Hi! I'm fairly new to writing Sakura. In fact, this is my first Sakura story so be nice and I apologise for any OOC-ness (in any of my characters). This story is set when everyone is 21. I hope I've done a good job with this chapter. The title of the story was inspired by what Lee told Sakura, "The lotus of the Leaf blooms twice." I thought with a bit of adaptation it fit to this story quite nicely :)

If you would care to review, I'd be very, very grateful :)

Thanks,
Eternal

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto. If I did, Sakura and Kiba would have been together long ago.

The Blossom Of The Leaf Blooms Twice

Chapter One: An Ominous Meeting

Haruno Sakura awoke to her alarm clock screaming in her ear. Her fist crashed down on the device, smashing it. 'That shut it up' she thought with a small smirk. But now she needed to buy a new alarm clock. That was probably the seventh that month due to her underestimating her inhuman strength. Sakura's desire for a peaceful awakening gave her a deep hatred of the handy device. She sat up groggily, rubbing her emerald eyes and running her hands through her pink locks. She swung her legs out of her bed and stood up. Sakura walked to her mirror and grimaced. She always hated how rough she looked in the mornings which was part of what made her dislike mornings.

"Ugh. I look terrible." she groaned. She felt it too, "That's the last time I let Ino talk me into a girl's night out." Her head was throbbing painfully. "How much did I drink last night?" she asked herself. At that moment, it didn't matter. She just needed to get to work. She raised her hands to her temples and sent a burst of soothing chakra into her head to alleviate her horrible hangover. This was one of the times she was thankful for her medicinal talents. Feeling the throbbing in her head fade made her let out a content sigh. She opened her bedroom door and stepped out into the narrow hallway. Sakura walked to her bathroom and towards her shower. The medic ran the water for a minute while she stripped down. Another sigh escaped her lips as she stepped into the shower and let the water wash over her slender petite body. After washing the previous night's fatigue down the drain, Sakura stepped out of the shower feeling refreshed. She shuddered as the cooler air of her bathroom hit her slightly reddened skin. Sakura grabbed her towel and dried her dripping body off before wrapping the towel completely around herself. She travelled to her bedroom again and soon, her apartment was filled with the roar of a hairdryer.

Sakura walked out of her room dressed in her usual attire which consisted of a red top which split in two a few inches above the navel. The two pieces of material reconnected at the small of Sakura's back and flowed over her bottom and down to her knees. The back of the top was completely out. On the front, just below her neck, was a small, white circle which was the symbol for Sakura's family. There was another at the hem of the material which ended at her knees. The medic also wore skin-tight, black, leather pants and a pair of black boots too. It was quite the change from when she had been a teenager. Now that she had filled out rather nicely in the breast and hip departments, Ino gave her some advice to 'sex up' her wardrobe and make the most of her 'assets'.

The young woman looked at the time. She had half an hour before she was needed at the hospital which meant she had no time for breakfast. Sakura never had any time for breakfast anymore. She usually just grabbed something from the canteen at the hospital. She pulled her long, black coat on over her clothes and and walked out of the apartment with the coat flowing around her ankles.

Sakura walk down the corridor of the hospital towards her office. Since Tsunade was too busy, she and Shizune had been put in charge of everything medical in the village. This meant that Sakura got her own office which she was very please about. It wasn't much but it made her feel important and official. She opened the door to her office and walked in. It was the flu season in Konoha and she was too tired to notice the person stood by the door.

"What's up doc?" came the masculine voice which made Sakura's head snap upwards. 'Oh crap. I forgot about him.' she thought as she looked at the man in front of her whose face held it's usual smirk.

"Kiba." she breathed. She was already tired and dealing with the man who was every medic's nightmare was not her idea of relaxing. Inuzuka Kiba was usually a laid back and easygoing kind of guy but get him near a needle and he turned into an extremely aggressive person. So much so that every other doctor or nurse refused to deal with him during flu season. So it was down to Sakura and Shizune and, as her luck would have it, it just happened to be her turn. She leaned against her desk and sighed. "Oh joy. A wrestling match." she muttered.

"I'll wrestle with you anytime babe." Kiba smirked. Sakura's cheeks flushed pink and Kiba chuckled. "How about we just skip all this and you let me go."

"Not going to happen Kiba." Sakura said, shaking her head. "I have a job to do. Take a seat please."

Kiba sighed and did as he was told. He leaned back in the chair and put his arms behind his head. "Stick it to me babe." he smirked. Sakura walked over to a trolley at the side of the room and pulled out a small needle. She heard Kiba's whimper when she squirted a little out and smirked. He was one of the toughest shinobi in the village and he was afraid of a tiny needle despite having stabbed himself with a kunai years ago which she was sure must have hurt a lot more.

"Don't worry. It won't hurt a bit." she said as she walked over. Kiba's wide eyes were fixed on the tiny needle in Sakura's dainty hand. "Can you roll up your sleeve please Kiba?" The dog nin rolled the sleeve of his shirt up, never once taking his eyes off the needle. Sakura felt a twinge of pity for the man. He truly was scared of them. She knew that eye contact was important for Inuzuka's so she looked directly into Kiba's eyes as she lowered the needle to his bicep. Kiba's other hand gripped her wrist and a snarl came across his face.

"Don't touch me with that." he growled. Sakura sighed.

"Calm down Kiba." she said soothingly. "It'll be over before you know it."

"Sakura. I am not doing this." he said. Sakura could feel him getting more and more agitated with each passing second. She wrenched her wrist out of his hand and lowered the needle again.

"Trust me Kiba. This won't hurt a bit." She said, "You do trust me don't you?"

"No!" he shouted, knocking the needle out of the medic's hand. Her eyes narrowed upon hearing that Kiba didn't trust her. The dog nin stood up sharply, never breaking eye contact with Sakura as she advanced with a new needle. "Sakura...don't bother."

"Kiba. We can do this the easy way or..." she raised her other fist. "Or I can get nasty. It's your decision."

"Don't threaten me Sakura." he snarled, drawing up close and towering over the medic. Her emerald eyes closed as she tried to keep calm. Kiba was testing her fragile patience and temper. "Don't ever threaten me." he repeated. Her eyes snapped open.

"Sorry Kiba." she muttered. She glared before tackling him, making him fall to the floor with a thud. She straddled his waist as he struggled.

"SAKURA!" he roared, "GET THE FUCK OFF ME!"

"NOT UNTIL YOU MAN UP AND TAKE THIS INJECTION!" she shouted back, trying to pin his shoulders to the ground. She hadn't thought this through. Her needle had left her hand again and was lying on the floor. She couldn't afford to get a new one. It was taking everything she had just to keep him pinned to the floor.

"Sakura. Let me up. Now." He snarled. "Or you'll be so fucking sorry." The medic slapped him clean across the face.

"To take your words, don't ever threaten me!" she shouted. Kiba looked shocked and impressed that she'd had the guts to slap him. He smirked at the dominance shown by the medic who had usually seemed so gentle. "What are you smirking at Kiba?"

"Nothing much, just how sexy you look when you're angry." he grinned.

"Then I must be gorgeous because I'm furious!" she shouted. "Every year we go through this. I'm beginning to think you actually enjoy this."

"Enjoying what?"

"Annoying me." Sakura snapped.

"Hmm....that's a point. But I rather enjoy the positions we get into." Kiba grinned as Sakura blushed and jumped off him. "Ha! Gotcha!" he smirked. He got back up and Sakura felt a little stupid for falling for it. She sighed and tried to control her anger again or she'd end up knocking the Inuzuka heir out. "Sakura, just let me go and you can relax for the entire day."

"I'd get sacked." She snapped, "And it's flu season. Every shinobi is forced to have one of these injections whether they like it or not. For you it's even more crucial." Kiba looked like he didn't get it. "Your nose?" she sighed, "If you get a cold or the flu, you'll be unable to be a shinobi until you've recovered."

The dog nin had to admit, she had a point. And his ninja work was his whole life.

"Now what will it be? A tiny injection which won't hurt at all and will be over in seconds, or two or three weeks of being out of action with the flu?" Sakura asked. By the scowl on Kiba's face, she knew she had him cornered.

"Fine." Kiba said, rolling his sleeve up. There was no beating Sakura when it came to medicine. She was in her element and in complete control.

"And we've still got the full physical examination to do too." Sakura added. Kiba groaned.

"I thought I'd be doing that with someone else." he said.

"Like I'm going to let you get half naked in front of a nurse." Sakura said, "I know you too well. Horn-dog." Kiba huffed at the nickname that no-one had called him since he was sixteen. Back then he was worse than he was now. At sixteen he couldn't be seen without numerous women with him. Now he had some self control. Some. "Plus it's easier to get everything done in one fell swoop." she added.

Kiba didn't care. His plans were ruined by the pink haired medic. He had one hell of a nurse lined up to give him that physical and now he'd have to sit and be prodded by Haruno Sakura. 'Just great.' he thought. Kiba was too busy huffing and sulking to notice the needle go into his arm. A second later, Sakura stood in front of him with her arms crossed.

"Well?" Kiba asked, "Are you going to get the injection over with or not?"

"It's done." Sakura smirked. "See? Nothing to worry about." She honestly would never be able to understand what made Kiba make such a fuss about a tiny needle when he'd been in hospital with stab wounds several times.

"So I guess you want my clothes off now?" Kiba smirked, sitting back with his arms behind his head.

"Yes." Sakura said. She caught on to Kiba's hidden meaning when she saw his smirk widen, "Kiba!" she blushed, "Just take your shirt off." Kiba chuckled at Sakura's innocence and did as he was instructed, removing his shirt and the mesh-like undershirt. He sat there with his muscular chest on view and smirked at Sakura. Her light blush was still lining her cheeks a little. She got the dreaded stethoscope out an advanced on the dog nin with it. She put it in her ears and bent over in front of him. "Okay, this'll be a little cold." she said softly. Kiba hissed as the freezing cold metal touched his warm skin. Sakura listened to his heartbeat while balancing herself with a hand on his bare shoulder. Kiba decided to have a little fun. He began to flex his pectoral muscles, alternating between right and left.

"Kiba, stop that. It's hard to get a good listen with you doing that." Sakura scolded. Kiba chuckled and Sakura continued to listen. Her hand slipped down his chest and she scratched him with her nail. "Sorry." she said. Kiba shrugged.

Sakura made cute faces when she concentrated. A little pout formed when she did and her eyes went a little half lidded. Her lip gloss shone slightly in the light of her office. Kiba could smell her shampoo. Vanilla. It mixed and blended with her natural cherry blossom scent to make one that Kiba had to admit was really nice. That was one thing that Kiba liked about Sakura; she smelled the best of everyone in the village. Plus it was fun to wind her up.

"Okay, your heartbeat seems fine." Sakura said, pulling away. "You can put your shirt back on now."

"Aw, don't you wanna get a closer look." Kiba smirked. He was hit in the face by his shirt.

"Put it on." She said. Kiba sighed and slipped both shirts onto his torso. "Now roll up the leg of your pants please."

"Can't I just take them off?" Kiba asked.

"No. I don't want to find you've gone commando." Sakura said. Kiba chuckled. He did have a habit of doing that. "Roll up a leg. It doesn't matter which." She turned to the trolley and picked up that hammer which tests people's reflexes. This is why Kiba wanted to be tested by someone else. Sakura tended to be slightly vicious. "Okay, hop up onto the bed for me, please."

"Oh Sakura, getting a little forward aren't we?" Kiba grinned, getting onto the bed. Sakura shook her head, unimpressed with Kiba's attempts to make her feel uncomfortable. "If you just wanted to get me into bed you should have just said rather than going through all this."

"You know Kiba, I'm about this close," she indicated with her index finger and thumb, "To knocking you out. Now pipe down and let me do my job!" She kneeled and tapped just below Kiba's kneecap, making his leg kick. The medic did this a couple of times before she was satisfied. She stood up and Kiba hopped of the bed, shaking his leg to get the trouser leg back down. "Okay, you're done. Everything seems to be in working order."

"I could have told you that." Kiba said, rolling his eyes. "I don't get why I need to be here." Sakura put her hand on her hip and glared at Kiba.

"What if something had been wrong and I'd just let you go?" she asked.

"That's a 'what if'. There wasn't anything wrong so this was a waste of my valuable time." Kiba said.

"Your valuable time?! What, fucking whores suddenly became a respectable past-time did it?" Sakura shouted. "What about my time? I, unlike you, do some good for this village. Standing here arguing with you isn't a good use of my time!"

"I fight for the safety of everyone in this village. Unlike you who just hides in a hospital and lets everyone else fight for her!" Kiba shouted back.

"Who heals you when you're reckless and get yourself hurt? Me, you ungrateful swine!" Sakura bellowed. "Without me and the other medics, you and every single one of our friends would be dead right now!" Her blazing emerald eyes glared directly into Kiba's onyx ones. The chakra running through the medic was accumulating in her fists. She was absolutely furious.

"And you've never done anything stupid and gotten yourself hurt have you? No because you never do anything! A weak ass medic like you is a dis-" Kiba was interrupted by a kunai lobbed at his head. He ducked and looked at the medic. She had three kunai in each hand and she looked livid but her eyes were welling up with tears.

"Get out." she snarled. "Before I kill you."

Kiba knew when he had overstayed his welcome. He made a dash for the door and shut it after him. He heard the thud of the six kunai hit the door after him. He chuckled, knowing that his work was done. He had played a very dangerous game. Annoying the pink haired medic was not something people would advise. She was said to be the 'second Tsunade'. Her temper and raw physical strength were definitely similar to the blond Hokage's. He walked down the corridor, thoroughly satisfied with his exercise for that day. One of the medic's rushed past him and he stopped her.

"If you're going to see Sakura, I suggest you leave it." he smirked.

"Why?" she asked. The pair looked towards Sakura's office as they heard a screech of rage and felt a massive tremor which shook the entire hospital. "Ah. I see."

"Yeah." Kiba chuckled, walking off.

Sakura sat in a tea shop opposite the blond Ino. She still looked furious. So furious that Ino thought Sakura might spontaneously combust at a moment's notice. "How dare he? How dare that dog loving piece of crap call me weak? I should kick his ass half way to Suna and back for that!" she snarled.

"I hear you." Ino sighed, "And I heard you the twenty eight other times too. Just let it go. Kiba's just like that. His whole family is obsessed with strength. If someone is gentle, kind and thoughtful they'd see them as weak."

"Backwards pack of mutts." Sakura spat. Normally she wouldn't have been so malicious and spiteful but Kiba had struck an open wound. Sakura had gone her whole shinobi career wanting to prove that she wasn't weak and useless. Ino needed to cheer her best friend up and she thought she had the very thing. 'Yamanaka Ino always comes prepared.' she thought as she delved into a small, yellow bag.

"Look what I've got..." Ino smiled, bringing out a CD. "It's Whitney Houston. Your favourite."

"I don't think Whitney can help this time Ino." Sakura sighed.

"It's got 'I Look To You'." Ino sang waving the CD in front of the pinkette's face. Her eyes darted upwards.

"Gimme." she said, grabbing for the CD but Ino pulled it away. "Ino don't be mean, that's my favourite song ever! Gimme!" she pouted, reaching for the box again. Ino just pulled it away.

"Drop the Kiba thing and you can have it." she smirked. Sakura cursed the blond's sneakiness.

"Fine." Sakura said after a moment's thought. Ino slid the box across the table and Sakura grabbed it with a smile.

"That's better." Ino said, seeing Sakura smile at the CD. She took a sip of her tea and smiled herself. A happy Sakura was much better than a grouchy one any day. Ino still felt angry herself that Kiba could have said something so callous. She'd be sure to kick his ass later on Sakura's behalf. She looked at Sakura again and her expression had turned serious. Gravely serious.

"Ino, you know I didn't call you here to talk about Kiba." she said. Her eyes were emotionless and darkened.

"Sakura...what are you talking about?" Ino asked. She really didn't like the look of defeat in Sakura's face.

"I have a favour to ask of you...my last as your best friend." Sakura said ominously. Ino really didn't like the way Sakura had said that.....

In a huge underground chamber, an elderly man stood before a mass of shinobi in masks who were kneeling. One of his eyes was covered by bandages and he leaned on a cane. He looked through a narrowed eye out over his audience.

"Everything is nearly in place. Soon we will make our move." he spoke out.

"Hai Danzo-sama." came the collective chant of the shinobi.

"I must be sure that everyone here is committed to our cause. Any treachery or insubordination will not be tolerated. This operation must be swift and without error. Any setbacks will cost us dearly." he said, "Is that understood?"

"Yes Danzo-sama."

"Sai. Get up here if you please." Danzo requested. A pale man walked up from the crowd to the elder man. Danzo leaned into his ear, "Keep an eye on one Haruno Sakura. If she makes any moves out of the ordinary, inform me at once."

"Hai." Sai said.

"Don't fail me. If she interferes, this plan will fail." Danzo said, "I'm counting on you."

"I will not fail." Sai said. Danzo nodded.

"Get going." he ordered. Sai saluted and disappeared in a puff of smoke. He turned to the rest of the shinobi, "You will await further orders. Dismissed!" Every one of the ninja disappeared in an instant. Danzo was left alone and he chuckled to himself, 'Tsunade-hime...your time is almost over.' he thought.

"Sakura, you can't be serious." Ino said, shaking her head, "Come on, this isn't funny. You're really scaring me."

"This is no joke Ino. Please," Sakura asked, grasping Ino's hands with a pleading look in her emerald eyes. "Please do as I've asked. As my best friend."

"Sakura..." Ino said, her eyes tearing up. She couldn't believe what she was hearing.

"Please." Sakura begged. "I need you to do this." Ino sighed and choked back the tears. The flower girl nodded and Sakura smiled softly.

"Yes, I'll do it. But you owe me big time forehead." Ino said.

"Anything." Sakura smiled. "Arigato Ino-pig. And..."

"There's more?!" Ino asked, exhasperatedly. Sakura nodded sadly.

"Tell everyone else the same. Don't explain why. Naruto won't listen. I'll deal with him later but with everyone else, make sure they know what to do. It's crucial." Sakura warned. Ino sighed and nodded eventually. This was a time when Sakura really was thankful for Ino's friendship. The Yamanaka heiress would do anything for her, just as she would for Ino. Sakura stood up. "I'll see you later Ino." she smiled before walking out of the tea shop. Ino let the tears finally fall when she was sure the pink haired woman was gone.

'Sakura...' she thought as the tears rolled down her cheeks and fell into her tea with little splashes. 'Sakura no, this can't be happening. It just can't.'

How did I do? Not too suckish I hope. Please don't flame me if it is! I have an alergy to flames!

Reviews would be fantastic!

Thanks,
Eternal