem from the mysterious identity of her ward. It was the fact that her ward was a half day late.

The timekeeping piece on the wall tocked inexorably, and a relenting Sakura lay on the covers of the bed. Though her stomach felt empty, she had no desire to eat even a portion of the prepared food. Standard travel time into Sound territory was eleven days, and she had made the trip in nine. The rapid journey, plus being alert for a fight over the last twenty four hours… it wasn't really difficult considering some of the things she had done in the past, but the stress of life itself had taken a toll on her body lately, and this wasn't helping. Plus, all the free time over the last day had been exactly what she had wanted to avoid with a mission in the first place. All free time led to was her contemplating the past… and present… and all that contemplation only led her to depression. Depression was a funny state of mind. It's not that she was chronically depressed, but as much as she wanted to paint a rosy picture of her couplehood with Sasuke, in the end, it was a bitter emptiness.

Sasuke. Where had it all gone wrong? In her younger years, back when she had first joined Team Seven, she had wasted that wonderful year together with him. Even with everything she and he had gone through, she had timidly pined over him, and waited until it was too late before expressing her honest feelings. He had run, vanishing into the night to become Orochimaru's pet… throwing away her, Naruto, and Konoha itself.

Naruto and she had gotten Sasuke back, and life had returned to normal. Naruto continued to dodge Akatsuki's attempts of kidnapping, and the trio of them endured and helped in the war against the Sound. Sasuke and Naruto had grown close, and with it Sasuke had grown less hostile towards her. Until finally Orochimaru had taken Sasuke again, this time against Sasuke's will. It had taken her and Naruto multiple attempts over nearly a year, but eventually Naruto and her killed Orochimaru and saved Sasuke. Ultimately, their victory final fight had cost Naruto his life. Bearing the bodies of her two teammates, she had flown through the trees without food, water or sleep, making the journey from Sound to Konoha in only five days, finally passing out at the point of death under Konoha's gates. Tsunade's healing had saved her and Sasuke, but Naruto…

She sighed out a tightly held breath. The thought of her blond haired best friend's death made her heart tighten in her chest even now, more than two years after his death. He had considered the price worth paying, she knew. Naruto had whispered it into her ear, as she knelt wailing over his body, her hands covered in his blood. She had tried to keep her sanity by working to save the still living, and had tended to Sasuke's comatose body for the months it had taken him to wake. His road to recovery was long and arduous. When he finally broke from the coma, news of Naruto's death crushed him. He lost the ability, or perhaps the will, to activate his Sharingan. Out of necessity, she took up residence along with him in the decrepit Uchiha estate, spending many nightmarish nights awake, too terrified to sleep, lest she wake to find Sasuke dead by his own hands.

Time winded its inevitable course, and though they resumed training, there were some wounds that time could never heal. She regularly defeated Sasuke when they sparred, and when he landed in the dirt, her kunai pressed against his throat, he bore the defeat with a resigned dignity. The first few times, she had waited for an explosion, a reaction. She ached to see that blazing resolve, that driven dedication. But the fire had gone out of his life when Naruto died. Gone was talk of revenge on Itachi. Out of options, she had asked him to a dinner date, and he came along with her wordlessly. Rumors spread that they were a couple, and he hadn't tried to dispel them. At first, she had been happy. But eventually, the reality had sunk in… even in a romantic partnership with the long lost love of her life, she wasn't happy. She was dating a hollow shell of the boy she had a crush on so many years ago.

She felt a solitary tear, borne of anger rather than sadness, meander a hot path down her cheek. She growled, wiping at the wetness angrily. No matter how much she tried, her emotions were still untamable. The same emotions that rooted her during times of great need in her youth seemed out of her control even still. She couldn't hold anger in her heart for long… anger turned to frustration, frustration to tears, all surely as winter turned to spring and the blossoms bloomed.

Breaking her thoughts, a ghosting trace of a memory skirted the edge of her consciousness… a familiar presence. Warming and loving, yet fragile like a snowflake. Hinata. The part of her story she omitted even when telling it to herself. She reached out uncertainly, feeling into the wilderness around her. Pushing past the teaming life of the forest… sensations of pain back across the mental probe sent a jolt of adrenaline through her. She spun out of bed while grabbing her ANBU mask, tore out of the house, and went sailing into the trees.

-----

Hinata's right hand left its place against her the deep wound on her hip to join the other in forming familiar hand seals. "Byakugan" her voice whispered, hoarse from lack of water. Behind the white and red cat-style ANBU mask, her pale pupils narrowed, the veins around her eyes bulging with increased blood flow. She concentrated on the area behind her, making a small turn of her head to cover the small blind spot in her vision field 360-degree vision. No signs of pursuit once again, so she let the draining bloodline limit relax. As the veins around her eyes returned to normal, she felt a familiar weight lift come down upon her. She had taken yet another life… how many did that make? It was sad… she couldn't really count if she tried. When combined with her bloodline limit, her training and exquisite chakra control gave her deadly skills in pursuit, infiltration and silent killing… a fact that Hokage-sama made use of more often than she might like. Missions made her a different person, a scary person, one who could kill without a hesitation. But she had plenty of time to cry over the dead when she was alone.

Alone. It had been nearly two years since Sakura had decided they couldn't continue their relationship, that they couldn't keep hiding everything from their parents and friends. Two years since Sasuke had come awake, and Sakura had tossed her aside, deciding he was more important. Though it hurt bitterly, she wished them happiness together. But that didn't stop her from dreaming of pink blossoms at night. When she thought about Sakura… it was almost like she was still… nearby…

Hinata bit her lip. Was it only her forlorn hope? Her longing? Could that really be the girl she still held so close to her heart approaching? The braches whipped at her face as she increased her speed, straining to close the gap. As she activated the Byakugan again, she could see a beautiful, blazing pocket of pink warmth flying towards her through the cold foliage. A small sound of joy escaped her lips, before fatigue, backlash from overusing her bloodline limit, struck her like a wall. The wound had drained her more than she realized, and her footing slipped on a wet branch.

The world spun and she felt herself impact heavily against more branches, leaving her winded. As she fell, arms wrapped around her falling form and slowed her fall, absorbing the impact by landing gracefully in a crouch on the leaf strewn ground. Even though her rescuer's hood was up and their mask was on, there could be no mistaking identity of the person cradling her. She slung her arms around the shoulders of her rescuer, clasping hands behind her neck. "Isn't the angel supposed to do the rescuing, atashi no ouka?" she whispered faintly.

Sakura's voice came back roughly, though laced with concern. "D... do you realize how badly injured you are?"

Hinata grinned from behind the mask. "Then who better's arms to fall into but yours?"

-----

Hinata limped wearily on her own feet over to the bed. Sakura began grinding leaves into a powder, turning to see Hinata set down her ANBU mask and strip off the hooded robe that was standard wear for Konoha's elite. Hinata's robe was a pure white, though now the lower left side was stained with a deep crimson. She let it pool carelessly on the floor, wearing a light blue sleeveless shirt and dark blue drawstring pants. The wound was more obvious with the robe gone, a deep tear down the left hip of the pants. She deftly untied the drawstring in her pants, hooking her fingers in the waistband.

"Um… you don't have to…" Sakura stuttered.

Hinata gave her a sorrowful gaze. "You're a medical ninja, Sakura-chan. Be a little more mature." Her pants pooled at her ankles, and she lay on the bed on her stomach with the wound raised. As Sakura already knew, she didn't believe in undergarments. "Besides…" Hinata continued, her voice was dripping with hurt resentment. "It's not like you haven't seen it all before."

Sakura's gaze hardened, but her medical instincts took over and she began treating the wound. It was a nasty gash, nearly a half foot long, and deep down to the bone. Hinata must have been in incredible pain to run with that sort of muscle damage. First, the cool ointment that served as a catalyst for her spells was spread down the gash. Then, she gathered all the positive chakra she could into a single fingertip, and ran it down either side of the wound. At the cellular level, the body's natural regeneration process accelerated. The cells drew nourishment for their rapid growth from the herbal paste, and divided rapidly as they consumed their infected and damaged brethren. In a few moments, the wound completely healed, leaving a wide pink mark. Sakura wiped down the healed wound with a cloth, clearing away excess herbs and blood, then leaned back into her chair with a tired breath, and patted Hinata's bare bottom with a light smack. "All done."

Hinata only lay there and watched her expression. "Sorry for being late. I… ran into some trouble."

Sakura shook her head. "It's okay. Don't worry about it." She knew the kind of missions Hinata was sent on, and didn't really want to talk about what had happened. Sakura lacked the level of emotional control to carry out assassinations, but Hinata… was a different matter. It was ironic that a girl named after the sun could go as cold as snow.

"So… I take it you didn't know I was going to be your ward." The question hung in the air, unanswered. "Otherwise… would you have taken the mission?"

Sakura sighed. "I… don't know, Hinata-chan. I still think that we made the right choice, when we parted."

Hinata glared. "We? Since when did I take part in the decision?"

The words were a harsh blow. "Okay… fine. I made the decision. Don't think I haven't regretted it at times. But its what… what we all need." Sakura gave her a wistful smile. "Do you hate me now?"

Hinata spread her hands. "Your childhood love awoke from his coma, and after two years, you dropped me like a sack of moldy wheat to go sleep with him."

"So that's a yes."

Hinata's hard expression softened. "Your face just now… you reminded me of what you looked like back when Sasuke was still asleep. Back when we… were together." She sighs. "No… I don't hate you. Come on, let's eat dinner. I want to taste your cooking again." Hinata smiled, if only for Sakura's sake.

Sakura nodded softly, a small grin returning. "Put some pants on first, and I'll consider it."

Dinner was fast and quiet. Hinata ate voraciously, as one is wont to do after being deprived of food for two days. It didn't hurt any that Sakura was an amazing with the culinary arts, and that eating Sakura's food like this reminded her of their romantic trysts during happier times. She watched Sakura pick at her food, eating just enough to forestall Hinata's sarcastic inquiries about if she was on a diet. When dinner was through, they stood, and Sakura yawned widely. Hinata smiled at her, gracefully toppling backwards onto the bed. "Alright, big girl. We can go to sleep now."

"I'll sleep on the floor, you sleep on the bed."

"No. If you're sleeping on the floor, then so am I." She leaned on the edge of the bed, ready to roll off.

Sakura put one hand on her hip. "Like hell you are. You might think that my medical jutsu are perfect, but they aren't. There's no way I'm letting a recently injured patient sleep on the hardwood floor."

Hinata batted her eyelashes. "Guess we're sharing the bed then." came the reply, laced with a smug arrogence that only a Hyuuga could manage. Hinata scooted over, patting the recently vacated bed space. Sakura shot her a mildly disgruntled frown, to which Hinata flashed a set of doe eyes. "Am I that difficult of a person to sleep next to?"

Sakura sighed, closing her eyes. "Hinata-chan… I really don't want…" She opened her eyes, watching Hinata's mock hurt expression. "Geh. Fine… I'm just stressed, sorry. Try and refrain from kicking me and stealing all the sheets, like you usually do." She crawled into the bed, and after a moment's thought, lightly kissed the ivory skinned girl on the cheek.

Hinata's cheeks blushed prettily, thankful for the small consideration. She folded her hands behind her head, and snuggled comfortingly against the pillow before turning and smiling at the pink haired kunoichi next to her. Sakura looked tired… but it was more than that. She looked… drained. Like life was sucking the happiness out of her. Hinata's mind danced over cherished memories of their fleeting time together, of the intimacy they had shared before… before Sasuke had recovered. Before Sakura had made a decision for the both of them that still fed a bitterness in her that she was desperately trying to keep hidden. "So how are things with Sasuke-san?"

Instantly she knew it was the wrong thing to say. Sakura's eyes darkened, her body tensing with a repressed fury. "Everything's fine." She didn't even bother to hide the curtness of her reply; to mask it with her usual cheerfulness.

Was it the question that wrought lines of anger down Sakura's normally beautiful face? No… Sakura wouldn't be upset about her asking. Maybe something was wrong between them. A guilty hope seized her. Still, Hinata hesitated as that instinctual timidness, commonplace during her youth, seized her. 'No… the shy Hinata died back with Naruto-kun. I lost that chance, and I promised myself that I'd never lose another.' She shook her head, pressing ahead with her inquiry. "What's wrong, Sakura-chan?" She gulped down a breath, her boldness rising as she let her fingers gently trace against Sakura's chin, turning the pink haired girl's face to look her in the eyes. "You're holding everything inside… you need to talk to someone, atashi no ouka."

Sakura's eyes never met hers, avoiding her face. "Don't call me that anymore, Hinata-chan. Those days… they're gone."

Hinata had expected the response, but the words still stung. With a little difficulty, she kept her voice calm. "You might think you don't need me anymore, ouka… but if that's true… why are you so sad?"

Sakura's eyes finally met Hinata's, flashing dangerously with anger. Hinata met the gaze unflinchingly, her lips pressed together tightly in a line. Sakura held the gaze, the challenge adamant, before finally dropping her eyes down to the bed sheets in relenting submission. "Damn you." She swallowed with difficulty. "Damn you, atashi no tenshi… why do you have to be so perceptive?"

Hinata felt a lightness in her heart, hearing the term of endearment float from those lips. "I'm here for you, ouka. You need to talk with someone, its written plain on your face. Who better than me?"

Sakura rolled her head back to stare at the ceiling. "Fine." She collected her thoughts in silence for a moment. "Sasuke and I… we're content together. But…"

Hinata waited for a continuation that didn't come. "But?" she prompted.

"But… he's not the boy I fell in love with."

Hinata pondered. "Because you can beat him up now?"

She shook her head. "No… that's just a symptom. He just tends to… give up. Sasuke never gives up."

"Sounds like me… before I met you." Hinata nuzzled gently against Sakura's shoulder, feeling her old lover's hand run through her hair. "We've all been through a lot, Sakura-chan. Maybe Sasuke needs more time to recover from…"

"It's been two years. Two years since… since he died, Hinata-chan." Hinata shivered. She could still see flashes on blond hair… his brilliant smile before he left for his final, fatal mission. She could still feel the strength he gave her. The strength she still fed on to be the person she was. Sakura talked on, her voice quavering with emotion. "We're shinobi. Sometimes, we die. Naruto wasn't just anyone, and he meant a lot to us but… we all have to move on. We've mourned… we've grieved. It sounds terrible to say but…"

Hinata wondered if Sakura realized the irony of expressing that to her. The road to recovery from Naruto's death had been an agonizing one for her, as well. Some nights she had just lay in Sakura's arms and cried. She tried to change the subject. "And how is he… with… you know…" Hinata felt her cheeks blushing hotly, and she growled inwardly. How could she kill without flinching, but couldn't force herself to talk about sex?

Sakura gave her a tired glare. "He… well…" She coughed. "We haven't really… done anything. He always just tells me he isn't interested… I don't know."

Hinata blinked. "Do you think… Sasuke-san loved Naruto-kun?" Hinata's voice shrank as she spoke, the possibility not new to her, but it was the first time she voiced it aloud.

Sakura rubbed her temples with a weary sigh. "Is it that obvious?" She smiled wryly at Hinata. "It seems to be a reoccurring trend in my lovers."

That was all the confirmation she needed. "So… maybe he's just not interested in girls."

"Any intimacy beyond kissing, and he… he gives me this cold, distant stare. Like I'm not the one that he… that he wants." Her fingers ball into a fist. "So… so what? So he's just going to give up, and let the Uchiha line die here with him? I refuse to…" Sakura's voice trailed off, realizing the futility of what she was saying. "I refuse to accept that." she completed quietly.

"So that's… that's how it is to you? You think that Sasuke-san is in love with you, and that I'm in love with a dead Naruto-kun, and that's all that can ever be?"

Sakura's eyes were filled with hurt. "You know why I pushed you away, tenshi."

"Because I need to raise children of my own, for the Main Branch." Hinata spoke flatly, her voice filled with scorn.

"What do you want me to do, Hinata-chan? Being with you… it might be what feels good… it might even be what I want to do but… I can't. We all have a duty to our parents, our families, the village, and…"

"What about your duty to yourself? You have a right to be happy too, you know."

Sakura shook her head. "I can't… not now. Sasuke needs me to…"

Her fragile hands interlocked fingers with Sakura's, a shy smile washing over her expression. "Not right now… no he doesn't."

Sakura's face blushed, and she turned away from Hinata's beautiful face. "Hinata-chan… don't look at me like that. What do you want me to do?"

Hinata crawled over Sakura's body, interlocking fingers on both their hands together, gently holding Sakura's arms over her head and pressing them into the down pillow. Her lips gently brushed Sakura's blush heated cheek. "I want you to tell me that you love me again, atashi no ouka."

Sakura lay beneath her, vulnerable but unresisting, her eyes averted. "I… can't."

Hinata's continuing kisses carried her mouth near Sakura's ear, her voice barely a whisper. The question was terrifying to ask, but she had to know. "Why not?"

Two years of repressed needs and desires broke through a mental wall, flooding through Sakura as she returned Hinata's kisses, running her hands through blue, close cropped hair. "Because if I say it out loud… I can't… keep lying to myself…"

Hinata bit her lip coyly, a smile of victory on her lips. "Well… don't lie anymore than."

Sakura felt a heat rising inside her, and when Hinata's hands stripped her robe down over her shoulders, she surrendered into her fragile angel's care.

-----

'Shit.' Sakura silently berated herself, laying in bed with Hinata nestled on her chest, breathing softly in sleep. She had promised herself this wouldn't happen. What she had done was technically cheating, and the worst part of it was… if her relationship was going better with Sasuke, this could have prevented herself from betraying him. This wouldn't have happened.

She gently untangled herself with Hinata, rolling out of bed, ignoring her nudity. She glanced at the pair of white, crumpled ANBU robes on the floor, folding her own and throwing Hinata's in their travel pack. They would be heading out when Hinata was up, and she wanted to be ready. Sakura slid the door to outdoors open, and leaned against the doorframe in contemplation. She shivered at cool air against her naked skin, gooseflesh raising down her body. She turned back with a lazy glance, watching the ivory skinned kunoichi, the white sheets barely covering her from the waist down, her shoulder blades rising and falling with her breathing.

Hinata held a close place in her heart, and if the world was a kinder place, she could see herself being happy with Hinata. It was Hinata who made her smile, Hinata who accepted her faults and loved her anyway, Hinata who's kind words could brighten her day. And, she admitted, she had needed this. She had been craving release desperately, and it was driving her to push Sasuke past the bounds he had set up. How many times had she been pinned by that cold stare of his… and every time, she knew he didn't love her… not with all his heart.

Hinata woke with a mumbled query, feeling around for her missing warmth. "Ouka?"

"I'm right here, tenshi." came the light response.

Hinata cleared the sleep from her eyes, pulling the sheets up for modesty as she turned over. "Sleep well?"

"Best sleep in two years." she replied honestly. "We've got a long journey home to make. Let's get ready."

Hinata smiled. "You make the breakfast, I'll pack." A hesitation. "Please don't have regrets."

Sakura turned back to the woods, hiding a sad smile. "I'll see what I can do."