Summary: KakaSaku AR. Following the same themes as the other collections; they knew rebuilding the village wasn't an easy task. However, for Kakashi and Sakura, this brought new thoughts and feelings to their minds. Let's see how they find their place in this new world. Manga spoilers like whoa, seriously.
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Alright! I finally kicked myself into gear and decided to tackle this collection. I'm pretty nervous, you see, because KakaSaku is my first OTP and I'm afraid I'll ruin it. XD Here's hoping I can pull this off nicely enough.
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Anyway, I'd like to point out a little forewarning for the timeline in this one-shot collection. It's an alternate universe, in which Sakura actually saves Kakashi from dying at Pein's hands. The rest of this is mainly how I think the manga should have been developed. Sakura is 16-17, so you have been warned.
Disclaimer: Naruto is not mine. If it were, Itachi wouldn't have died so anticlimactically, and Sakura would be way more kickass that her chauvinist of a creator portrayed her to be.
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Halcyon
Theme 1: Meeting the Family
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"A little to the left, Sakura."
"Let me stabilize the flow, and then I'll begin giving that liver a new chakra coat," the pink-haired medic answered easily to the instructions. "How's the seal holding up, Tsunade-shishou?"
"I'm still sore, but I'll manage it. It's a wonder I didn't fall into a damn coma."
Sakura nodded, frowning worriedly. Of course, the last Akatsuki invasion in Konoha was enough to snap everyone to attention. Pein – and his six bodies – wrecked the village into oblivion, leaving only a crater of outstanding proportions. Now it was the time to rebuild everything, and getting ready for the second round.
This was, of course, under the command of the new Hokage, none other than Hatake Kakashi.
Sakura didn't know if she should feel happy for her former sensei or sad, because her current one was now out of the office. But something told her that Tsunade had faith in Kakashi's judgment, so she didn't voice her thoughts.
Merely three days had passed since the humongous battle, and the wounded, civilian and ninja alike, were being tended by all people who had little medical knowledge, under Sakura's orders. Since Shizune was KIA, and Tsunade was down for the count, she was the only one that could put some semblance of order in the medical tent, while people worked to reorganize – and reconstruct – their beloved Hidden Village.
Apparently, there had been a jounin meeting, in which they had reached the unanimous decision to rebuild the hospital before everything else. She was grateful for their thoughtfulness, given the massive amount of people that needed treatment.
Finishing the healing she was performing on her shishou's liver – one of her most damaged organs, due to obvious reasons – she was the only one that had managed to help the Godaime Hokage overcome her exhaustion, avoiding a coma that would have surely killed the blonde – Sakura used her forearm to wipe the sweat from her forehead, grateful that her shishou's body was taking her chakra so well.
Of course, she had practiced some healing on Tsunade back in her apprenticeship period, but this was entirely different. The blonde, currently weak ex-Hokage was wholly in her hands, so no mistakes were allowed.
It was one thing to heal Kankurou from some poison, no matter how carefully constructed it had been, she thought, but another one was to stabilize her surrogate mother from chakra depletion. Of both ailments, chakra depletion was the most dangerous, for it could affect the main organs and provoke an absolute shut down in less than thirty seconds.
Sakura shook her head. There wasn't time to fret over what could have been.
"I'm going to check on some other patients, shishou. Want me to get you something else?"
Sharp, amber eyes opened to stare at her apprentice. "No, Sakura," she rasped, her voice completely changed due to her now obvious aging state. "I think I'll take a nap. Would you go check on that brat Hatake? I want to talk to him ASAP."
"Hai, Tsunade-shishou, I'll tell him," she nodded, walking to the door soundlessly. It was painful, to see such a beautiful, powerful kunoichi like the Sannin Slug Princess so frail, so old...so completely vulnerable.
"I think I never told you..." wrinkled, chaffed lips moved, curving slowly in a little wistful smile. "When I was your age...sixteen, isn't it? Yeah. I returned from a mission with Jiraiya and Orochimaru when our sensei asked me to heal this guy. I had never seen him, but I had heard from him. He was one of the elite, during that time. His name was Hatake Sakumo, Kakashi's father. I was so angry, because the stupid man always tried to be a smartass with me and always neglected healing sessions. In the end, I punted him out of the hospital window."
"Shishou!" Sakura laughed, a little alarmed that she had been so careless with a patient, even if he had been quite obnoxious. "How could you do that?!"
"Bah, he deserved it, that baka. Word has it that he despised hospitals, but then he met a friend of mine...another medic-nin, you see. It was love at the first smack, like Jiraiya always liked to tease them. Sakumo was quite an ass with her, but then she slapped him..." she snorted, "Sakumo was so stunned that she got the chance to give him the vaccinations he needed. A few days later, they were seen in a café by my own sensei. We laughed at this for weeks."
"That's a nice story," Sakura said politely, as she washed her hands. "Who would have thought that Konoha's White Fang was such an ass, eh?"
"You have no idea," Tsunade laughed. "I laughed in his face when he regained consciousness, when his dear Hana told him she was pregnant. He fainted, can you believe it? One of the great shinobi of the Land of Fire, fainting like a girl because he was told he was going to be a father."
This time, Sakura laughed with her shishou heartily. During her recovery, Tsunade had been relaxed enough to share little snippets of her past with her pupil, something that Sakura secretly loved. It was like sharing confidences with her mother, and this was so precious for the pink-haired young woman that she always indulged her master when she was in the mood for a trip down memory lane.
"You know, Sakura...I always saw Shizune as my little sister, but she was Dan's niece, you see. You, on the other hand...I've always felt as if you were my own daughter. I got the chance to see you grow up and stronger. It was such a blessing to see you taking the reins of your life and mature so beautifully. I'm so proud of you, Sakura, remember this always."
Her hands trembled with emotion. "Why are you telling me this, shishou?"
A raspy chuckle was heard then, and a blanket-covered shoulder shrugged. "No reason. I just wanted to tell you how much you mean to me...and not just because you're holding the stethoscope for me, you know. Think of it as an old hag's rambling, eh? No big deal."
"Hai. I'll be going then," Sakura answered and closed the door softly.
Tsunade didn't need to listen closely to know that she had made her student cry.
Maybe this was good for her, she thought. This was what she needed to finally understand her place in the world. Sakura had been way too coddled, even in her line of work, to finally have her eyes opened with such a horrendous occasion. But she had risen so incredibly to the challenge, saving a great deal of the villagers by punching that gigantic summoned creature so easily.
She simply wasn't made to be on the sidelines, and Tsunade had made sure she wasn't learning to be a meek kunoichi. She knew Sakura was made for something else; something greater than to be in the shadow of her teammates, or the princess that waited for her dark knight to return to her. The blonde Sannin was aware of Sakura's waning love for the Uchiha, and had encouraged her to be more assertive, more open...everything that she, Tsunade, wanted her to achieve. The pink Blossom wasn't made to remain unmoving while everyone battled around her. She had enough spunk in herself to be at the front lines.
It was something she was going to make Sakura see, even if it was the last thing she did, Tsunade decided. Her eyes closed, restful slumber coming to her, as a random thought passed her mind.
Maybe she should ask her to keep an eye on the silver-haired brat that took up her mantle. That should give Sakura something else to do, beside her hospital work.
-X-
After washing her face and making her rounds, Sakura feet directed her to the upper floor, where a ward had been transformed into a bunch of makeshift offices. One for the current Hokage, another one for Ibiki – who was a bit put out for the lack of orders from her new superior – a big conference room for the jounin and a tiny space for her, since she was in charge of overseeing all the procedures at the hospital.
She only had a little desk, swamped with medical folders and healing technique scrolls, a hard, wooden chair, and a beaten up archive. It was a good thing she didn't receive visitors, because she didn't have any more chairs.
Tossing Tsunade's medical folder on her desk, she let out a sigh. She was tired, but she didn't have the time to rest. She had patients to see...and a message to her new Hokage.
She wasn't sure if he even was in his office; most probably, was helping someone outside, but she couldn't tell. At least, she could try. She owed her shishou as much.
Placing tentative steps in the hallway, she found herself at Kakashi's office soon enough. Feeling a presence inside, she knocked softly on the door, listening for any sound of acknowledgment. She frowned when she didn't hear anything, so she opened the door, finding the silver-haired man sitting in the windowsill, his head in his hands.
He had no hitai-ate on, thus his unruly silver hair dropped all over his face, obscuring half of it. But she knew he hadn't forgone his mask, even if he had shed the jounin vest and the headband, he wouldn't take off that scrap of cotton.
He looked exhausted...and defeated.
"Kakashi-sensei," she whispered. She knew he had felt her even before she decided to step out of her office to go to his. "Are you alright?"
He let out a loud sigh. "I'm fine; I just...need some rest."
It was an admission of his part that she'd never thought she would hear. The Copy Ninja was strong, and he never said something that would demean that façade. The battle with the Akatsuki Leader had been tiring and gruesome, she knew, for she felt his life slipping from her fingers as she frantically poured half her chakra reserves into his body.
"Is your eye bothering you?" she asked in a murmur, a little uncomfortable with his sudden frank admission. "I could...soothe it, like I did when..."
When he raised his head, Sakura inhaled sharply. He had dark circles under his eyes, and while his Sharingan was closed, she could see it was swollen and sore. Kakashi's entire countenance screamed fatigue and a little bit of despair.
"Kaka-sen–Hokage-sama," she whispered, suddenly remembering his new position now. She squeaked when his eyes narrowed in displeasure at her.
"Don't call me that," he ordered sharply. "Not you, Sakura. Call me however you want except that."
She flushed in embarrassment. "I'm...sorry...I just..."
He sighed again. "I apologize, Sakura. I think I've been cooped in this office for far too long," nodding, he scratched the back of his head. "Did you need me for something?"
"Uhm...I...shishou wanted me to tell you that she wanted to talk to you...but she's taking a nap now," she hesitated, furrowing her brows in concern. "Are you sure you're okay? I could–"
"You won't give it a rest until you've examined me, right?" he cut her off smoothly. "Go ahead, knock yourself out."
She drew a deep breath, relieved that he hadn't refused her help. She approached dutifully, gathering what little chakra she had left in her right hand. "I'll just...do a quick scan and then numb the optical nerves, if that's...okay with you."
"No problem," he murmured lazily, sighing as her energy entered his body. "Thank you, Sakura."
"It's nothing," she responded automatically. "It seems you have gathered a lot of chakra here," she reported. "It would be better if you use it or it will give you a migraine. I'll have to look for some way to drain it without having you fall comatose, but that might take a while..."
"Yeah," he grunted, inwardly relieved thanks to her miraculous, soft energy. "I know."
"Kaka-sensei..." Sakura trailed off, worried by his haggard appearance. "You need to rest. Maybe I can arrange a bed for you here, we just need–"
"I don't think–"
"Please," she pleaded, dropping her hand from his eye. "I know...this is hard, and I'm...you know, I want to help you. I mean, you're the Hokage now, and you...well, I think you need some assistance, and since I've...I've..."
"I know, Sakura," he murmured. "I just need a little time to adjust. It's not every day I'm promoted to our highest rank, you know."
He started to stand up, but his hands gripped the windowsill tightly. This didn't escape Sakura's watchful gaze. "Come on, let's find you a bed," she commanded, using that tone she employed with her patients. "You need to get plenty of rest."
"I don't have time for rest," he protested, but she had already helped him stand, using her body as a crutch for him. "The village–"
"Konoha needs rebuilding, yes," she interrupted him, "but how can we rebuild if our leader keels over? Come on. I'll be your crutch whenever you need me, Hokage-sama."
"I told you not to call me that."
"I'll stop calling you that if you listen to me," she retorted, as she opened the door of his office. "Deal?"
She smiled tiredly, and then he noticed how hollow and red her eyes looked. She must have been crying, and wondered what had upset her. It has been quite a while since he saw her like this, Kakashi realized with a little pang of guilt.
"Deal," he answered, his eyes crinkling in that masked smile he always showed, and she felt a little of weight pressing her chest lifting away.
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- Tenna' ento lye omenta -
-XxX-
AN: First one! Let's see how you guys receive this one. I have all themes planned out, so I figure I'll be writing and posting them soon enough. Regarding Danzou and his cunning usurpation of Kakashi's position, eh, NO. That won't happen here. I want to focus on Konoha's rebuilding and Kakashi's new role as a leader. I won't be adding the Kage summit either. Maybe I'll cook something nice enough to replace it later. For now, I just wanted to write Hokage!Kakashi...and some KakaSaku. :P
As usual, many thanks and love to MelissaRose85 for her wonderful betaing work, and to you guys for reading. 8D
