A/N: I am a SasuSaku addict and I just can't stay away. Not that it's a bad thing of course.

Disclaimer: All Naruto characters belong to Masashi Kishimoto

1: Her Dead Charge

"And that's why you are still single and unhappy!"

Uchiha Sasuke looked at his best friend with the dullest look he could muster. Honestly, he couldn't care less about the ridiculous relationship advice being shoved down his throat by his happily married friend.

"Well, at least I am rich and satisfied."

Naruto groaned and went back to his drink. Day after day, week after week he would try to convince the handsome twenty-four year old to get married or at least try to have a girlfriend but to no avail. Being the best friend meant that he had to look on the bright side of things and rule out the possibility of Sasuke swinging the other way; otherwise that would have been rather...uncomfortable. Not to mention that Sasuke would probably have beat him to a bloody pulp.

There's always tomorrow. I'll convince him tomorrow…or maybe the next day…uh yeah, I'm setting my sights on next month. Yeah, definitely next month.

"All right, I'm off." Sasuke stood up and put some money down for their drinks while sighing at Naruto's disappointed look. "Grow up, you idiot. I've got to go to work. Tell Hinata I said hey."

"Yeah, yeah…" Naruto shrugged and blew some air into his straw making the orange juice bubble.

Sasuke sighed again and headed out of the bar thus completing his routine meeting with Naruto. It was the same every week. They would go out, eat ramen or have a drink and Naruto would bombard him with questions on why he was still single or what not. Sasuke knew he had good intentions but it was getting really old. So what if he was still single? Plenty of people were still single at twenty-four. Besides, what was all this hype about marriage and relationships? He tried it once, absolutely hated it and had stayed away ever since.

Looking back to the bar, Sasuke saw Naruto's slumped figure on the stool still blowing bubbles into his drink.

He was the perfect image of the struggling blue collar worker. The man still wore the same shabby coat ever since their college days despite the Christmas, birthday and the just-because-you-look-so-pathetic presents he had accumulated over the years from an exasperated Sasuke. Not only was it just the shabby coat but there were those same damn shabby shoes too.

The truth was that Naruto had always been very unlucky with money and no matter how many times Sasuke would try to help, he would always refuse. Sasuke hated that Naruto wouldn't accept any money from him but there was no helping the stubborn blond. And still, despite all the lack of financial security and struggles, Naruto managed to be the happiest man Sasuke knew.

What an enigma.

Now, Sasuke was a compassionate person. He cared for his old college buddy more than he lets on. What harm was there in wanting to help Naruto financially? After all, that was the most he could do since Sasuke wasn't exactly an expert in matters of the heart. Lending money and a willing ear was all he could do for Naruto so naturally he felt guilty.

People would never see that side of him though. All society saw was a rich, stuck up bastard who was incapable of saying a paragraph worth of words. What did they know, anyways? He worked extremely, no, inconceivably hard to be where he was at and after all of that hard work, he was certainly allowed to enjoy the green that came along with it. All in all, Sasuke felt very satisfied and happy in his own way.

The whole relationship thing just didn't click with him. Even when Sasuke was the best man at Naruto's teeny, tiny sad excuse for a wedding, he had deflected all the contagious love waves that had emanated from the happy couple and spent the majority of the celebration with confused thoughts on how one person could be so utterly content.

Whatever. He liked being alone in the bar, liked buying gifts for himself and liked waking up to his king-sized bed all to himself. You could call Sasuke a loner because that'd be true.

The whole narcissistic impression? Well, any human being would be a little proud if their genes were blessed. Maybe it was because of all the attention he got from the female population. Absent-minded stares, open mouths, hushed whispers, flirtatious smiles…they never did a thing for him except maybe boost his already inflated ego.

"Yeah?" Sasuke answered his cell phone as he took out his keys. "So, you need me to come in? That's fine, no it's not too late." Being a part of a business meant a busy life and time was rarely yours but he was use to it. Another late night seemed to await him as he began to make a mental checklist of the things that needed to be done.

The night air blew slightly as he opened the door to his car. For some reason, he felt his senses prickle…something wasn't right. Everything was quiet. The only prominent noise that could be heard was a police siren wailing softly in the distance.

A metal click sounded behind Sasuke making him freeze.

"Give me your keys."

Sasuke spun around to see a dark figure covered in the shadows. In one quick glance, it was obvious that this was a man and quite the amateur too. This character wore a typical black ski mask with sunglasses to cover any possible trace of identity. Maybe the thought that his get up would actually hinder his process didn't process through his mind at all.

But comical get up or not, any one would feel cold sweat and adrenaline coursing through their body once faced against the barrel of a gun.

"H-hand them over!" He heard the man's hand tighten on the trigger that gleamed from the light of a nearby lamppost. Beads of cold sweat made their way down Sasuke's face as the two stared each other down. Every muscle in his body tensed as Sasuke tried to clear his mind of the fact that he was staring death straight in the eye. Taking a deep breath, Sasuke put up his hands in surrender.

"Good."

The man smiled eagerly as Sasuke obediently made to give up the keys. Just before they were exchanged however, Sasuke shot out and pushed the man's arm away. The gun slipped from his nervous grip and fell to the pavement. Taking the opportunity, Sasuke kicked the gun further away before the man could retrieve it.

"Shit!"

The two men grappled on the ground as the sound of the police siren got louder with each second. Sasuke pinned the man's arm with his knee and made a grab for his neck. However, the man's size and strength proved him to be a competitor as he dealt Sasuke a heavy blow to his jaw. Reeling from the impact, Sasuke stumbled off the man feeling the sting and metallic taste of blood pervade his mouth.

Wiping the blood that began to trickle down his lower lip, Sasuke stood up and faced the man with a steely resolve to kick his thieving ass. Both men eyed the gun and simultaneously moved to get it before the other.

Now when Uchiha Sasuke sets his mind to do something whether it is kicking someone's ass or not, he follows through with it. That being said, the gun soon found itself in Sasuke's trembling hand and pointed at the thief.

BANG!

The sound of the gunshot rang through the empty streets.

Sasuke stopped; his whole body seemed frozen as he slowly looked down. A small bloodstain marred his white shirt and continued to enlarge as more seeped out. His opponent breathed a sigh of relief and knocked him over roughly onto the pavement. The adrenaline that once allowed him to move and fight for survival was now replaced by fatigue as every ounce of strength left him slowly but surely.

The pool of blood grew steadily.

"Didn't know I had a partner did you? Fool." The man laughed as he grabbed Sasuke's car keys.

"Hurry up, get in! The cops are coming!"

Sasuke heard the car door slam shut and the engine roar to life before the sounds began to fade away. He lay sprawled on the sidewalk with his breathing becoming more ragged by the second. Every gasping breath took more of what little strength he had left and soon Sasuke couldn't tell the difference between the dark concrete and the night sky.

There were vague screams that echoed briefly in his mind. Did someone finally come? Sasuke thought he felt someone hold his hand…it was warm, comforting yet gone all too quickly when the only thing he could feel was the coldness spreading throughout his entire body. He struggled to keep his eyes open but the heavy pull over them could not be ignored.

Bright lights.

Extremely annoying and stupid bright lights.

This was an all illuminating kind of white light…not the blurred, faded circle of light at the end of the dark tunnel. No, Uchiha Sasuke was engulfed in a luminous place that threatened to blind the life out of him had he only been alive.

"Uchiha, Sasuke. Twenty-four. Successful businessman. No relations. Killed by ordinary run-of-the-mill robbers. Few friends. Make that very few friends. Rather anti-social, aren't you?"

"Hey…" Sasuke opened a bleary eye and took in his surroundings. He tried to find the owner of the monotonous voice that was currently summing up his splendid biography in two measly sentences that nowhere near described his fabulous life.

It seemed that he was in an office, sitting in a chair and facing a man taking notes and talking into what looked like a seashell of some sort in a rather bored fashion. Or at least his single eye seemed bored since most of his face was covered. "What did you say?" Sasuke struggled to collect himself and get a good look around him. "Where am I?"

"I'm Kakashi. All of the new ones come to me and 'check in' you could say." Kakashi put down his paperwork and talking device for a second to give Sasuke his full attention when he realized this newcomer wasn't fully aware of the situation yet.

"What are you talking about? I'm not a 'new one.' I've worked here for three years. Although I can't recall a recent remodeling…" Kakashi only pointed to Sasuke's abdomen for an answer. Looking down, Sasuke finally the bloodstain. "Oh no…"

"Great! Now that we've got that established, let's move on." But moving on was the last thing on Sasuke's mind.

I'm dead? What the hell is this maniac getting at? Dead. That's absolutely ridiculous. Who hired this whack job? This place doesn't need more screw ups than it already has. I'm going to have a talk at the meeting about hiring new employees.

Despite all of the denial that clouded his thoughts however, he did recall something about car keys, a ski mask and blood…

Oh shit.

Sasuke looked back down and was greeted by the bloodstain again. The spot just sat there, ugly and red and looking so fatal that Sasuke felt sick. Nevertheless he brought a trembling hand to the wound and damn it all, it looked like blood, felt like blood and would probably smell like blood too if he cared to test.

"T-this has got to be some kind of mistake. I can't be dead, I'm only twenty-four."

Kakashi shrugged. "Well, it's not like you died of old age or anything. You were killed by, like I said, two run-of-the-mill robbers. Better?"

"No, it's not better! How could this have happened? I want to talk to someone in charge right now. Who's responsibility is it to make sure things go right around here?!" Sasuke then proceed to the 'cursing of the fates rant' while Kakashi just sat back and prepared to be amused by his theatrics. "I don't even have a will! Those idiots won't know what I want to do with all of my money!"

"Uh-huh…" Kakashi said dryly as he continued to humor the young man for a while before his patience ran out. "All right then Mr. Uchiha, please just wait right here for your appointment."

"Appointment? With who?" But before Sasuke could further question the man, Kakashi had already promptly shut the door with a click. The newly deceased Uchiha scowled irritably as he tried to digest the fact that this wasn't earth, hell, this wasn't even heaven. Was this limbo or something? Well, wherever this forsaken place was, he did not belong in it and he was ready to leave.

"If they think I'm just going to sit here and have my sentence served to me on a silver platter, they've got another thing coming." Sasuke got up and peeked his head tentatively into a deserted hallway filled with closed doors. There were probably other "new ones" in those too. Hn. Ridculous. Taking his chance, Sasuke slipped out and headed away from the office.

"HE'S WHAT?!"

"Stop yelling."

"BUT HE CAN'T BE!"

"But he is."

"I AM SO DEAD!"

"No, he's dead and you need to go talk to him. He seems to be in a bit of a shock right now and doesn't seem to be handling it very well."

"HE CAN'T BE DEAD!!"

Kakashi plugged his ears, sat down and waited for the girl to stop. After several minutes of witnessing the girl hyperventilate and seeing the rest of the color drain from her already pale face, he went on. "As his guardian angel, it is your responsibility to go comfort him."

"A-ARE YOU SURE HE'S DEAD?!"

"Sakura, no matter how many times you ask, my answer is still going to be the same. Now go." With that, he gently shoved her out of the door.

Despite the encouraging push however, Sakura still stood rooted to the floor, too devastated, shocked and horrified all at once to walk let alone go and confront Uchiha Sasuke. Her vision spun dizzily before her as she took deep breaths and tried to steady herself. After all, this is no time for a professional guardian angel to faint.

Okay, calm down. You can explain it to him. Just say that you had to be gone for a bit. Of all the times, to be absent it had to be today, the day when he dies! I feel like killing myself.

Sakura trembled as she walked down the hallway to the appointed room. So many emotions swirled around her stomach that she felt sick. Sasuke was her charge, her responsibility; he was a part of herself basically and what did she do? She was careless for a second and that had led to his untimely demise. How could she explain that to him without having her head bitten off?

As she stared at the wooden door in front of her, a lump formed in her throat. She didn't want to see him sitting there frightened and alone. After all, she knew him better than he knew himself. Ever since the day he was born as a bundle of joy into the world, she had watched over him. It was going to be unbearable for her to actually meet him since that would certainly mean that he had died…all thanks to her.

"It's all good, it's all good. Just get it over with. You can do this, you can do this, you can really do this!"

With her newly formed mantra on repeat in her head, Sakura braced herself, straightened her white robes and poofed away her comical wings and halo. This was going to be a strict business affair and she wasn't about to let any stereotypes about whimsical guardian angels affect his impression of her.

Taking a deep breath, she steadied herself and opened the door to greet…

No one.

The room was empty.

Sakura's emerald eyes widened with horror as more terrible news dawned on her. Her newly deceased charge was missing.