Sakura sighed when she gazed over at her watch. It was getting close to noon which meant that her short time of relaxation was now over. She had to go to Tsunade's office now. Probably to go over her piles of paper work again. There were times when Sakura really wanted to not be so close to the village leader. But at least the room was somewhat air conditioned. Ever since Sakura had returned from her mission at Snow she had been boiling over from the heat.
Slowly she got up from her sitting position on the grass. She currently standing by a small river that she would occasionally go to so she could think and be alone. Or to just enjoy the beauty of the river. As far as she knew no one else knew about this spot. And she was alright with that. It almost made her feel like the spot was hers. After taking it in one more time, she began to run over to Tsunade's office.
Soon she reached her desired location But before she went inside she checked her watch once again. It was exactly twelve, good. She knew that Tsunade hated it when she was late. Every time that happened Tsunade gave her a two hour lecture while Sakura sat and did Tsunade's paperwork for her. Not exactly what you would call fun.
She became surprised when she walked into the office room. Shikamaru was leaning on a bookcase sleeping. No surprise there. What startled her was that Gaara was standing near the window looking out of it, as if waiting for something to be over. She hadn't heard anything about him coming to Konoha. It had been a full ten years since the incident at the Chunin exams. And relations between Leaf and Sand had greatly improved. This was mostly due to Gaara's leadership. "Ah you're here Sakura," Tsunade told her.
"Yes I am Tsunade," Sakura replied slowly as she tried to figure out what this was about. Wait a minute. She was remembering now that the shadow nin just had a mission. So he was just here to give his report for it. Well that solved that mystery. Funny to think that the only reason she knew that was because she had to most of the paperwork for that mission. So what was Gaara doing here then? Was she going on a mission with him or something? Hah! As if. Why would the Kazekage come all the way here just go on a mission with her?"And what exactly am I here for?" she asked.
"Well Sakura," Tsunade said, taking a deep breath. Sakura was officially worried, Tsunade only did that when she was going to say something really bad…"You are going to depart on a very long and important mission. As a way to increase the ties between Suna and Konoha, you will be marrying Gaara."
Sakura froze as what Tsunade had just said sunk in. Marriage? Gaara? Her? This could not be happening. Not to her."What?" she screamed. "No way!" She looked over at Gaara. "No offense." She ran out of Tsunade's office, headed in no particular direction. All she wanted at that moment was to get out of there.
Tsunade sighed. "Shikamaru wake up!" she commanded. He continued to sleep so she walked over and yelled in his ear "Wake up!" He jumped up and looked at her. "Go bring Sakura back," she commanded rather loudly.
Shikamaru groaned and mumbled something about girls being troublesome. But nevertheless he left. And a few moments later he came back in dragging a very angry Sakura. "This is so stupid, did you ever think that I may actually want to have a say about who I get married to?" The pink haired medic complained.
Tsunade sighed. "Sakura, I truly am sorry that I have to control your life like this. But it would really help out the situation between Konoha and Suna."
"But I thought the ties between Suna and Konoha were already strong," she protested as she wrenched herself away from the shadow nin.
"Yes they are. However the council of elders in the Sand Village believe that this will help to permanently ally to the two villages. They chose you because the hospital in Suna is currently in dire need of another experienced medic. Please try to understand this situation. I know this sounds crazy. But I need you to accept this." The blonde replied.
Sakura sighed. She really did not want to do this. It felt like she was handing her life over. But at the same time, if it was what Konoha really needed, then she would have to accept it. What if the Leaf Village really needed this arrangement? Then it would be selfish of her to not to consent to the proposal. She looked over to the man she would be marrying. "Are you alright with this?"
Gaara finally looked over from the window and simply shrugged. "Hn." His face was completely blank, not allowing her to so much as guess what he was feeling. That annoyed her. She wanted to know what he felt about this. She wanted him to be as distressed about this situation as she was.
"I can see we'll get along great together," mumbled Sakura, looking down at the floor. Well, if he stayed like that at least they wouldn't have to worry about fighting. He would be to stoic to care about arguing. Unfortunately that was the only positive thing she could think of at the moment. Her gaze drifted up. "So when I do have to leave?" her question was directed at Tsunade.
"Tomorrow," The Hoakge answered, "And Gaara will stay with you tonight. Since you two will be spending the rest of your lives together, I didn't think it would be much of a problem."
Sakura sighed and looked over towards Gaara. "Do you know where I live?"
"No, but I can find it on my own," he replied. Kind of creepy. But for now she would let it slide. After all, he could probably just ask Naruto where her house was. The hyperactive blonde was probably going to freak out when he found out about their predicament.
Sakura nodded. "Alright, well then I think I shall take my leave." Without looking back she strode out of the office. She went straight for her home, intending on staying there as long as she could. After all, this would be the last day that she could be at her home as a single woman.
This was really going to be a big change. Sure she had been in a few relationships before. And some of them had gotten pretty heated, but none of them had resulted in anything even close to marriage. And now she supposed to spend her life with a male that she barely knew. Somehow she didn't feel very optimistic about her future. It almost felt like she was locked up in a cage, not able to find a way out.
When she arrived home she unlocked the door and stepped in. The smell of lavender greeted her. She always made sure to keep some in her home. They made her home feel more inviting, or at least that's how she felt about it.
After shutting the door behind her she began to look around her home. It was small compared to many other houses in the village, barely bigger than an apartment. However Sakura really liked it. She remembered how excited she was when she had first got it. Her and Ino and spent a day buying furniture for it (well actually Sakura did all the buying, but Ino helped her pick out everything). She moved her hand across a coffee table in the living room. Everything in her home had a new meaning now. It symbolized her old life, the life that was now over.
She went over to her bedroom and plopped down on the bed. She really didn't want to have to leave this place. But...then again...maybe she wouldn't have to. And idea was forming in her head. After all, what was the problem with her having two homes? She could always say that she wanted to have the house in case she ever needed to return to Konoha. No one could argue with that reason right?
The beeping sound of her watch cut off Sakura's trail of thought. Right, she was supposed to meet with Ino and Tenten today. She really didn't feel up to it right now, all she wanted to do was lie there on her bed. But she decided to force herself up. She didn't want to feel the wrath of two of Konoha's top Kinochi's. She had felt it before when she had to blow off one of their get together's to get some extra work done at the hospital. And she never wanted to feel it again. Besides, at least she could get telling them about her new marriage over with.
She forced herself off of her bed and grabbed her keys. Then she walked over to the door and went out, locking the door before she left.
