Chapter One

"Naruto, Sasuke! This way!" Ten year-old Sakura waving to the boys over to the bridge she was standing on. "The fireworks are about to start soon and I want to get a good spot"

The trio were at one of Konoha's many festivals that occur annually. It was one of the more popular ones. It seemed as if the entire village was there that night. Everything was so big and colorful that Sakura couldn't help but spin around and watch as the colorful scene swirled around her. It was like she was in her own little world among the many adults that surrounded her. Sasuke couldn't help the small smile as he watch Sakura enjoy herself.

To Sakura, the fireworks were her absolute favorite part of this festival. Which is why Naruto and Sasuke gave in to Sakura's many pleas of attending the festival. It sort of became a tradition for the trio. Despite not liking crowds, Sasuke would do pretty much anything to see Sakura happy. Although, he doesn't like to admit this fact.

As the trio navigated their way in and out the crowd, Sasuke couldn't help to admire how pretty Sakura looked in her Yukata. It wasn't an everyday sight to see Sakura dressing girly. Having been friends with the two rowdy boys for several years now, it was difficult to maintain her girlishness when they were constantly in a wrestling match with each other.

Sakura had found the perfect spot to watch the fireworks. It was under a tree near the lake they visit often. As Sakura laid out a blanket for the three of them, Naruto and Sasuke both waited patiently. The pair had two sticks of dango in each hand. When they sat down, Sasuke handed two sticks of dango to Sakura and was reward with a bright smile in return.

"Thank you Sasuke"

With that, the chatter between the three began until the fireworks show. Naruto flailing his arms in the air, Sakura laughing a carefree laugh, and Sasuke looking at the two with a small smile. At that moment, time seemed to stop for the three ten year olds. No one or thing could interrupt the sanctuary they called their friendship. In that moment, the focus was on the three of them and each other's happiness. And when the fireworks began, they all looked up into the dark sky watching as colors burst into the air. It was an amazing sight indeed. They continued to look on even as the colors slowly faded back into the night sky forever lost upon their eyes.

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Onyx eyes slowly opened only to reveal that it was still dark outside. However, judging from the color, the owner could tell dawn was approaching. Despite not being required to meet his team later in the morning, Sasuke decided to start his day a bit early.

He finished his morning routine with ease and headed to the kitchen to fix himself a light breakfast. It was dark and quite in his household. Which was expected since only two occupants lived in that house. And the other person was out on a mission and wouldn't be back for another week or two.

To his surprise, he found his older cousin Shisui was in the kitchen cooking.

"Aren't you supposed to be on a mission?" Sasuke asked Shisui as he walked into the kitchen and towards the fridge to grab a tomato.

"What kind of greeting is that?!" Shisui looked over at Sasuke with a playful disgusted look on his face. "After I risked my life and well-being in order to protect the many lives in this village…"

Sasuke rolled his eyes at his obnoxious cousin and his antics. Seriously, Shisui's energy knew no bounds. He was always on one hundred "You were supposed to be on a month long mission. No one is trying to discredit the 'hard work' that you do for this village" Sasuke said before he bit into his tomato and went to sit down at the counter.

"Aww you finally acknowledge how strong your older cousin is"

"I never said that. I just said you work hard"

"Sasu-kun, why do you have to be so mean" Shisui faked cried into the dish he was preparing for the both of them.

Sasuke could only tsk and continue eating his tomato. Really, there was no point in encouraging this behavior from Shisui. He could be so dramatic at times that it was insufferable. Sasuke really couldn't understand where he got his personality from. Members of the Uchiha clan were all cool, calm, and collected. Showing too many emotions was an unspoken taboo.

Shisui smiled slightly as he went back to preparing their breakfast. When it was finished and served, they ate in a comfortable silence. This time of the year was always hard for them. Both knew their thoughts were along the same lines and chose to respect each other's way of mourning.

The silence was broken from the sound of Sasuke pushing his chair back, standing up, and putting his dishes in the sink. "I'm heading out to train with the team. I'll be back for dinner"

"Wait"

When Sasuke turned to look at Shisui, he immediately knew something was up. The playfulness that is usually Shisui's demeanor was no longer present. He looked serious and hesitant. Like he was trying to find the right words to explain to him. For the most part, Shisui only become serious when the topic involved them.

"Where are they" Sasuke all but demanded.

"We received new intel regarding their current agenda. We have reason to believe they are heading to Ishigakure" Shisui said slowly "I was ordered by Hokage-sama to bring you to her office for debriefing. She's putting together a team."

Sasuke couldn't believe there was finally enough evidence to justify a mission in order to find them. It's been ten years since the last time he spoke with them. Ten years since he murder his entire clan. Ten years since he kidnapped the girl he was developing feelings for. Ten years of harsh training in order to become stronger. Ten years of harboring an unquenchable hatred for a certain someone. Ten years of loneliness.

If it wasn't for Shisui, Sasuke would have probably left the village by now in search of power. The only reason Sasuke chose to stay in Konoha was solely because of Shisui and his strength. Shisui was extremely gifted and had mastered his Sharingan techniques.

But above all else, Shisui filled the void of having lost his entire family and best friend in one night.

"We leave for the Hokage tower in an hour"

With that, both of the males went about their own business until their meeting with the Hokage.

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"Granny, you didn't have to throw a sake bottle at me. What if it would have hit me?!"

Sasuke and Shisui entered the Hokage's office to Tsunade yelling and throwing items at Naruto. Most likely of some stupid and inappropriate remark he made. Other than that, Sasuke noticed that Sai and Kakashi were also in attendance.

"Good, now that I have you all here, I have a B rank mission for you" Tsunade said as she sat back down behind her desk.

"Oh what type of mission is it? Are we going up against some dangerous criminal organization" Naruto asked excitedly. Naruto did all the talking, but everyone else was equally curious what type of mission they will be sent on. Although, Sasuke wondered why the Hokage would classify this as only a B rank mission instead of something higher. They were going against the Akatsuki after all.

"Actually you will face someone from a criminal organization" Tsunade started "I'm sure you all are familiar with the Uchiha massacre" She paused to look for the group's confirmation.

"Hokage-sama, it's still a bit unclear for me" Sai spoke up. This wasn't too surprising due to him being a former member of root and having limited access to village information. Furthermore, the other occupants of the room were all connect to the case in some way as Sai was not.

"To put it briefly, ten years ago Itachi Uchiha murdered the entire Uchiha clan and kidnapped Sakura Haruno" Tsunade began to explain "To this day, we do not fully understand why Itachi kidnapped Sakura. However, we suspect it has to do with a special dojutsu that allows her to completely conceal her chakra"

"Completely conceal?" Sai questioned

"Yes, once activated even the most skilled shinobi cannot detect her" Tsunade answered Sai. "This is not common knowledge, but Sakura was my student at point. Her mastery of the technique was pretty advance for her age and I can only imagine how much she has developed it since then"

Sasuke narrowed his eyes at the piece of information. "You knew of their whereabouts and failed to contact the Hokage" He was getting angry. She had the opportunity to bring Sakura back to the village at one point and didn't do it.

"The reason for me doing so is classified" Tsunade stated simply. "Even I don't know why I was requested to teach her"

"Who sanction this?" Sasuke insisted angrily.

"Sasuke, calm down" Shisui spoke up "Whoever allowed this must have a good reason"

"If it eases your mind a little bit Sasuke" Tsunade began, she looked him directly in the eye "I didn't know who she was at the time nor did I know Itachi was in the area. Sakura used a fake name and changed her appearance for the duration of our time together and spoke very little about her travel companion. I was simply told a young girl would be at my door step and that I was to take her on as an apprentice"

"When did you realize it was her?"

"Look Sasuke, whatever brother issues you have is for Itachi. You better check your anger before I do it for you" Tsunade finally snapped. She murmured under her breath something about brats but Sasuke chose to ignore the comment. "The only reason I found out her true identity was because she told me. However, after that she disappeared. Trust me, I searched for her but I wasn't successful."

It went silent in the room after that. All of the occupants were either processing the information given or remembering shared moments they had with Sakura. It was somber indeed. She was such a cheerful and bright young girl. Her absence affected all of them save for Sai.

They were all taken out of their thoughts when Tsunade continued with the briefing "Back to the matter at hand… Current Intel has confirmed that Itachi and Sakura are making their way towards Ishigakure. The mission details are in these folders. Familiarize yourself with it. You leave at dawn" Tsunade paused and looked at each one of them for any questions "This is a rescue mission" At that the air still around Sasuke "Sasuke, under no circumstances are you to engage in any unnecessary contact with Itachi. You are to safely rescue Sakura and bring her back to the village. Do I make myself clear?" Although she was speaking to them all, everyone knew she was speaking directly to Sasuke.

"Hai" They all agreed

"Sasuke, it is imperative that you follow instructions and bring Sakura home"

"I cannot make any guarantees"

"You little brat!" Tsunade stood up and banged her hand on the table. "I am giving you this mission from the kindness of my heart. I'll take you off this case in heartbeat" she yelled at him.

"If I see an opening that minimizes any risk caused to the team I will act upon it without hesitation" Sasuke casually replied.

All Tsunade could do was roll her eyes and rethink her decision to put Sasuke on this case. If it wasn't for Shisui nearly guilt tripping her into allowing Sasuke on this mission, she would have never done it. She has seen how this thirst for power and revenge has affected Sasuke. Honestly, she's surprised that he hasn't left the village yet. Hopefully, bringing Sakura back will allow some type of closure for Sasuke, if only for a little while.

"Shisui, you're team captain. Control your cousin. You all are dismissed"

With that, they all left to prepare for one of their most taxing mission to date.

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Hi everyone! So this is my first story ever on Fanfiction. I've had so many ideas running through my head and I finally found enough time to actually start a story. I hope you all like it and please give constructive criticism. I apologize for any grammar mistakes or if things seem too rushed. But please review! I would love to read your opinions.