A Promise for the Birds

Chapter 1: Installment

Words:3,968

Summary: [AU With the creeping threat of war always present, she wonders if they had made the right decision in making her ANBU. Now after stumbling upon a chain of very troubling discoveries she must make a choice of her own- her heart or her loyalty. SasuXSakuXIta

Rating: T (Language, Violence)

Pairing: Sakura x Sasuke // Sakura x Itachi

Disclaimer: Saying you own Naruto is like giving your best friend a bunch of deodorant for their birthday. You just don't do it-- unless you're Kishimoto. Not that his friends need deodorant or anything…

A/N:

•Italic is used for emphases, thoughts, and flashbacks.

•If you need help with the geography in this story then refer to the world map on the site called leafninja. Take note that I'm replacing the waterfall country (Taki) with water country (Mizu) since I don't know much about Taki xd

•This is my first time writing a story (that wasn't required by any English class, mind you) since 7th grade, or 5 years ago. Critiques and suggestions are highly appreciated, as well as any other comments. I will not be putting up any more chapters until I have several written because for one, I plan to update regularly and finish the story before I put it on hiatus and it ends prematurely, and two, I don't want to post a new chapter and then realize I should've snuck in some clues or taken some out of it after writing newer chapters later on.

•I hope you enjoy the story, even if only a little The beginning may seem a bit slow and/or boring but it will be picking up shortly. Please review so I know I have at least a one-person audience:3

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"So what do you say?" drawled the man lazily, poking at his barely touched salad carelessly. The woman across from him looked out the deli window in deep thought, conflict clear in her expressive eyes. Should she take the risk? Were there really any risks involved? The pay certainly was substantially better than her position as the assistant of Konoha's most powerful individual, despite common misconception, and she could use the money to move into a better apartment in a more convenient section of Konoha. Yet was she really willing to give up her cozy and familiar way of life for this great unknown? Maybe… no. Well, perhaps if she-

The man sighed in irritation at the delay.

"Do you need me to give you my number and you contact me when you finally come to a decision?" he spoke.

The woman began fidgeting with an unused napkin at his prodding, her own salad completely forgotten. Fidgeting with something in her hands was a habit she always had when she was at a loss at what to do or say; one that she had been combating with for as long as she could remember to no avail and that always seemed to get her into a worse situation. The man bit back a snort of annoyance at having been ignored yet again.

She opened her mouth to respond to the impatient stranger but instantly closed it, sinking back into her conflicted train of thought again.

----------Earlier that day--------------------------------------

Soft clicking sounds echoed down the off-white limestone hallways of Hi no Kuni's capital building in Konoha, growing steadily louder in succession. A shuffling of paper and quiet breathless pants soon accompanied the clicks, filling the empty void that always seemed to encompass the enormous monolith of a building. A light cough came from somewhere nearby. The clicks were louder now and could be clearly perceived as a woman's footsteps coming from outside.

Tsunade dropped her chin unceremoniously onto her hand, blowing a loose strand of dusty blond hair out of her face and drumming her manicured fingers on the mahogany table like a bored child. Seven other council members sat either haphazardly reclined in their chairs or with backs straight as if they had been tied to wooden posts since birth. All were equally exasperated as the next.

At last the clicks, shuffling, and panting neared the large conference room door and now the fumbling of a doorknob could be heard. The older blonde repressed a groan. At last the door burst open in a flurry of frustration, anxiety, and the overwhelming sense that one just arrived to an important assembly incredibly and inexcusably late. Haruno Sakura stormed into the conference room.

The young woman with an unnatural shade of rose colored hair and ambitious jade eyes all but dumped the stack of papers she'd been carrying onto the table in front of the council members with a huff and removed the large folder from where she held it under her arm. She looked around nervously at each of the council members uncertain with how to begin. What were you supposed to tell a large group of grumpy elders who you kept waiting for 45 minutes? Somehow she thought a "Sorry I was late" didn't cut it after taking in the open glares she was receiving from nearly every one of the council members. She hoped they couldn't see the slight trembling of her hands or the perspiration on her neck.

"I ah… you um… you see, I received some valuable last minute information from the Kaze ANBU scout and investigation ops and… oh, here." Sakura clumsily handed each of the council members a small packet from the leaning stack and quickly straightened out her lavender blouse, strengthening her resolve as she did so.

"It seems that the Mizukage has confirmed his refusal of the peace treaty with Tsuchi no Kuni and continues to uphold his request for Konoha's aid." She pulled out a packet for herself and flipped it to the second page. The council members did the same as they looked from her to the information in front of them.

"This page contains the Mizu and Tsuchi status. No new significant public developments have been made since this council last convened- no new alliances, interference, or any actions whatsoever by any other party. But…" she paused to look at each of the elders closely. "It seems that both Mizu and Tsuchi are well off regarding supplies, technology, and ammunition. It's almost as if this war just started a month ago rather than a year, which brings me to the next point and the reason why I was so late."

Sakura motioned to the folder on the table, the one she had been carrying under her arm moments ago. One of the eldest of the council members with thick-rimmed glasses and a trimmed graying beard, Mitokado Homura, picked up the folder first and opened it, revealing a small pile of photographs held together with a paperclip and some hastily done handwritten notes. There was only one copy of the information in the folder- the original. This was because not only was she running horrendously late by the time her "reliable" source from the Kaze capital made it to her meeting point but because having multiple copies of rather important and classified information was certainly not the wisest choice as she had learned the hard way early on in her position. Sometimes Sakura absolutely loathed doing the Hokage's dirty work and just about all of the paperwork the stubborn older woman refused to do.

Homura passed on the folder and its contents to the other of the council's eldest members, Utatane Koharu, a stern-looking woman with harsh features and betraying wrinkles who looked at the pictures crossly. Sakura couldn't tell if she was angered by what she found or if she was just squinting to make out the images.

"What is the meaning of this, Haruno-san?" Homura spoke up gruffly. The folder was passed on to the rest of the council members- the Godaime Hokage Tsunade, the disorderly Jiraiya, the guarded Orochimaru, the lazy ANBU representative Kakashi, and the two conceited heads of Konoha's great police department and underground defense and investigation organization formally known as ANBU, Uchiha Fugaku and Hyuuga Hiashi.

"It seems that Ame no Kuni's economy is booming and has been ever since the beginning of this war. As you all may know, Ame's economy is dependent on its manufacturing of arms, biological hazards, and other potentially harmful technology and communications. Unfortunately Ame and Hi relations have not had the brightest past relations," Sakura responded. It was common knowledge that affairs with Ame had never been fully patched up after the end of the Ame-Hi war that occurred 28 years ago, even after the Ame leader during the war, the legendary Hanzou, was killed by one of his own fellow commanders for undisclosed reasons. In fact, the paranoia and threats between the two neighboring countries seemed to escalate when no established leader came to assume the assassinated Hanzou's position. The current leadership was still under speculation after nearly three decades.

"The picture you see of a rundown industrial building is one of Ame's many thriving private arms factories and research centers. Kaze has had little success infiltrating any of these but have managed to discover a few interesting activities. There are two pictures of Ame superiors seen meeting with originally unidentified men."

Tsunade glanced at the photos mentioned again. The allegiance of the two Ame men was easily recognizable; they seemed to hold an overwhelming sense of authority and control, pleased with the knowledge that they were pulling all the strings. In a word, they looked arrogant. Each of the two photos showed the same two men meeting with a different unidentified well-dressed individual. Tsunade didn't recognize either of them. Sakura resumed her briefing.

"The unnamed party in the first photo has been identified as a low-cover representative of Tsuchi no Kuni." Several alarmed looks were exchanged; Kakashi's own otherwise indifferent expression broke with the nearly imperceptible widening of his one exposed eye. "And the unnamed in the second is also an under cover representative from Mizu no Kuni." Murmurs of shock, disgust, unease, and a variety of other reactions to the news crowded the room, effectively taking the spotlight off of Sakura, for which she was grateful. The young ex-Kusa woman had only been in Konoha for a little less than a year and she still hadn't gotten used to being stretched so thin over all the research, politics, and work she had to do for her superiors.

A year ago Sakura would have never imagined herself as chief assistant of the great Godaime and she continued to wonder how she had ever managed to secure the position, especially as a foreigner. It was true that Kusa no Kuni and Hi no Kuni were allies and that her father held connections with the Konoha higher-ups, but to be under the command and trust of such powerful and well respected individuals in the great Hi capital of Konoha was beyond her imagination. She knew they acknowledged her exceptional analytical skills and intelligence, but there was always an ever-hanging threat of somehow screwing up both her own ties to the grand nation and the relations between her two home countries. Her overwhelming fear of failure and loss of trust continually spurred Sakura on to do her best at whatever the irritable older men and women at the conference table threw at her.

Tsunade sullenly locked her fingers together in front of her and rested her head on them as if contemplating the best way to go about her final verdict. After a minute of exchange among the council members the busty middle aged woman cleared her throat, effectively silencing everyone as all eyes trained upon her.

"It seems that suspicious activity has been confirmed by Suna. Wartime ANBU assembly and unit redistribution is granted" she nodded to Kakashi, "and planning and precautions will be carried out immediately. Nothing" she paused for emphasis, "is to be discussed outside of this conference hall. Not to reporters, on the phone, or even to family members and friends. Ame is hereby officially declared a threat to Hi security. A prolonged war does nobody any good and there is reasonable fear in our being dragged into the mess. Konoha has declared its isolation from this war for one year now and I intend for it to remain so for reasons already thoroughly and exhaustingly discussed."

At her last words Tsunade glanced at Orochimaru who merely sat back in his seat with his trademark snake-like grin and slithery appearance. Taking her conclusive speech as dismissal all eight council members stood up and bowed their departure before exiting the room to return to their own business. As they filed out slowly Tsunade lingered behind at the door and waited for Sakura to gather her materials before she returned to her office. As Sakura approached her the older woman looked down at her over-worked assistant in genuine concern.

"Sakura, you really should take it easy for a few days. You've hardly had a rest in the past week. Don't assume that I don't notice when you decide to work in your office all night." The young woman just waved off her superior's worry.

"You know I can't do that right now, Tsunade-sama, especially not now that we've received this news. Every hour wasted relaxing is another few days worth of-" Tsunade hastily cut her off.

"That is exactly my point. We can't have exhausted workers doing their jobs inefficiently, more so now that we have a major threat." Tsunade placed a hand on Sakura's shoulder warmly and led her out of the conference room and down the hallway. They continued on in silence as Tsunade mulled something over in her head. After a few moments of thoughtful silence, she spoke again.

"You have done exceptional work for Konoha and for all of Hi no Kuni with your diligence and your intelligence, Sakura," she exclaimed with an obvious intention of some sort. Sakura looked up at Tsunade questioningly, a hint of alarm making its presence.

"Are you- are you giving me leave, Tsunade-sama?" she asked, wide-eyed. She hadn't done something wrong, had she? The Godaime Hokage allowed a small chuckle and playfully punched the girl in the arm, which, in fact, rather hurt considering the older woman was incapable of using any less strength than that which matched her unstable temper.

"Certainly not, Sakura. Not after all you've done for us. However, I have a sort of… promotion that I'd like you to consider. That is why I want you to take a few days off to think about this choice."

"A promotion?" Her worrisome expression changed to one of deep thoughtfulness.

"Hai, but I cannot say anything about it here or right now." Tsunade slowed to a stop and began fishing in the inner pocket of her emerald green coat. She took out a small notebook and a red pen, hastily scratching something onto the paper before tearing it out of its bindings and handing it to Sakura.

"I want you to go to this location for lunch today at midday and wait. My associate will know who you are when he sees you." Sakura's eye twitched at the woman's insinuation. She never liked all the unnecessary attention she attracted with her vibrant hair color and preferred to remain unnoticed and in the background. Nevertheless she readily agreed to her boss' instructions; she never refused her superiors. Besides, a promotion was usually a good thing, wasn't it?

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The stranger in the deli dropped some money on the table and began to stand up to leave, on the end of his rope with waiting for any sort of response from the strange woman.

"W-wait, just give me one more minute, please," Sakura pleaded. He sighed and sat back down, his chin resting on his hand and looking oddly like a displeased pineapple.

She had to give him an answer soon and she began to panic.

'What would Ino advise?' she thought in desperation. Yamanaka Ino and Haruno Sakura were great friends and yet at the same time vicious rivals, finding anything and everything disputable and then wordlessly forgiving one another the next moment. The two girls went way back all the way to childhood in Kusa and even their parents were close friends with one another. To top it all off, Sakura's mother worked as a secretary in the Yamanaka's affluent family-owned fashion and material design corporation, which was responsible for a variety of creative feats ranging from the creation of Kusa's most extravagant haute-couture to top-of-the-line resilient and inexpensive materials.

Sakura supposed that her impulsive friend would be cheering her on and threatening to disown her if she refused this proposal had she been there at the moment. Sakura shook her head, her loose pink locks swishing with the random movement. This was a very important decision in her young life and she shouldn't be giving into peer pressure when dealing with something of such significance.

'Peer pressure? No one's even telling me to accept the offer…' Sakura sighed.

"Alright," she spoke after another minute of indecisiveness. The lazy pineapple man snapped up immediately. It almost seemed as if he had fallen asleep in the past minute or two—or was just watching the clouds slowly glide by in the warm summer air.

"Yes?" he mumbled.

"I accept. I figure I'd be a greater asset to Konoha if I assume this position and that is my supreme goal." 'I hope he doesn't think I'm sugar-coating it' she inwardly sighed.

The stranger, looking relieved, stood up again and dusted off his coat and pants before stretching out a hand to shake. As she took his larger hand in hers he lackadaisically recited his first formal statement during the entire conversation—or lack thereof.

"Nara Shikamaru, your new superior. Welcome to the ANBU IU."

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Back in her cramped office in the capital building Sakura dusted off some picture frames lovingly before placing them in a spare box she kept in her personal storage. She didn't like the idea of leaving so soon. The capital building became her home away from home -despite its airy and vacant overtones- and Tsunade had become almost a mother figure for the petite pink-haired woman. She was beginning to experience a throat-wrenching feeling of guilt creep up on her as the realization of her actions started to sink in.

'Tsunade-sama seemed to want me to accept the position though, didn't she?' Her thoughts were interrupted with an authoritative knock at the door, meaning only one thing. Sakura stood up from her spot by the bookshelf and opened the door.

'Speak of the devil,' she thought. Tsunade stood with a grand smile on her face as she walked into the office uninvited and gave Sakura a bone-shattering pat on the back, causing her to wince slightly.

"Congratulations Sakura, I'm proud of you," she beamed. "ANBU is truly an honorable achievement and you made a good choice." Sakura bowed to her ex-boss deeply, uncertain how to respond to her rare moment of flattery. It was then that she heard a brief clearing of the throat from the doorway. She looked to see a somewhat young man with a half-hidden face and unruly gray hair leaning casually against the doorframe. She recognized him as the ANBU representative of Konoha's council, Hatake Kakashi. The two never spoke on anything other than business terms and she hardly knew anything about him except that he had a very laid back manner regarding just about anything in life and had a knack for showing up late to meetings consistently.

'Although never 45 minutes late,' she thought with chagrin. Kakashi straightened up and walked over to Sakura to shake hands in greeting.

"I thought I'd formally introduce myself as your new colleague. Welcome to the ranks," he said lightly. His face, being almost entirely hidden behind a dark blue cloth mask, didn't betray any sign of emotion or warmth as he spoke to her except the slight crinkling of his exposed gray eye. Sakura liked to think that meant he was smiling under that fabric obstruction.

"Thank you," she smiled, hoping she seemed at least a little confident as she did so. First impressions were everything when it came to the higher-ups and she didn't want to screw anything up before she even began her first day. Kakashi reached and removed a small card from a pocket on his olive-green ANBU vest and handed it to Sakura.

"Your first day begins tomorrow. Meet in the lobby of the central Konoha Police Department at 6 o'clock. Nara-san will be waiting for you there. You two have already met if I heard correctly. If you have any questions my work number is on that card. I will see you tomorrow, Haruno-san." With that the aloof ANBU gave a short bow in farewell and turned on his heels to leave. As he was about to exit Tsunade called out to him.

"Kakashi!" He stopped in his tracks but did not turn around. Sakura almost feared that he would be in for it for disrespecting the Hokage no matter how arbitrary the offence, but then she reminded herself that this was Tsunade she was talking about. The woman would be serving sake instead of coffee or water during the conferences and installed slot machines in the break room had she had everything go her way. Sometimes Sakura was thankful for the presence of the uptight and domineering Homura and Koharu in the city council. Only sometimes.

"I promised Sakura that she would receive time off for a few days. She's been overworking and earned a well deserved break. Is it absolutely necessary that she begin work instantly?" She questioned sternly, arms crossed. Kakashi stuffed his hands in his pockets and shrugged lightheartedly as he turned his head around to face the Hokage and crinkled his eye.

"I'm afraid it is, Hokage-sama. Uchiha-san requested immediate unit redistribution." Tsunade frowned but did not push the question as this was not within her sphere of authority. Kakashi took the opportunity to sneak away.

"I'll be fine, Tsunade-sama," Sakura smiled warmly as she walked towards Tsunade. "Though, I'll definitely be missing working here. I was just beginning to get used to it." She scratched at the back of her head uncertainly. Tsunade turned again to face the young woman and placed a hand on her head motherly.

"Don't worry; you'll still be working for me indirectly in your new arrangement. You are going to be the Hokage's personal ANBU representative and will report to me anything of importance that ANBU deems necessary to reveal and vice versa," she instructed. Sakura nodded dutifully and turned back to resume her packing. Fortunately there was not much left to pack. In her earlier years, Sakura prided herself on being a complete neat-freak but it seemed that a few things had changed over the years as she remembered the leaning towers of unsorted paperwork and documents strewn about the place—much of the papers weren't even her duty to complete, and were merely the results of Tsunade's figuring she could get away with less paperwork by stashing it in her assistant's room.

'And yet she frets about me over-working,' Sakura thought indignantly.

After a few more minutes of conversing with Tsunade, the older woman left to make it to another council meeting. It wasn't often that that council would congregate more than once every three to ten days but now was a critical time for Konoha to respond to any hint of a threat before it became a reality. Sakura felt almost disappointed that she was no longer permitted to be a part of these meetings but she supposed now that she was ANBU she'd be hearing a lot more private information than she may even wish to hear.

'I can't wait to see how Ino will react to the news.' Surely the gossip-savvy blonde would be beside herself with excitement for her childhood friend. Sakura could already imagine the conversation carrying on long into the night about how she might have to kill some 'bad guys' and get her hands dirty or work as a secret agent and manually terminate a bomb to save her life. Sakura chuckled quietly to herself as she thought of her friend; Ino always knew how to brighten any situation even when she wasn't present.

As Sakura finally finished packing her personal belongings into two compact boxes and placed them next to her office door she took a moment to relax and look out of her small window. She had been so engrossed in her work after Tsunade left her that she hadn't even noticed the sun setting. The sun was now completely out of sight and the streets three stories below were clearly illuminated by the intense lamp bulbs stretching down the empty street and away from view. A few government officials were exiting the building below her to go home to their families after a long day of work. She recognized a couple, one being Uchiha Fugaku who entered a black car with another occupant whom she could not clearly see that had been waiting outside the front of the capital building; the council meeting must have been over by now.

Deciding it was at last time to gather her things and leave, Sakura turned off her office lights for the final time with a decisive flick of the switch and gave a quick glance at her room in almost mournful parting before shutting the door behind her.

------------Chapter End-----------------------------------------

Next Chapter:

"We're here," Shikamaru said. He stopped the car outside the garage and the two stepped out.

"It's in there?" Sakura asked, pointing in the opposite direction. Shikamaru shrugged slightly, putting his hands into his pockets.

"Something like that."

Reviews let me know that someone out there took the time to read this, so don't be afraid :3

Translations:

•Hi no Kuni – Fire Country // Capital: Konoha - Leaf

•Kusa no Kuni – Grass Country // Capital: Kusa - Grass

•Mizu no Kuni – Water Country // Capital: Kiri - Mist

•Ame no Kuni – Rain Country // Capital: None

•Tsuchi no Kuni – Earth Country // Capital: Iwa - Rock

(3/7): I'm already almost done with chapter 3 by now but I don't want to put it all up at once and then have a humongous gap in update times, so I'll be doing my best to keep a few chapters ahead of those I do put up. It's now spring break so hopefully my writing inspiration returns and I can make the most of my free time :D