Chapter 1: Repose

(Present day)

I stand over the bed, starring at the form sprawled out across it. She lay on her stomach, legs bent, arms outstretched, and pink hair fanning across the multitude of pillows. She looked so content. So peaceful. Though I know very well, that peace of mind was going to be short lived. I know very well she will be taking my absence to heart. She will blame herself. Hopefully, one day, she will realize she cannot save everyone, despite her astounding medical abilities.

I walk over to her and brush a strand of hair away from her face so I can see her clearly. I almost sigh. She is so beautiful. I don't think I told her that enough. Everything that we have been through, all the hardships, all the pain and all the pleasant memories end tonight. And hopefully one day, she will be able to forgive me.

(Two years earlier)

It was dark. The only sounds to be heard were the perpetual chirping of the grasshoppers and the trickling of water from the pond in his mother's garden. Itachi Uchiha lay in bed, eyes closed, focusing on the sounds. He would sometimes lie to himself on nights like this and blame the outside disturbances for his insomnia. He knew better though.

Itachi's eyes snapped open, finally giving up on the prospect of sleep, and turned his head towards the clock on his bedside table. 4:00am it read. Heaving a deep, burdened sigh that he would dare not take in front of a soul, he heaved himself up into a sitting position. Itachi slowly lifted his hand to his chest as he felt the uncomfortable stirring that he knew would trigger his coughing fits. Only moments later, he clenched his eyes shut and covered his mouth with both hands to try to suppress the loud rumble of coughs. He didn't want to wake Sasuke.

Finally done, Itachi gathered himself from his moment of weakness, threw the covers off his legs and made his way to the bathroom. After flipping on the light and doing his business, Itachi observed himself in the mirror. With a slight cringe, he took in his pallid skin and the stress lines that seemed to be getting deeper and deeper every day. In all honestly, he was surprised no one has shoved him to the hospital yet. His illness was becoming more and more outwardly apparent.

After taking a quick cold shower and dressing in his casual wide-collared, black shirt and standard black pants, Itachi made his way to the training grounds. It was still early in the morning, so he knew the only ones to be on the grounds at this time would be the most dedicated shinobi doing early morning training or Kakashi Hatake was about to leave for a mission and was standing at the memorial stone. Though landing in the training area, Itachi was not surprised to indeed see someone at the stone, but was not expecting it to instead be one of Hatake's students. Even in the dark of night, the kunoichi's unique pink tresses gave her away. She was standing with her head bent, most likely in prayer. Itachi found himself frown slightly. He didn't know the kunoichi very well, only an acquaintance through his little brother and a medic when he was injured, but he was very well informed of her comings and goings (as he was with all the rest of Sasuke's teammates), and he knew of no one she must have known personally who was KIA.

"Are you planning on making yourself known Uchiha-san, or are you just going to stand in the shadows all morning?" she called, not even bothering to lift her head. "You're welcome to join me, I'm almost done."

The Uchiha heir was slightly startled to be called out when he was masking his chakra perfectly. This must be a testament to her rumored chakra abilities.

"I apologize if I disturbed you Haruno-san," he replied as he stepped out of the tree line and continued to walk towards her.

She finally looked up at him, and if he were anyone else, he would have missed the flicker of pain in her emerald eyes before she gave him a warming smile, "No, no. You're not disturbing me. Actually, I'm glad to have a distraction from my pity party."

"Hn."

Sakura chuckled at the Uchiha-esk reply. "May I ask what you're doing out this early?"

"Training."

"Hmm," she hummed, giving him a sideways glance. "Looks like you need to be getting some sleep Uchiha-san, not training at 4:30 in the morning."

Itachi just stared at her. Really, his family sees him every day and doesn't even bat an eyelash at his weary appearance, but this woman he barely knows takes one look at him and is telling him to get some much needed rest.

Sakura turned back to the stone and continued to talk.

"Insomnia is common among shinobi. I see it all the time in the hospital or out on the field. For a long time, all sleeping medications required the patient to acquire at least eight hours of sleep, which is absolutely nonsensical for a shinobi" she expressed, making it obvious she had a strong opinion on the matter and continue her rant "So I've developed a sleeping ointment! It's quite revolutionary if I do say so myself. All you do is spread a bit of the ointment just under your nose, above your top lip, and you're guaranteed to fall asleep within minutes. But the good thing about this is it doesn't cause you to be oblivious to the world like the sleeping pills would. Your unconscious awareness is not dulled in the least and once you wake up and want to say awake, all you have to do is wipe it off!"

Itachi simply watched her as she continued to ramble on about her sleeping ointment and the positive affects it could have on the shinobi population. The subject did spike his interest, but all he could think about was the fact that this woman was talking to him as if they were long-time friends. As if he were not an accomplished ANBU Captain. As if he was not the heir to the most powerful clan in the village.

"…didn't realize it…" she finally stopped and looked up at him with wide, curious eyes. "Would you like to try some Uchiha-san?"

Itachi glanced down at her and without missing a beat answered with a curt "no".

Sakura gawked, "What? After everything I just told you about it?"

"I do not need a sleeping aid Haruno-san. I am getting the mandatory amount of rest my body requires. It is just this past night I have not been able to rest. It is not a habitual problem, I assure you," Itachi lied smoothly.

"Well that's a bunch of bullshit," she scoffed, crossing her arms over her front and facing him straight on now. "Don't lie to a medic Uchiha-san, it'll get you nowhere. I see you around the village often enough to notice your…habitual…lack of sleep."

Itachi's eyes flashed red as he glared down at her, "You don't know what you're talking about."

Sakura gave an extremely un-ladylike snort as she replied sarcastically, "Oh no, I'm sorry, you're the one with extensive medical expertise. I apologize; I really don't know an extreme case of insomnia when it's staring me in the face. Please excuse my rudeness."

"Hn."

"You are just as infuriating as your little brother!" she growled as she dug through her medical pouch around her waist.

At this Itachi simply lifted an eyebrow, slightly amused at the woman's outrageously short fuse. It seemed the rumors were true about her being a mini Tsunade not only when it came to medical expertise and ludicrous strength, but in temper too.

The Uchiha's thoughts were cut short as a small container was shoved into his chest. Itachi caught the object before it fell to the ground and simply stared at it.

"I always carry some with me. You can have it. Don't be too prideful, so just give it a try one night. I promise you won't regret it," she told him, not looking him in the eye.

Itachi bit back the callous remarks that were threatening to come forth as he gave a quiet reply, "Thank you."

"Hn well… just make sure you actually use it, then tell me if it worked for you or not. Also, please note any side effects if you happen to have any."

"…Has anyone ever used this before?" he asked skeptically.

"Of course! I have, as well as Sasuke, Naruto, Kakashi, and Sai," she responded, not missing a beat.

"And did any of them experience side effects?" he asked.

"…"

Itachi lifted an eyebrow at her silence, "Haruno-san, I am not going to tr-"

"Okay! Well… two out of five had particular dreams…"

"What kind of dreams?"

"Uh, sexually explicit dreams."

"Ah… Any other side effects?"

"No, none that have been reported. So if you would please note any that you have, that would be most helpful," she smiled.

"Very well," he declared.

"Thank you Uchiha-san."

It had been three days since that unexpected morning with Sakura Haruno and even though the ointment she had given him has been sitting on his bedside table since then, he has yet to sample it. Despite her telling him not to be too prideful, he seemed to be playing the part perfectly, probably just to subconsciously spite her. But unfortunately, for the past two nights, he has gotten a combined three hours of sleep. Just that morning, his mother asked if he was working himself too hard. And that just wouldn't do.

Desperate times called for desperate measures.

It was already well into the night as Itachi just returned from a short solo mission and he felt his body sag with exhaustion, yet still hum with awareness. The Uchiha heir sat on the edge of his bed and opened the small container. The ointment was a clear substance that had the scent of chamomile and lavender. Taking a small amount on the tip of his finger he rubbed the substance under his nose. Breathing in deep, Itachi was slightly surprised to feel a microscopic amount of chakra in the ointment. He was quick to figure out that Sakura must have fused a bit of her healing chakra into it. Itachi made a mental note to ask her why she did this.

He set the container back on the table and slid down beneath his covers. His mind was still racing, thinking of everything that needed to be thought of. Itachi's doubt for the product was clearly shown in his features. Though slowly, without Itachi's recognition, his frown smoothed out and his breathing became slow and shallow. And for the first time in many years, Itachi Uchiha fell asleep only minutes after first closing his eyes to do so.

This chapter has been edited a little! After years and years, i'm finally picking this story back up. Updates might be a little slow, but i'm determined to finish it :)

Hope you all enjoyed it! Reviews are always appreciated.

Til next time