Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto. All rights belong to Masashi Kishimoto.

Chapter 1

As Sakura tore through the forest, she tried to curtail her anger. 'Asinine! If he isn't dead, I'm going to kill him!' Her anger ebbed as she thought of him lying somewhere hurt or bleeding or even… She shook her head and wouldn't let herself think of it. He was the infamous Copy Ninja. There was no way that he was dead. A tear slipped down her cheek as she quickened her pace.

Sakura had been in the Hokage's office when one of his team mates burst through the door broken and bleeding with a horrible tale of how they were ambushed. Kakashi had taken on the enemy while the 4 of them had made their escape. There was another enemy team waiting for them and he was the only one who made it through alive. Kotetsu didn't know what happened to Kakashi. Sakura blanched as she listened to the story. She had gotten into a fight with Kakashi on the night before he left. Instantly, she excused herself. She told Tsunade that she had something to take care of. The two women looked at each other, both knew where she was going. All Tsunade said was to be careful. Sakura nodded and made her way out the door. Tsunade knew that she couldn't stop her from what she was about to do. "Shizune!" Tsunade screamed, "Get Uzamaki and Uchiha here pronto!"

Sakura had donned her ANBU uniform before she left the village. She had adopted a version of Kakashi's mask and hid her pink hair under a black hood so no one would recognize her unique hair. Training with Kakashi had helped her develop more speed, so she was just a blur as she ran through the forest. Her mind drifted to the night before he left. She couldn't even remember what they had fought about. All she knew is that she was madder than she had ever been at him. Kakashi was not one to fight, so he went to Genma's house to crash for the night. In the early morning, he had snuck in while Sakura slept. He left a note for her apologizing for angering her and that he would see her when he got back. He also let her know that he loved her. She felt bad after she read the note. Things made sense to her now. She hoped that she would see him soon to apologize for her actions. When Kotetsu came in and told his tale of the ill-fated mission, her heart dropped. There was so many things that she needed to say to him. 'Hang on Kakashi,' she breathed, 'Don't you dare leave me now!' With a burst of speed she disappeared through the forest.

Sasuke and Naruto couldn't believe what Tsunade had told them after they had arrived in her office. Both donned their gear and took off to follow Sakura. They hoped that she didn't overdo and drain herself, especially since she was on her own. The enemy might still be there. When it came to Kakashi, Sakura lost all reason. They had been a couple for over a year now. When you saw one, the other was not far behind. It would devastate Sakura if she found Kakashi dead. Not knowing where the enemy was located would leave her wide open for an attack. Sasuke shared his insight with his lifelong friend. Naruto paled as he thought of Sakura finding her true love dead. Both sped up their pace.

Sakura finally arrived to the site where Kotetsu said that they split up from Kakashi. There were several bodies strewn around the base of the trees. Sakura placed her gloved hand on her katana ready to strike if the enemy revealed themselves. Crouching, she surveyed the scene looking to see where Kakashi was located. Slowly, she crept to the edge of the path and confirmed that all of the bodies of the enemy were truly dead. As she made her way forward, she counted 10 bodies that had been dispatched by Kakashi's chidori. Scanning the area, she wondered where he was hiding. Suddenly, she felt movement behind her.

"Don't move if you value your life," Kakashi hissed.

"Kashi, it's me. Sakura," she said as she turned gradually to look at him, sweeping her hood and mask off.

As she turned, Kakashi realized who she was and sheathed his katana. He let out a sigh of relief as he crumpled to the ground. "Kashi!" Sakura gasped as she sped to his side and caught him before he fell. She gently laid him down so she could assess his medical condition. He had 2 large wounds to his left chest and a puncture wound to his lower abdomen. His head had an ugly bruise near his right temple that was growing darker as she knelt there. He also had a laceration somewhere on the back of his head because her hand that was cradling his head was full of blood. She couldn't believe he had the strength to sneak up behind her so quietly in his current condition, but this is what he was trained to do. A worried frown crossed her face.

Sakura summoned Pakkun and told him that she needed him to survey the area for any enemies that were left. She also needed to send him with a message to Tsunade about Kakashi's condition. It was important for the medics to be ready to treat Kasashi as soon as she got him back to the hospital. Pakkun quickly scanned the area as Sakura wrote a hurried note. Pakkun trotted back and told Sakura that Sasuke and Naruto were coming fast into the area. Sakura thanked the pug and asked him to run back to Konoha as fast as he could to give Tsunade her note. Sasuke and Naruto arrived as Pakkun left.

Sasuke surveyed the area with his sharingan to make sure there were no enemies nearby. Sakura was tending to Kakashi's larger wounds but she knew she couldn't heal all of them because she needed her chakra to get them back home. Naruto volunteered to let her have some of his chakra so she didn't have to use so much of her own. He made a shadow clone to help her out. She did the best she could to get him stabilized so they could leave. Sakura prayed that she had stabilized him enough to survive the trip home.

"Sakura, you need to stop," Sasuke told her firmly, "We need to go and you need to consider your own health."

Sakura looked up at Sasuke puzzled by his remark. Could his sharingan see through her? "You know?"

Both men nodded and told her Tsunade had been concerned about her well-being. Sakura swore the two men to secrecy, since no one else knew about condition and she wanted to keep it that way for a while. Sasuke and Naruto promised her that they would keep her secret.

Finally, she was done with all the bandaging and healing that she could do in the field. She tenderly kissed Kakashi's forehead and told him to hang on just a little bit more. Naruto volunteered to carry his former sensei. Once they got closer to the village, he could easily transport everyone to the hospital. Naruto had mastered his father's transportation jutsu after Jiraiya had given him his father's special kunais. The three decided that would be the best course of action as they took off back into the forest in the direction of the village.

As they made their way through the forest, Naruto noticed that Sakura was lagging behind. The men slowed their pace so they wouldn't leave her behind. Suddenly, Sakura stumbled. "Teme!"

Sasuke nodded to his friend as he swooped down to catch Sakura before she hit the ground. "Are you okay?" he asked with concern.

"I'm okay. Just more tired than I thought," as she drifted off.

"Naruto, I have Sakura. Get going!" Sasuke told the blond ninja.

Naruto took off in a flash. He had left one of his special kunai at the edge of the forest just in case he needed to get back home fast. He flashed into the waiting trauma room where the medic team was waiting. Luckily he had given Tsunade one of his kunai just for this type of occasion.

Sasuke picked up Sakura and cradled her in his arms, shaking his head with concern. Sakura always took care of them sometimes at her own expense. He quickly looked her over making sure that she was stable before he took off with her. Her chakra was depleted but all was well as far as he could tell. Holding her close, he started for home. He hoped that Kakashi survived and that Naruto was fast enough to get him to the hospital in time. Sasuke didn't want to even think what would happen to Sakura if Kakashi died, especially now.

Naruto stood back as the medics got to work. Tsunade asked about Sakura and her condition. Naruto told her that she had collapsed due to over exerting herself. Tsunade swore under her breath but knew that Sakura would do anything for the man she loved. When she was Sakura's age, she would have done the same. Thankfully Naruto and Sasuke had found her in time. She thanked Naruto and joined the medics on what was going to be a very long evening.

When Sakura woke, she found herself in a hospital bed with Sasuke and Naruto sitting nearby playing cards. Sakura sat up abruptly and watched her world spin around her.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you," Naruto said, "Tsunade-baachan won't be pleased."

"How's Kakashi? How long have I been out?" she gasped.

"Sakura, you need to calm down and lay back down," Sasuke said gently.

Sakura complied and lay back nervously. She tried to relax her breathing as she watched her 2 friends. Both men came close to her bed. They wore concerned looks on their faces and it made her uneasy. Naruto smiled at her and squeezed her hand.

Sasuke moved next to him. "Sakura, you have been out for about 2 days now," he informed her. Sakura gasped. "Don't worry, everything is okay. Tsunade checked you out and made sure everything is okay," he smiled at her. Sasuke took a deep breath, "Kakashi…Kakashi is stable."

Sakura looked up at her friends. She knew that they were concerned about her especially since they both knew her secret. Taking a deep breath, she asked, "Have both been here with me all this time?"

Both men nodded. "We've been here with you waiting for you to wake up," Naruto said with a foxy grin. "Teme and I wanted to be here when you woke up. Both Hinata and Hanabi have been here too. We were all worried."

"Do they know?" Sakura said.

"No, Sakura. We promised you that we wouldn't," Sasuke told her, "It's your news to tell, not ours. Just know we are all here for you no matter what happens."

Both men grasped her hands. Sakura was happy that she has such good friends that supported her, especially now. "What about Kakashi? What's going on with him?"

Naruto held her and in his. "He's stable but unconscious. Baachan will need to tell you exactly what's going on with him. Sakura, you saved his life."

Sakura looked at Naruto with tears in her eyes. She was hoping that he would be awake so she could tell him how sorry she was for fighting with him and share the news she had. The tears ran down her face silently. Sasuke moved closer and brushed her tears away with his hand. Both of them were concerned about her condition and how she would take the news about Kakashi. At least they were there with her to soften the blow.

"Hinata and Hanabi are sitting with Kakashi in his room," Sasuke told her. "We have been taking shifts so someone was always with him. We all knew that you would want someone to be with him, so he wasn't alone."

Sakura weakly smiled up at him thankful that they had considered her feeling while she was mending. "Thank you both," she whispered through her tears.

Tsunade knocked and came through the door. "Good! You're finally awake," she said to her student. "You had us concerned about you for a while. I should lecture you but we all know that I would have done the same thing, if I was in your situation." Sakura looked up at her mentor relieved. She didn't want to feel Tsunade's wrath. "And yes, all is fine with you. I'm sure these knuckle heads told you that they know about your little secret, Yes?"

Sakura nodded. Looking up at her mentor, she unspeakingly asked about Kakashi condition. Tsunade sat down at the edge of the bed and took her hand in hers. Both Naruto and Sasuke moved to the other side to show their support.

Tsunade took a deep breath. She knew that her news about Kakashi would upset her but lying wasn't an option. She was confident that their support would help Sakura through this difficult time. "Sakura, Kakashi is still unconscious. If you didn't come when you did, he would have died." Tsunade paused and looked at her student, letting her words sink in. After a while she continued. "Kakashi's wounds have all been healed successfully. Sakura, you know that he lost a lot of blood." Sakura nodded. "Because of that, he suffered an anoxic event. He's stable and his blood levels are coming up. I put him in an artificial coma to let his brain heal. I didn't want any more damage to be done. I can't tell you if there has been any significant brain damage at this point but I thought it would be prudent to safe guard against any more damage."

Tsunade stared at Sakura trying to gauge her reaction. Sakura weakly smiled at her mentor and thanked her for her care of her beloved. A nurse came walked into the room with a wheelchair. "I knew that you would want to go to see him as soon as you woke," she smiled. "Do you feel well enough to go?"

Sakura nodded vigorously. She blew her nose, brushed, and put up her long pink hair. Tsunade helped her into her robe. Sasuke swept her up from the side of the bed and gently placed her into the awaiting wheelchair. They group made their way down the hall to the room Kakashi was in.

Hinata and Hanabi rose when they saw the group enter. Both women smiled and greeted Sakura. Sasuke navigated the wheelchair next to Kakashi's bed. Hinata looked at Naruto nervously as their friend regarded at her beloved lying in the bed. Sakura asked Sasuke to help her up so she could kiss Kakashi. Sasuke nodded and assisted her. Sakura gently kissed Kakashi's forehead making sure that she didn't jar any of the tubes that were helping him stay alive. Sitting down again, she took his hand in hers and gave it a squeeze to let him know that she was there by his side. After watching the couple for a few minutes, Tsunade excused the group so Sakura could have some private time with Kakashi. She told her that they would right outside the door if she needed them. Sakura nodded that she understood.

After everyone had left, Sakura broke down. She told Kakashi how much she loved him and how sorry she was for fighting with him before he left. Kissing his hand, she told him that she had some important new to tell him and wished that he was awake for it. "Kashi, the reason I've been so moody is because…because," she took a deep breath, "Kashi, I'm pregnant." She caressed his cheek with her fingertips. "Please come back to me. I don't know if I can do this all alone." Sakura laid her head on his shoulder and stayed that way until Tsunade came back in to take her back to her room.