The 10-tails and the Uchiha men who resurrected it lay dead. The smoke cleared from Naruto and Sasuke's attack. Both teens were bloody, but still standing.
Hinata immediately ran to Naruto and kissed him. The blonde was surprised, but returned the kiss. Sasuke raised an eyebrow and turned his head. The rest of the Rookie Nine cheered. Hinata turned red and soon returned to standing back with her team.
Sakura stayed back on her summoned slug. Sai approached her from his place in back of her.
"It's over."
Sai looked over at his teammate. Inky black eyes met brilliant green ones. No words were exchanged, but he saw a mix of emotions. He still wasn't that great at sorting emotions out. The war had brought out more of his emotions, especially after his encounter with Shin, but he was still a novice at understanding them.
"I better sort them out," he thought to himself.
He saw relief. That emotion made sense. Sakura fought on the front lines. Her role as a fighter and medic only compounded her wartime role. She likely wanted to go home where she could rest and heal people.
Her smile didn't reach her eyes once again. That emotion he couldn't identify. Anger? Sadness? No it was neither. Worry? He couldn't tell. He just knew her smile was once again fake.
"You're going to the medics tent with me," she said gruffly. Naruto and Sasuke stepped down. Both knew she meant business by that tone.
The kunoichi still ran the squad. Sai took the place by her side.
"Anyone else injured?" he asked.
"These two claim they're not, but I know better."
"I'm fine Sakura-chan."
"Hn."
Sakura turned and faced them. She was a head shorter than Naruto and much shorter than Sasuke, but they followed her lead on this.
"You're still getting a full exam."
"Do I need one Ugly?"
Sasuke exchanged a slightly confused look with Naruto.
"I'll explain later," he whispered to his friend.
Her smile became real for a fleeting second. She then punched him.
"Now you do."
"You'd think he'd know better by now," muttered Naruto.
"Hn," responded Sasuke.
The quartet walked the rest of the way to the medical tent in silence. Once they got there Shizune took Naruto and Sasuke, leaving Sakura to examine Sai. She grabbed a medical kit and began examining him.
"Your smile is fake," he said bluntly.
"No one smiles in a war," she responded as she jabbed him in the ribs with a blunt object.
"They do when they've won," retorted Sai, bracing himself for another hit. It never came.
"What victory? Kakashi-sensei is missing. Neji is dead," she said softly.
"They're calling you three 'The New Sanin'."
"I never wanted fame."
"You wanted your team together again," he said bluntly.
"And it's still not happened," she said. Her hands stopped glowing as she finished the exam.
Sai realized that her team was still not whole. Sasuke was back, but Kakashi was missing.
"You've got me," he said plainly. He thought for a moment about putting his arms around her before dismissing the thought. This was Sakura, his friend and teammate. Still the last book he read said embracing helped comfort friends in distress.
"Should I hug her?" he pondered. "She may punch me again."
He wrapped his arms around the petite kunoichi. Her arms found their way around his narrow waist. Her head settled in the crook of his shoulder. He felt color reach his pale cheeks. He liked her touch more than he had anticipated.
"Thank you Sai," she said.
"I did it right?"
"Yes."
The kunoichi left without another word. Sai pondered what this meant going forward. Was his relationship with Team 7's kunoichi changed? Could he still call her Ugly now? Sai was interrupted from his thoughts by a loud thud.
"Ow Sakura-chan," cried a familiar voice.
"Nope, she's still the same Sakura," he thought to himself.
"Dobe."
"Teme"