The pale light of the moon illuminated the small room. A simply decorated bedroom made colorless by the moonlight, it holds nothing extraordinary. A pale young man with dark hair and eyes awoke for some unknown reason. He looked around in shock, his surroundings unfamiliar. Yet he felt completely at ease. His attention is then diverted to the sleeping woman next to him.
Her short pink hair looked white in the dark room. Her closed eyelids hide her vibrant green eyes. Asleep she appears gentle, though experience has also taught him that she is also capable of destroying stone walls when angry. Her fierce nature is the result of her kind, concerned heart. It was this heart that opened slowly to a loner like him, that caused her to never give up on him, even in his darkest hour. It was a heart that was the opposite of her name. While the sakura flower was in bloom for a few short weeks, her heart had been opened to him since they were mere children.
Her breathing steady, her form curled into a ball, he glances at her. His feelings, he had never been able to speak of, not even when she had admitted hers to him as he left the village. He had settled for a mere "thank you" to express what he had not been able to put into words. He longed to speak those words now, but he could not translate what he felt into words. He never had been able to do so.
Sunlight awoke him. He was in his futon, the other members of his cell asleep. His eyes found Karin. Her similiarities to Sakura made him wonder if that was the only reason he tolerated her on a personal level. Despite her sensory skills and healing abilities, she was like a much younger version of Sakura or Ino or the countless other girls who had been enamored with him during his childhood. However he had no feelings for her. So unlike the ones he had for the pink-haired kunoichi.
In the Hidden Leaf village, she lived. Her village. His village until he had defected. The same place he wanted to destroy. Yet she was the one part of it that he wanted to save. She had been the reason he had had hesistated leaving there. However, he had made his choice. He had left that place; he had left her. His place was slowly being filled by someone else.
He wondered if Sakura had noted the similarities between him and Sai. He wondered if he had replaced him not only on their team, but in her heart as well? Sai was older, more mature and more direct than he had ever been with Naruto, Kakashi or even Sakura. She was sixteen years old. It had been over three years since he left. It was possible she had.
Even if she was not interested in Sai, Naruto and Lee both had had crushes on her in the past. She had grown into a beautiful and lethal kunoichi. Other shinobi had most likely noticed her.
Why did he care so much? He was an avenger. He wanted to destroy all that she loved. Yet he posessed a love for her as well. A love that made his former hatred of his now deceased brother seem hallow. A love that haunted him.