Equilibrium, a naruto fanfic

A/N: Yep, another one-shot with an alternative world thrown in the mix. But this one is more in depth than When Worlds Collide, at least on that front. It's difficult to explain, so I'll just let you guys read instead. Also, it's very different from anything I've written before – the impression I get from it at least – so forewarning. I love it anyway. Enjoy! ^_^

…

– Equilibrium –

…

They had been working on this for months and it was finally time to start their first test outside of her lab – outside of controlled conditions. She was nervous. Actually, Sakura Haruno was a wreck. She hadn't felt this nervous since the final battle against Tobi at the end of the fourth Shinobi war. He hadn't scared her, despite things, but his lackeys did.

She shuddered, pushing those mental images aside and just focused on the task at hand.

Sakura, Naruto, and Kakashi had come to one of the abandoned training grounds on the outskirts of Konoha to prevent any interaction from anyone who might be using a training ground, even this late at night. And nothing they did here would affect the general populous either.

"Ready?" She asked her former Sensei and he gave a sigh and a wave.

If this was going to work, he needed to take it seriously.

"I'm taking this seriously," he said. He hadn't just read her mind – Sakura had been accusing him of taking this too lightly since he agreed to be a part of it.

She just sighed and glanced at Naruto who was too caught up in his excitement to care about their last minute arguing. They really had argued about this like two married people for too long. It was time to put this debate on whether or not she was crazy to rest.

'This is going to work.'

"Okay," she said. "Do it."

Reluctantly, Kakashi lifted his hitai-ate and the tomoe of his Sharingan whirred. He had his own version of the Mangekyō: it wasn't as impressive as Sasuke's had been or Itachi's, but was impressive enough. When he sent objects or people to other dimensions, he created a tear in the fabric of space and time. Time literally didn't exist in the place they went, and he hoped that the place he was trying to reach tonight was the same – despite his reservations about this "experiment" of Sakura's.

He was focusing so hard that the pain tearing through his body didn't register at first. His eye was bleeding and he could feel the chakra being used by the Sharingan building to dangerous levels. As the copy ninja attempted to abort, his world exploded in front of his face. The earth shattering explosion knocked him off of his feet.

"Kakashi!" Sakura screamed, her voice echoing across the training ground. She couldn't see anything as smoke billowed out like an overused chimney had just teleported into the middle of the field. If anything had happened to her former Sensei, she'd never forgive herself. This entire thing was Naruto's idea but she was the one who'd nagged Kakashi until he agreed to help.

"Please be okay," she whispered, her heart pounding in her ears. She moved forward, waving at the smoke which seemed to want to persist despite having come from a single blast.

'What the hell had gone wrong?'

She screamed out his name again, dangerously aware of the build up of nearby, unfamiliar chakra and tried to shield herself as something else seemed to explode – the night brightened like a star for a moment before fading to a smoky darkness no brighter than the back of her eyelids. The explosion had been of light.

Sakura ran through the smoke now, in the direction she knew Kakashi had been – Naruto's voice was distant in her ears and for once she couldn't hear him through the racing fear in her heart. She found her ex-Sensei quickly, bending down to run her hands over him. She checked him, cradling the limp form of Kakashi as she struggled not to cry.

This was all her fault.

"I'm so sorry Sensei," she whispered.

He smiled gently before passing out. Her chakra passed through his body and she was relieved to find no damage to his body other than the Sharingan. It was bleeding and his face was covered in the blood. Sakura had seen his face before but there was no need to remove the menpo before trying to heal the Sharingan. It was badly damaged and she panicked at the thought of him losing it.

Guilt and fear weighed on her as strong arms pulled her to her feet. It felt like Naruto, but she was suddenly unsure.

"Nar–"

There was another explosion – this one was not mere light and somehow, the owner of the strong arms had pulled her out of the way of it just in time. This made her worry about Kakashi all the more.

"He's fine," a husky voice said in her ear. "He's out of the way.

The strong arms that caught her were unfamiliar but she felt like she should know him. Sakura looked up into the face of her rescuer only to be met by the porcelain mask of an ANBU instead.

'ANBU.'

What were ANBU doing way out here?

"Sakura-chan!" She heard Naruto's voice through the din, finally. He was hurrying toward her.

"An ANBU," he said, nodding to the stranger. "Thank you for helping Sakura."

The tall man nodded and released his hold on Sakura – she swayed slightly but managed to stay on her feet.

"Naruto," she said, "you're bleeding."

He looked down at himself. "No, it's okay." He shifted his arm to hide a gash from Sakura, even as the Kyuubi started to heal it. "Anyway, let's get Kakashi-Sensei to the hospital core."

The smoke was clearing and suddenly Sakura found herself surrounded. Sakura looked around. There were seven in total and only three of them were wearing ANBU masks. Where did they all come from?

'Oh Kami.'

The ANBU, the four familiar ninja faces staring back at her – they weren't who they appeared to be. She swallowed heavily, realising who they really were. They were ninja… from another world.

'What have I done?'

… …

News had spread quickly that Kakashi Hatake was in a critical condition.

"How is he?" Naruto came running into the hospital room, his voice as usual far louder than it needed to be. "Kakashi Sensei!"

"He's asleep Naruto," Tsunade said, trying to hush him. "There was no direct damage to his body, but the Sharingan bled for too long and his body went into shock from the blood loss."

He lowered his head as though in pain.

She sighed. "I'm sure he'll recover. He just needs time."

"And we failed," Naruto said grumpily. "Don't give me the sugar coated speech granny, I–"

"Will you put a sock in it?"

Naruto looked around at the sound of Sakura's voice. Tsunade stood by Kakashi's bed – the copy ninja was unconscious but breathing steadily – while Sakura stood by the window, staring outside even as she snapped at the blonde jinchuriki. She'd gone over what had happened in her head so many times and always came to the same conclusion – it was her fault. Kakashi's Sharingan wasn't strong enough, nothing they did now would make a difference and Naruto's voice was grating in her ears. She felt so stupid, so useless, and so guilty – she should've known this was going to happen.

The saving grace was that no matter the condition he was in now, Kakashi was going to survive, and Tsunade had saved the Sharingan. It'd backfired on him, the chakra building far too quickly, and his body unable to handle the sudden increase in power. He didn't have the natural stamina of an Uchiha body. This had all been for nothing.

Sakura felt like crying but managed to keep herself from doing so as she watched a group of children on street level playing ninja. It was all so innocent, having fun at that age and thinking being a ninja was going to be so much fun. It killed her: there was so much at stake and she had no path left to take.

The room went quiet for a few minutes before Naruto broke the silence.

"It's a good thing you sent ANBU to check on us then, isn't it granny?" He asked.

"I didn't send anyone," she said.

"Then I don't get it."

"We opened a portal," Sakura explained, still gazing outward. "And seven ninja came through it."

Naruto started counting on his fingers, but he got it – at least to a point. "But that means…"

"They're with Ibiki right now," Tsunade said, not really paying attention to Naruto's rant. "It's probably best they avoid going out in public, seeing as though their faces are so well known in Konoha."

Sakura tore her eyes away from the window. "I still don't understand what happened. How did seven Konoha ninja materialise out of thin air like that?"

"Obviously something went wrong," the Hokage said. She sighed. "But considering the people who came through are leaf ninja I'm reluctant to go beyond the basic interrogation with them. It's not their fault they got here how they did, after all."

Sakura squirmed. "S-sure."

"It's not your fault either Sakura."

The pinkette glanced at the unconscious form of the copy ninja. "Tell that to Kakashi Sensei."

… …

The Kazekage had left Suna under false pretences. It had been a long time since he'd lied so much to his council but he didn't care – they wouldn't understand. They wanted him to marry, to find someone that could benefit them politically, and had gone through a list of both foreign and native eligible women without even consulting him. He owed them nothing.

So Gaara left Suna – he decided it was time to take control of his own future and there was only one woman he was interested in: only one he would have. Temari and Kankuro were covering for him so he had some time, and this time he was going to make it work.

He knew Sakura Haruno was in love with him as he was with her – she'd said the words more than he had. If he still had Shukaku he knew the monster would whisper to him that it was Sakura who'd broken up with him and not the other way around, but that didn't deter him. She had never said she didn't still love him. Sakura had just lost her parents and decided to bury herself in her work. He knew what she was trying to do, just who she was trying to save, and if someone didn't intervene, she was going to get herself killed – or someone else.

Gaara discovered upon entering Konoha (along with a few ANBU for appearance's sake) that her latest experiment had put Kakashi Hatake in the hospital. Someone had to stop her before she went too far and he was going to remind her just how happy she had been with him. He needed her, she needed him… there was no-one else for either of them.

… …

The room was almost dark due to the failing light. It gave the appearance of a dungeon, even though they were on street level.

"Sorry about the light," Ibiki Morino said. "The damn thing keeps blowing or just fizzling out, no matter how many times I replace the bulb."

"Have you thought about using a jutsu or something?" Hana Inuzuka asked, peering at the light bulb. "There's this nifty one where–"

"No," Ibiki said sarcastically, "really? May I?"

"Okay, okay, no need to get snappy," she raised her hands in mock surrender.

He sighed. "It's just been a bad day, what with Hatake and… all." He refrained from explaining further, not comfortable with the idea that the ninja sitting or standing around in this quaint room were actually from some other kind of Konoha.

He looked at them in turn as Hana returned to her previous position – leaning against the wall and sneaking a peak at one of the ANBU as though she could see straight through the mask to the face underneath. Ibiki recognised Ino Yamanaka (his immediate superior's daughter was hard to miss, frankly), Shikamaru Nara, Neji Hyuuga and of course, Hana Inuzuka. He found it suspicious that none of them were civilian born ninja and each came from the only clans that he wasn't at logger heads with at the moment. The Aburame were currently disgusted with him over some "experiment" he'd done that insulted their Kikaichū. The Akimichi were still holding a grudge over an innocent "comment" about them throwing their weight around (he'd been drunk at the time but apparently that was no excuse). There was more, but he didn't dwell on it. There was always someone annoyed at him at any given point and, as an expert torturer, he didn't take it personally anymore.

"Kakashi?" Ino asked. "I saw him when we came through. Is he okay?"

Ibiki hesitated. But really, what harm would it do to answer this question – a number of ninja with specialty jutsus had already assured him these people were who they claimed they were, despite his reservations.

"He'll recover," Ibiki said. "That man is nothing if not a survivor."

"I always thought so," one of the ANBU said.

Ibiki frowned at the man. It was out of character for an ANBU to speak without being spoken to and, the way the man had said that… he sounded like he was amused. Ino glanced back at the ANBU.

"Oh shut it you," she snapped. "You're supposed to be all quiet and respectful: idiot."

"He's just having fun," Hana said. "You know how he can get."

"Stupid Uchiha…" Ino mumbled, making Ibiki stand up straight.

"Uchiha?" He asked.

The impertinent ANBU nodded. "I suppose it doesn't matter if we hide ourselves. Taichou?"

One of the ANBU – presumably the captain – shook his head. "Only if the Hokage orders it."

"Your Hokage is Tsunade as well?" Ibiki asked.

"Yep," Ino said. "She's awesome, don't you think?"

Ibiki chuckled. "Of course – she's definitely something."

"I'm glad you think so highly of me Ibiki."

The interrogation specialist mentally slapped himself as the Hokage walked into the room – but was grateful when the light bulb over his head seemed to glow at her arrival. Trailing behind her were Sakura Haruno and Naruto Uzumaki. Ibiki understood Sakura, but bringing Naruto was a recipe for a headache.

"The Kazekage is waiting for your report," the Hokage continued. "You should go tell him what you found."

At a recent Kage meeting, Gaara Sabaku had mentioned one of his spies from the now dead group of Akatsuki had learnt the criminal organisation had used some perception altering jutsu to keep people from finding out what they were really up to until the last moment. He thought it might help Sakura with her experiment, but Tsunade had her doubts. He was currently in Konoha under this guise, but she knew better – he wanted to stop her. He'd had a crush on her star student for years before they hooked up and missed her. By the end of their relationship, Sakura had chosen her work over a relationship.

It was a mistake in the Hokage's opinion: she wanted Sakura to be happy, which wasn't going to happen if she kept hiding from him. They had been so happy together, so right – there was no reason to give that up.

Sakura gave no indication that she'd heard Tsunade's comment as Ibiki obediently left them alone with their visitors. The ANBU who had helped her immediately after the explosion wasn't looking directly at her, but she felt like his eyes were boring into her nonetheless. But far from making her uneasy, it was… somehow comforting.

Ino however, was staring blatantly at Sakura. "Hey forehead."

Sakura managed a smile. "Ino pig."

The blonde giggled. "Yep, you're my Sakura."

"Are you two going to make out now?" The ANBU who had remained quiet until now asked.

"Don't be such a pervert," Ino snapped at him. "And be respectful, the Hokage's here."

Tsunade sighed at this. "I'm looking into better accommodation for you all, but for now if you'd like, I can take you to an apartment block out of the way where you can stay. I'm sure you understand that we can't have you all running around out there, not when each of your faces," she pointed to Hana, Ino, Shikamaru, and then Neji, "are well known in the village."

"Of course," Ino said.

Neji pushed himself off of the wall, having remained silent up until now, but felt the need to say something, since he was the captain of his squad – the ANBU didn't count. "We would appreciate it Hokage-sama," he said and then bowed like the well mannered Hyuuga he was.

Shikamaru sighed. "Fine. I don't mind hiding out for awhile: it'll be less troublesome."

Naruto crossed his arms over his chest. "Who are you ANBU guys?"

"Naruto," Sakura hissed. "Don't be rude."

"It's okay," one of the ANBU said. "He's just curious."

"And you're an idiot," Ino told him.

Sakura glanced at the strange ANBU who had caught her after the explosion. He didn't look like he would be speaking anytime soon and she had a sudden urge to find out who he was. Naruto for his part, noticed the curious look on her face and he frowned at the masked man. He was flanked by two more ANBU that Naruto didn't recognise anymore than the first – really, he was getting better at seeing through the façade put up by the elite core. He already knew Neji Hyuuga was one even though no-one was supposed to – along with a number of others that no-one else seemed to realise who they were out of "uniform".

But the Neji standing only four feet away from him didn't look like he was an ANBU. He just looked calm and detached, listening and speaking as necessary.

It was weird to see.

"We do need to figure out how to get back to our world," Neji said. "Our mission was of the utmost importance and we were almost on the last part of it."

Tsunade chewed her bottom lip, considering asking "what mission?" but then decided that even if she did have the right to ask, she should assume these ninja were as respectful as their counterparts and wouldn't tell her. She wasn't their Hokage after all. Instead, she addressed the ANBU. "You might be here for awhile, so if you'd like, you could remove your masks."

"We do already know who you all are," Hana reasoned to them. "You're only wearing the masks because of the mission."

They nodded.

Sakura shifted uneasily, hiding her curiosity well, while Naruto's eyes widened in anticipation. Tsunade chuckled under her breath at them.

The ANBU that had asked Sakura and Ino if they were going to make out turned out to be Genma Shiranui – no surprise there. The cheeky one was unfamiliar, but when he introduced himself, Sakura started.

"Shisui Uchiha," he said, winking at the pinkette.

'Uchiha.'

Suddenly, turning to the captain of the ANBU squad, Sakura had a bad feeling. He removed his mask casually but the look on his face was one of barely contained wariness. It was Itachi Uchiha.

The room tensed and he cocked an inquisitive eyebrow at them as Tsunade, Naruto and Sakura just started at him. He was the one who had protected Sakura. He was the one who had shown in those confusing moments that he was in charge of the ANBU standing on either side of him. He was a Konoha ANBU captain.

"What's going on?" Shisui asked. He glanced at his cousin. "Did I miss something? When did Itachi become more important than me?"

… …

Tsunade put a halt to any further experimentation with Kakashi's Sharingan and Sakura was torn between being glad and disappointed. She didn't want anything else to happen to him, but there were now two Uchiha in Konoha with fully functioning Sharingans. The Hokage gave her a weird look when she brought it up and even Naruto was dubious, though he understood the need to keep trying.

Kakashi had not wanted to help them in the first place. He wasn't being selfish – he just honestly hadn't believed it would work. In all fairness, Sakura's experiment was a complete failure, but her former Sensei's pessimism had been a source of annoyance for her, which was why she'd nagged and nagged until he finally gave in. His argument had been that he only had one Sharingan and the jutsu they were trying to perform would be unstable enough with two.

Tsunade agreed.

Sakura sighed, staring at her interloping fingers as she stood in front of the memorial stone. Kakashi was still in hospital, despite his best efforts to escape, so she felt obligated to do this in his stead. She too was trying to escape. Ever since Itachi Uchiha had revealed himself she'd been wary. She didn't know what she was supposed to do or say to him. On the other hand, Gaara had come back to Konoha to convince her to return to Suna – she wasn't stupid enough to believe his cover story – and she was seriously considering giving him another go.

Anything to get away from Itachi.

He was only recently given permission to roam free (though with ANBU escorts) and had been trying to talk to her. She had no idea why he would seek her out, stake out her apartment and ask her friends where her favourite spots were to hang out. It was kinda creepy… and sweet at the same time.

She mentally berated herself as she sensed a familiar chakra nearby.

Gaara.

He didn't look as hesitant to approach her as he had the last few times they'd talked.

For the month that Itachi and the rest of the "visitors" had been out of public view, Sakura had gone to see them a few times, curious about their lives. Itachi had spent the entire time staring at her or just keeping her in his peripherals. The Ino from his world had told her that he had a history with their Sakura who he'd always called Saku. She wondered what life would have been like if Itachi Uchiha had not massacred his family – for Konoha and Sasuke. Apparently, the Sasuke in their world was the Uchiha heir and not Itachi.

But neither Itachi nor Shisui would tell her why.

Ino had hinted it had something to do with Saku as well as Itachi remaining with ANBU. But Sakura could see there was more going on there.

And on the flip side, when she wasn't being regaled by Ino and Hana with stories of her alternative life, or hit on by both Shisui and Genma (while Itachi scowled at them, and both Neji and Shikamaru looked on, thoroughly embarrassed by their actions), she was running into Gaara.

They'd had dinner together a few times and rekindled something of what she'd thought they'd lost. She still had feelings for him and to him, she was an open book: he could see straight through her apparent dismissal of his intentions.

"Gaara," Sakura said in greeting, and the Kazekage came up next to her. She immediately leant into him, her hand finding his. She was so obviously torn and knew he'd sensed it. But did he know the cause of this was Itachi Uchiha?

"You're going to catch a cold," he said after a few minutes and when she shivered involuntarily.

She shook her head. "I'm fine Gaara."

"I missed you," he said softly and she smiled.

"I missed you too."

That was the cue he needed. Gaara turned to face her, slipped a hand under her chin, and lowered his lips to hers. Instinctively, Sakura clung to him, her heart hammering as she tried not to lose control. Her emotions were all over the place – one moment she was daydreaming about Itachi, and the next returning Gaara's kisses. Gaara had been her first and she'd honestly believed there would be no-one else for her. Then her parents died and her priorities shifted. She couldn't honestly claim they'd shifted back, just that there was no-one else in Konoha that struck up her fancy – not even Neji, who had seemed interested in her after his first break up with Tenten (they were now back together and engaged).

She couldn't go backwards, not anymore.

Sakura pulled away from the red head, her heart still hammering in her chest. She was completely confused: how could she love both Gaara and Itachi?

'Love?'

Kami, it had only been a month and she was already falling for the Uchiha. She groaned. "I'm sorry."

Sakura spun around and took off. Gaara was disappointed but didn't pursue her. Short of her fleeing into another world, he would give her the space she needed – he just didn't want to be waiting forever.

Gaara didn't respond to the sudden appearance of a dark figure at the end of the field. But he recognised the man – not a year had gone by since the Uchiha massacre that Itachi had not been in the bingo book.

He was very good at keeping out of sight of people who would recognise him – only Shisui's face was unknown out of those who'd come through the portal Kakashi's Sharingan had accidentally torn open. The Hokage had given them permission to work with Kakashi on reopening it so they could go back but Itachi had not expressed a desire to return – he wanted Sakura and the one from his universe was out of the question. Everyone who spent any time in the same room as him and Sakura could see their connection.

Hearing about this from local gossip instead of Sakura or at least someone he knew, made Gaara uncomfortable. He really hated the Uchiha for that.

"What do you want?" The red head snapped.

Itachi didn't respond to the Kazekage's obvious hostility, having moved further into the field. He was now only five feet from the sand ninja. "I want Sakura."

Garra growled. "Well you can't have her."

"That's not up to you to decide."

"Nor is it for you."

Itachi smiled slightly at that. "That's where you're wrong Kazekage-sama. I am very much in control of what or who I can and cannot have."

Gaara glared at him. Was it Uchiha arrogance that made him say that?

Itachi continued as though the Kazekage wasn't giving him a death glare. "This is Sakura's village and she won't leave it, while you'll have to return to Suna eventually."

"And this isn't your world," Gaara said. "You belong here even less than I do."

The Uchiha resisted the urge to roll his eyes. "I'm not going anywhere."

The red head inhaled deeply, forcing himself to calm down. The appearance of the Uchiha was devastating enough, even more so since Gaara wasn't sure what Sakura was thinking let alone what she wanted. But he wasn't about to give up – they had a history and if he knew nothing else about Sakura, he at least knew she wouldn't take that lightly.

"You're not welcomed here," Gaara said more calmly than he felt. "Hasn't anyone told you why they don't trust you? It has nothing to do with you being from another world."

He was aware of his descent into maliciousness: the Kazekage cut himself off before he went too far and sighed. "You may want to play the fight over Sakura game, but there's no need. I won't tell you what happened, but you really should find out before you start making plans to stay here – you won't like it."

He used his sand to Shunshin away, leaving a confused Uchiha in his wake.

… …

"I need your help."

Sakura hadn't heard Itachi come up behind her – she was standing in front of a food stall in the commerce part of Konoha and trying to decide between pasta or chicken for dinner... at this rate she'd end up on deciding on chicken pasta. For the most part, Sakura had been able to avoid running into Itachi Uchiha, but he was at a whole other level and she couldn't keep him away for long. She pretended like his mere presence wasn't confusing, distressing, and turning her on at the same time.

'Crap, I did not just think that!'

He'd been working with Kakashi and Shisui for the past three days on how to get back to his world and she'd done everything she could to avoid being involved. Tsunade warned her that she'd have to at some point – it may have been Kakashi's Sharingan that brought them here, but it was Sakura's calculations that had made it possible.

She was both terrified and excited by Itachi's presence. He currently wore a disguise – a slight henge with material hiding that body of his… just enough so that it wasn't obvious he was an Uchiha.

She cleared her throat. "With what Uchiha-san?"

"Call me Itachi," he insisted.

"Okay, Itachi-san."

He sighed. "I wanted to know something."

"What is it?"

"Not here."

It was her turn to sigh. "Hang on, I'll be just a minute."

She ducked into the shop, bought the ingredients for chicken pasta, and motioned for the barely disguised Uchiha to follow her as she started toward her apartment. The walk was the longest ten minutes of her life, including the humdrum written assessment of her second and last Chunin exams – the test that had made her a Jounin was far more exciting.

Sakura cleared her throat as she opened her apartment door, offered Itachi a drink, and proceeded to put away her groceries. He politely declined the refreshment and waited for her to finish. She still couldn't get over how polite he was. Gaara was calm and detached, but quite often forgot manners. He said please but not thank-you, held a door open for her but didn't pull her chair out at restaurants… and funnily enough, she loved that about him. He was a hot version of Sai but with the hormones and desire to see her naked. He was really good once he got started.

Sakura sighed again. Kami hated her right now.

"You're nervous around me," Itachi said, once she'd joined him in the living room. "Everyone is."

"No," she said quickly, "why would you say–"

He held up a hand to silence her. "I'm not stupid Sakura."

She turned a distinct shade of pink from embarrassment. "O-of course not."

"What is it?" He asked.

She bit her bottom lip. "Have you been to the Uchiha estate?"

He shook his head. "I've been putting it off – I have no idea why."

She looked down at her fingers – they'd entwined without her permission.

"Sakura?"

She looked up to realise he was right in front of her. She didn't know him very well – or at all – but she was sure his restraint was slipping. This wasn't something to be taken lightly after all.

"Where is Sasuke?" He asked.

"H-he's gone," she stammered. "I'm sorry."

Itachi inhaled deeply. "And the other Uchiha?"

Sakura bit her bottom lip again. She didn't want to say it – putting it into words would hurt her as well as him. She wasn't an Uchiha, but the massacre had affected the entire village, not to mention the people who had cared about Sasuke the most. She trembled and the raven haired man frowned at her.

"Sakura?"

"Follow me," she said and took off, exiting through her window like the Kunoichi she was and flash-stepping toward the derelict Uchiha estate.

He said he hadn't gone anywhere near it, but she knew that Shisui had noticed the condition their "home" was in. The elder of the two had inquired about it shortly after their arrival in this world, but Sakura hadn't stuck around to hear his reaction. She wasn't even sure if Tsunade had told him the truth. She found it hard to believe that Itachi would avoid the place. It didn't seem plausible.

It had only been a few days since he was allowed to roam free but he couldn't explain to himself why he didn't want to check it out. After his conversation with Gaara however, Itachi was burdened with the need to not only go there, but find out why everyone treaded lightly around him, not to mention why no-one seemed to know anything about Shisui. He'd have thought that his cousin would be well known around the village – he was a worse womaniser than even Genma.

The sight that greeted him almost made him stumble and fall. Itachi walked through the main gates, taking the lead and barely noticing that Sakura was following at a respectable distance. He couldn't understand it – it made no sense. There were no more Uchiha left in this world… it made sense now that people might not recognise an Uchiha if they saw one, but there were still more questions.

"What happened?" He asked.

Sakura was quiet. Itachi didn't look at her, his eyes transfixed by the sight of his family's estate in ruin. It had been abandoned for many years – perhaps since he and Sasuke were both children.

"Sakura?"

She inhaled deeply, not wanting to put it into words. She'd fallen for Itachi Uchiha, someone she'd only ever hated – once he'd died and his name was cleared, her opinion of him was still distorted. He was honoured by Konoha in the wake of the fourth Shinobi war, but she still pictured the one and only time she'd met him – on the battlefield and tormenting Naruto in a genjutsu. She'd heard that the jutsu was nothing compared to what he'd done to others – Kakashi and Sasuke included – so how could she feel anything but regret for the man? He was a hero, but his methods were anything but heroic.

The man now kneeling on the muddy ground in front of the house he remembered growing up in was the same man. But he had sparked her interest in a way that Gaara Sabaku had not. He drew her in with his words, his eyes, and that commanding aura of his. He was also everything Sasuke had never been: even when she used to fantasize about the youngest Uchiha, he'd not lived up to the way this Itachi was making her feel.

Itachi stood up and faced her, his expression haunted. "Sakura?"

She shivered. "P-please, don't make m-me–"

He reached out and pulled her toward him. The kiss wasn't deliberately sensual – he'd just intended on pressing into her in an attempt to calm her. She'd reacted to his presence from the first moment he'd come into this world and it was a fair bet she would continue to. But Sakura deepened the kiss, deciding then and there that she wanted this man as desperately as she needed to breathe.

Itachi was the one to pull away, not wanting to distract from his question. He cleared his throat, his eyes drifting over the abandoned Uchiha estate. "Who did this?"

She looked into his eyes, hesitating at the momentary gleam of red in them. "I-It was y-you."

… …

"In a hurry?" Shisui asked, watching his cousin packing.

They hadn't been able to bring anything with them obviously, and every article of clothing they'd worn since coming here belonged here. Itachi was wearing his own ANBU uniform again and packing away the things he'd borrowed, to be returned to Kakashi later. The copy ninja confused him – he'd never been nice to him before. The one in this world didn't seem to have a grudge against the name Uchiha.

There was so much here that was different, yet still the same – it made him both nostalgic and homesick.

Itachi sighed. "I've figured out how to get back."

Shisui raised his eyebrows at him. "And you were going to wait until we were heading back through to tell me this?"

"Hn."

"I'll take that as a yes."

"It's a little more complicated than that."

"Yes I know – you and the Kazekage both vying for the affections of the beautiful Sakura Haruno." Shisui grinned as his cousin scowled at him. "It's good to see him alive, isn't it? I heard he was revived by Lady Chiyo after the Akatsuki tore the Shukaku out of him – who'da thunk it, huh?"

Itachi couldn't help but chuckle at that. As strange as it was, they had proof now that there was a version of Chiyo who had put aside her bitterness and decided to be selfless for once in her life. The Lady Chiyo he remembered from the third Shinobi war would never have given her life for another, no matter who they were. As much as it pained him to admit, he was glad to see Gaara alive and well. It gave him hope – more than he was willing to admit out loud.

It had also given him an idea.

"Shisui," he said. "I need a favour."

… …

"He's gone?" Sakura asked, shocked.

She was in Tsunade's office, with the Hokage and Shisui Uchiha – the latter had just told her that Itachi was gone. He'd opened the portal and stepped through, not looking back. She felt stunned, angry, and upset. How could he just leave like that, and after everything that had happened? After she'd told him what the Itachi from this world had done, he'd gone quiet. She'd kissed him, told him how she felt and felt relieved when he embraced her, and returned her words. He wanted her, he needed her: he loved her.

And now he was gone.

Shisui nodded his head. "He went through first, to make sure it worked. I'll be taking everyone else through tonight, providing I get the go ahead."

Tsunade frowned. "How did he make it work?"

"Itachi's Sharingan can open portals too," Shisui said. "It's not the same as Kakashi-Senpai's because my cousin has two not one, but he figured out the 'frequency' so to speak. Hm," he mocked surprise. "I guess he really is a genius like everyone keeps telling me."

"He just left," Sakura mumbled to herself. "He didn't even say goodbye."

Shisui frowned, restraining himself from explaining further – Itachi had made him promise not to tell her why he'd left so suddenly. "I'll bet Neji's already organised everyone else," he said instead, and bowed to Tsunade. "Thank-you for all your help, Lady Hokage."

She waved the appreciation away. "It's actually our fault you got stuck here in the first place so don't worry about it."

"I'm just glad your Danzou is also dead," he said unabashedly. "I can't imagine he'd have let us go back, let alone helped."

"Yours was executed for war crimes too?"

"Nah!" Shisui scoffed. "He was assassinated when I was just a kid."

"Assassinated?"

"For attempting to start a war."

"…"

He smirked. "The assassin made their reasoning clear – even though no-one involved admitted it. He was nasty."

"He was a war mongering paedophile," said Ino.

Shisui had felt her arrival the moment he'd mentioned Danzou – but the Hokage and Sakura were surprised. He knew it was his Ino, but Tsunade frowned at her as she entered via the window.

"Who are you?"

She rolled her eyes. "Ino Yamanaka, daughter of Inoichi and Izumi Yamanaka, and–"

"Just say Ino-point-two and be quiet Ino pig," Sakura snapped.

"I'm offended by that slight on my importance... hey, how did you know it was me?"

"You wear your hair differently."

Silence: it was bad for the heart. Shisui frowned at them as they stared each other down.

Sakura broke it by laughing. "Well, most of the time."

Ino rolled her eyes again. "Whatever. Itachi left the ANBU standing orders not to follow until our group was ready and we're ready. So… it's time to go Shisui. Bye forehead."

Remembering suddenly that she was still angry with Itachi, Sakura inhaled deeply, her breath shuddering out of her. "That asshole!" She spun around and glared at Shisui. "I'm coming with you!"

"No you're not," Tsunade said.

Sakura scoffed. "I'm not staying over there shishou. I'm bringing him back here."

Shisui just shrugged at them and the Hokage sighed.

"Alright," she said. "But I'm holding you to that. Grab Naruto and Sai – they can go with you."

Given the delicate balance between Kakashi Hatake and everything Uchiha over there, she wouldn't risk sending him with them – and Yamato was on a solo mission.

Ino frowned. "Who's Sai?"

… …

He was cute, in an 'I'm aloof but not a total prick' kind of way. Ino decided she liked Sai. Sakura had just explained to her that Sai used to be a part of ROOT. This meant that in her world, he could still be ANBU. After Danzou's assassination, the members of the Foundation were absorbed into the normal ANBU. She wondered if he even existed there, or if he was even stolen from his family after Danzou had them killed, like he seemed to have been here.

"Are you staring at me because you're attracted to me?" Sai asked, cocking his head at Ino.

She felt her face warm. Okay, he was very direct. Still, he was cute. She smirked in response but kept quiet.

"She's head over heels for you," Sakura grumbled, watching Shisui as he talked in low whispers with the other world's Neji. The sun had set and the Uchiha had claimed he'd be opening the portal tonight. She was getting impatient. She'd chosen Itachi over Gaara, and as much as it pained her, she couldn't bring herself to tell the Kazekage just yet. She was focusing on going through to that other world right now – she would deal with the guilt later. It was tearing her apart even though she kept pushing it to the back of her head. She loved them both, but when it came down to it, she loved Itachi more.

Kami, she was insane.

If someone had told her before he came through that she would follow Itachi Uchiha to another world to be with him, she'd have knocked them unconscious. Time spent in his company had shown her where she wanted to be. But his world had a Sakura already, so either he came back with her or she'd switch with Saku – though she doubted her doppelganger would do that. Bringing him back here was the best idea all around. He wasn't the Uchiha heir and the only thing substantial in his life was ANBU – he'd admitted to not being as close with Sasuke as he'd hoped, and Shisui was the only other Uchiha he got along with. But his cousin didn't seem upset at the prospect of no longer having Itachi around. It was weird, but it suited her just fine.

Sai responded to Sakura's comment by telling Ino he wasn't interested. "I already have sex with one of you, I don't need both of you. But, if–"

"Sai," Naruto snapped, having remained quiet until now. "Let it go, for our sanity's sake."

Hana burst into laughter and slapped Sai on the back. "That's telling her."

But Ino couldn't be happier. The version of herself here was involved with him. He was strange, said the oddest things, and was definitely not the kind of man her father would want her anywhere near – she had to have him.

Shisui signalled they were ready and Neji took the lead. "Be careful," he said. "This could get uncomfortable."

Shikamaru sighed. "So troublesome."

"Speak for yourself," Ino snapped. She was looking forward to it.

"A little quiet please," Shisui said evenly, activating his Sharingan and focusing on the spot in front of him like Itachi had shown him. He couldn't do this on his own, but it didn't matter: he wasn't alone. Focusing on his Mangekyō, he attempted to redo what Itachi had done. His version wasn't as strong, since his own power was less about other dimensions and more about influencing others – not that he'd spread that around. People were dangerous when they discovered such power was at their fingertips.

A few minutes later, a warm current of power rippled through the air and he could feel another power helping his along. Technically, the portal was being opened from the other side. He didn't dare glance over his shoulder as he sensed the arrival of the Kazekage: this was all according to plan after all, and he didn't want to spook him. He was coming through to try to persuade Sakura to come back.

Shisui thought he was wasting his time, but Itachi's plan wasn't just about Sakura.

The pinkette stepped through first, not waiting for Neji's permission. The sensation of being pulled and prodded was disconcerting, but gone in a few seconds. She was shocked once she stepped through: Itachi was waiting for her, a smirk on his face.

… …

Sakura frowned. "You knew I'd follow you?" She bit her bottom lip, annoyed. "You tricked me?"

"And he used you," Gaara said, unable to stop himself. He wasn't trying to antagonise the situation, but the opportunity was too good to resist.

Everyone else had come through as well and left the moment Gaara appeared. Naruto and Sai hadn't followed, instead sticking close to the pinkette.

Itachi narrowed his eyes at the Kazekage. "I didn't do it for myself."

Sakura felt her heart plummet into her stomach. 'He doesn't want me after all?'

She felt her stomach threaten to lurch. She wanted him to want her. She hadn't come here for nothing!

"Why then?" Gaara asked.

"For you."

"Hang on," Sakura said, startled. "You're in love with Gaara?"

Itachi chuckled as the red head sighed. "Of course not, but I know someone on this side who is."

"You tricked us both," Gaara said, understanding.

"No," Sakura said. "You couldn't have possibly known Gaara would also come through."

"Shisui made me aware of what was going on," Gaara said. "He hadn't come out and said it, but looking back, his 'accidentally' bumping into me when he was supposed to be getting ready makes sense." He frowned. "But why?"

"I already told you," Itachi said. "But I suppose you don't understand: the Gaara in this world was never revived by Chiyo. He died when the Akatsuki got their hands on him. It broke Saku's heart and she hasn't been the same since. They were in love."

It dawned on Gaara then. "You played the bad guy to play matchmaker?"

"That's crude," Sakura agreed. "How would you even know if Saku liked Gaara, or he liked her? You couldn't possibly," she added when Itachi moved to answer. "You took a risk: and how–"

"I know it's unconventional," Itachi interrupted. "But Gaara," he turned to the Kazekage, who was now looking like a lost puppy. "Sakura has chosen me and that isn't going to change. When your counterpart died I tried to court Saku, not knowing of course about their secret relationship, and she rebuked me at every turn. I know how you're feeling right now, but this could fix both of our concerns. Please just give this a try."

For an Uchiha, he sounded like he'd just rambled. Gaara sighed. He supposed it couldn't hurt. Sakura loved him, he knew she did – even though she chose Itachi. As weird as it felt, he still had an opportunity here. But he didn't want to replace Sakura – he didn't want to belittle his feelings for the woman he had been in love with for years.

"I'm not trying to undervalue how you feel about Sakura," Itachi continued as though reading his mind.

Gaara nodded. "I understand."

Sakura moved away from Itachi and embraced the Kazekage. "I do love you Gaara, and I always will: I just want you to be happy." She kissed his cheek and then pulled away.

Itachi smiled at Gaara. "I'll take you to her."

… …

The world had exploded.

It wasn't like some nightmare where everyone she'd ever loved was now dead, but it damn near felt like it. She had spent so many nights crying, so many days just burying herself in her work, and by the end of it all, what did she have? Gaara was gone, nobody had pulled her out of her grief, and there was nothing left to live for.

But Sakura Haruno would keep pretending she was alive. She worked at the hospital, avoided the children's ward, and took as many graveyard shifts as humanly possible. She no longer socialised and ignored the advances of men, even Itachi Uchiha, who had been a crush of hers when she was younger (after she realised he was the only Uchiha remotely worth her while). She was a broken doll and would never live again.

Saku had just finished off a bottle of sake when someone knocked on her apartment door. She considered ignoring it until she sensed Itachi's chakra. He had promised to let her know about his mission, which (amongst other things) involved creating new medic positions in smaller towns. It was dangerous, considering the rogue ninjas in the area and the fact that she'd be on her own – no Shinobi to back her up, just local samurai (she didn't trust samurai). She wanted to get out of Konoha, to move away from any place that reminded her of ninja. It had taken her years, but finally the perfect excuse had landed in her lap.

Saku stood up and walked toward her door, confused as Itachi's signature seemed to just disappear. Curiosity drove her forward and she swung open the door, not prepared for the sight that immediately took her breath away.

He was standing in front of her, a curious kind of detachment on his face and looking every bit as gorgeous as she remembered. She inhaled deeply, trying to control her emotions, but ended up failing miserably. He had to be a ghost – Gaara Sabaku, the fifth Kazekage, was dead.

Saku fainted.

–

The sand was hovering in the air and he manipulated the grains until they took the shape of a tiny bird, smiling slightly at the art he'd created. Gaara was bored, having shunshined out of yet another tedious council meeting and was waiting for the pinkette – he didn't notice she was already watching him.

Saku watched as the Shukaku jinchuriki moulded more sand, creating a small flock of birds and proceeded to make them flutter about in front of him. Her lover was still innocent inside, giving no thought to his achievement other than childlike entertainment. He wasn't immature – she liked that he could maintain his aloofness while still blushing under her touch when they retired to his room. Being the Kazekage, he could keep people out of his business without them reporting his odd behaviour – even the council didn't know he'd been sleeping with the star student of the Godaime Hokage.

Saku didn't want to interrupt him, but their time together this visit was limited so she walked in on him, pleasantly surprised when he didn't let the sand he was playing with fall away in embarrassment. He didn't need to hide anything from her.

She fell into his arms and the next moment, found herself shunshined directly into his room in the Kage building. Hell could come to earth and she would still cling to him – she would never let him go.

–

Gaara caught Saku, not sure what else to do. She'd seen a ghost – what else was she going to do but faint in shock? Itachi had warned him she was fragile and even he wasn't sure just how delicate she really was. She looked, smelt, and felt like Sakura… she even sounded like her when she let out an involuntary whimper in her sleep. He smiled at that. She was Sakura.

But he still felt strange that Itachi had lured him into this world and just assumed he could transfer his affections from one Sakura to the other. It was a little insulting. Still, he moved the pinkette further into her apartment, placing her on the couch, not comfortable with invading her bedroom. Once she woke up, he would attempt to allay her obvious belief that he had been something akin to her imagination.

Gaara wasn't planning a future with her, but he decided to take Sakura's advice and talk to the girl. He wasn't going to stay in this world either – he still had responsibilities as Kazekage after all. Whether this went somewhere or not, he supposed it wasn't the worst thing in the world. Or in two worlds.

He smiled slightly at that thought and waited patiently for the pinkette to wake up.

Itachi had given him more detail, explaining that no-one had known about Saku's relationship with this world's Kazekage until after he'd died at the hands of the Akatsuki. Lady Chiyo was a bitter old woman and hadn't been there to revive him, so in the aftermath, Temari had taken up the mantle of the sixth Kazekage to keep Suna from crumbling under the loss. She was married to Shikamaru in this world, with two children and the shadow jutsu master had relocated permanently to Suna, occasionally returning to Konoha with or without his wife when needed.

Kankuro was also married – to some woman called Hisami – and about to be a father for the first time.

It made Gaara homesick; especially when Itachi told him that Temari's first born was named after him.

Other differences were that Naruto was no longer a jinchuriki, the Kyuubi being extracted by Pein, but his life was saved in time when a group of leaf and sand ninja found him before the Akatsuki leader could kill him.

Gaara was lost in these thoughts when Saku finally stirred. She groaned and inhaled sharply as his face swam into focus.

"G-Gaara?"

He smiled softly. "That's a long story."

She sat up quickly and he started explaining: Itachi had been accidentally drawn into another universe, and upon finding a version of the Kazekage alive and well, tricked him into following Sakura who had followed the Uchiha, into this world. It sounded crazy but Saku didn't care. She reached out to touch Gaara's face, her fingers caressing his skin as she broke down.

"I missed you so much," she said between shuddering sobs. "I love you Gaara."

"I'm not the Gaara you remember."

Saku growled at him. "I'm not stupid!"

He caught her hand before she could slap him and she gasped at the contact. He felt like the Gaara she remembered, but something was definitely off.

"I no longer carry Shukaku," he said, and had to go through another explanation: Chiyo realised the gravity of her life mistakes and attempted to right her wrongs by bringing him back to life – a move which cost her what was left of her life.

"Chiyo did that?"

Gaara nodded.

Saku bit her bottom lip. "And you're Kazekage still?"

"Yes."

"And you dated your Sakura?"

"Yes."

"What happened?"

More explaining: he was getting a headache from it all.

She sighed. "What now?"

"I don't know. Itachi wanted us to talk and we've talked, but I'm not sure what we can do."

"You can stay here."

He shook his head. "I can't."

"Hm, I guess not."

Saku wanted to ask him to take him back with her but had long since lost the ability to go after what she wanted. Instead, she pulled him toward her and gripped him tightly as Gaara fell on top of her. The kiss was better than she remembered and she was grateful to Itachi – even when she wouldn't return his feelings, he was still looking out for hers.

… …

"I need your help."

Itachi frowned at Sakura as she threw his words back at him. He'd wanted to know about the Uchiha when he'd said that to her. He was suddenly wary by her words, her tone of voice, and the strange guilty look on her face. Shisui for his part, was finding this rather intriguing. He'd followed them to Itachi's apartment (still on Uchiha grounds, it was however, away from his family's complex – they hadn't kicked him out, but he preferred not to walk around on eggshells just to get free board) and refused to leave. He was enjoying this too much.

"What is it?" Itachi asked as his cousin smirked at him.

"Sasuke," she admitted. "Not your Sasuke: mine."

"You said he was gone."

"He is," she said. "But it depends on your definition."

"I don't understand."

Sakura sighed, glancing around Itachi's modest apartment before sitting on the couch in the living room. He continued to lean against the wall, looking guarded. "As you know, he became a missing-nin and turned on Konoha – even going as far as attacking us." Itachi nodded and she continued. "What no-one told you was that he eventually came to Naruto and asked for a pardon. He wanted to take out Madara, who turned out to be an Uchiha outcast named Tobi. The man was powerful and manipulated people into trying to control the world–"

"He did the same thing here," Itachi interrupted. "But he was an Uchiha problem and we dealt with him."

Sakura nodded, wishing again that in her world, the Uchiha massacre hadn't happened. "Well he found out Sasuke had turned on him, but he wasn't as powerful as him so he… he tricked him." She inhaled deeply as Itachi stood up straight, frowning at her. She lowered her eyes to the floor as she continued. "Tobi could bring people with him as he jumped dimensions just by touching them, and he stranded Sasuke in another dimension using his Sharingan." She bit her bottom lip. "I researched the Sharingan as best I could and Kakashi eventually agreed to help me by systematically using his version of the Mangekyō to find the right dimension. It was what we were doing when you were accidentally pulled into our world."

'And nearly killed Kakashi Sensei,' she thought to herself, still ashamed at how she'd nagged him until he relented.

"It was all Naruto's idea," she continued as the two Uchiha stared dumbfounded at her. "But the explosion was my mistake." She looked up, meeting the dark grey eyes of Itachi. "Please, if there's anything your Sharingan can do to bring him back, I'm begging–"

"Why didn't you ask me this before now?"

She trembled slightly. "I don't know. Tsunade had ordered me to stop trying and I just couldn't face it. Sasuke is my friend – I grew up loving him but even when I finally let that go, I couldn't give up on bringing him home."

Itachi understood. He didn't know what he'd do if he lost his Sasuke – despite the fact that they often argued, he still loved him. They were still family and he would give up his world to keep him safe. The Itachi from Sakura's world was proof that he had it in him.

But Sakura hadn't said a word about it. Itachi raised an elegant eyebrow as Shisui scoffed behind him. Still, he understood why they thought to hide this from him – he hadn't exactly been forthcoming himself – but it wasn't the same thing. By their Tobi's jutsu was Sharingan based and no matter how much control the copy ninja had over Obito's power, it would take the power of another Uchiha to open that kind of portal again.

Sakura had been fighting a losing battle from the start.

"You don't think it can be done," she said, her mood falling at the disbelieving look on his face.

"Not with the means available to you," he said. "You just set yourself up to fail."

She clenched her fists, rising to her feet. "At least I tried! I didn't cross worlds to hear you say I–"

He closed the distance between them and pulled Sakura into his arms, kissing her to shut her up. He forgot his cousin was in the room and pushed the pinkette against the wall of his apartment, deepening the kiss until she became putty in his arms.

He pulled away, but touched their foreheads together. "I'll help you."

… …

Gaara had every intention of returning to his world. He couldn't stay in a place where he was dead and well known. Saku seemed to take this all in her stride. She may not be Sakura – all the fight had left her and she didn't mention following him – but she was definitely making him want to stay. Dressed in a medic's uniform and clearly not having been a heavy trainer for awhile now, she kept up pace with him easily however, as he returned to the spot where the cross dimensional portal had been created.

He marvelled at the simplicity of it, the convenience, and the fact that it took the Sharingan to make it work. Itachi had assured them that once they were done, he would destroy it, to prevent anymore accidental crossings. But for now, it was of use.

Gaara wanted Saku to come back with him.

It was amazing how quickly he'd realised that the woman who shared the same soul as Sakura had imprinted herself on him. She was too different for him to love her the same way, but perhaps someday he could learn to love her all over again.

It was then that Gaara realised she had a bag slung over her shoulder.

Saku had every intention of going back with him and no intention of ever returning. She'd wanted to get away and another world was far enough. She didn't care what the other Sakura did, as she'd be moving to Suna. She invited herself along as Gaara returned to the portal, didn't interact with the ninja who were already gathered there and ignored the strange looks they were giving her.

None of it mattered.

Once he arrived, Itachi wasn't surprised to see her. She returned his knowing smile and glanced at her doppelganger. Sakura smiled widely at her and nodded silently, like she also understood. Gaara had explained to her the history they had and despite her gratitude, she didn't understand how that Sakura could choose Itachi over the Kazekage. The red head had haunted her dreams for years and would probably continue to do so – there could never be anyone else.

Itachi was returning to help rescue Sasuke: Saku didn't like the man, easily disgusted by arrogance and spoilt children, but hoped that the other Sasuke was the kind of man everyone kept saying he was. Even with the missing-nin status, he was apparently still nicer than the chicken butt she'd known for years.

Itachi, Sakura, Sai, Naruto, Gaara and Saku stepped through after the Uchiha had opened the portal – Shisui chose not to return, having no intention of experiencing that again, and would cover for Itachi while he was gone. Hana, for her part, was delighted to be home as well, and was currently trailing after Shisui like a lost puppy.

Saku remembered the Inuzuka had always had a thing for that particular Uchiha.

Nobody outside those involved (and the Hokage) knew that they'd crossed dimensions, and it was going to stay that way.

"Ino found Sai," Sakura said once they'd made it back through.

"I'm right here," Sai commented.

She slapped his arm. "I meant the other world's Sai."

He smiled at her. "I know."

Saku frowned at them. "Who is he?"

"An ex-ROOT member," Gaara said.

She nodded and inched closer to the Kazekage as they moved away from the field: her hand brushed Gaara's and on a whim, she took it, grateful when he didn't pull away. She was curious about this world's Sasuke, and was glad that she was invited to see them find him. It wasn't everyday someone came back from something like being trapped in another dimension. She wondered if time had passed normally for him there, or faster, or slower, or even at all.

"We should check in with the Hokage first," Sakura said.

Everyone agreed and suddenly, Saku was incredibly nervous.

… …

Tsunade was uncomfortable. On her right side, Sakura stood next to Sai while Naruto couldn't keep still, moving from Sai's side to behind Sakura and making strange sounds. On her left side, Saku held Gaara's hand, ignoring everyone else as she watched what Itachi was attempting to do with a strange kind of fascination.

Not to mention that Kakashi was six feet away, leaning against a tree and reading an Icha Icha like he was expecting to be waiting for hours for this to be over. They were a weird group of people, even for ninja, to be hanging out at this remote training ground in the dead of night.

It was unnerving.

Itachi knew the jutsu that Tobi had used, even if it wasn't his specialty. He'd never jumped through dimensions as a kind of teleportation technique, but the dimension Tobi used shouldn't be too difficult to find. It would just take time. Naruto had fallen asleep an hour later and only Gaara and Sai were still standing – the rest having sat down on the grass or under a tree, while they waited. It really showed who were the more patient of the lot.

Itachi gave no warning, seeing no point to it, as his Sharingan finally broke through the invisible barrier that divided this dimension from the next. Pain like he'd never felt before tore through his eyes but he forced himself to stand still, focusing on the spot where the tear was slowly becoming apparent. He suddenly had the complete attention of everyone in the field, but ignored them. He could feel it like he'd been prying it open with his bare hands.

His Mangekyō blurred for an instant and he almost lost control of it, but all that happened was his left eye bled. It was a red tear, nothing more, so he ignored it, making a mental note to rest his eyes for a few weeks at least before activating his Sharingan again.

"Sasuke!" Naruto yelled out as a dark figure seemed to fall out of the tear Itachi had created.

The blonde ran forward, stopped by the older Uchiha. He hadn't finished it yet and interrupting him now would destroy any further access to that dimension. He reached forward, his hand clasping over the arm of a semiconscious version of his otouto and pulled as hard as he could.

Itachi tumbled backward, giving Naruto the cue he needed to continue his rush forward and prevent the brothers from colliding painfully into one another.

Sakura rushed forward as Itachi caught him, her hands falling to Sasuke's body. He'd gone in injured and still looked as he had the last she'd seen him. He looked up at her with an expression akin to relief and surprise. She smiled at him.

"I'm here Sasuke – we all are."

It was when Sasuke realised he was in Itachi's arms that everything went hazy and he fainted.

… …

Naruto couldn't get over it and kept teasing him. "You fainted, you fainted!"

It was especially funny because it hadn't been from his wounds – Sakura had determined there was no physical reason for him to have passed out. Sasuke was still playing catch up with how his brother could've been the one to pull him out of Tobi's dimension and tried his best to ignore the dobe.

"Shut it!" Sakura snapped. "Just quit it Naruto! Seriously, I am not going to miss you!"

The blonde stopped his teasing and pouted. "Why do you have to leave? Why can't you and Itachi just stay here?"

"Gaara is Kazekage," she reminded him. "And Saku is staying with him. There can't be two Sakura's in one universe."

"Why not?"

"Equilibrium," Sasuke whispered. "The balance."

"Very true," Itachi said, ignoring the strange look Sasuke gave him as he appeared in front of them. "Two of the same person would upset the balance."

"Then teme and I are coming with you," Naruto told Sakura and she hit him over the head.

"Same problem," she scolded.

He whined, rubbing his head. "Fine, but I won't even get to see Saku either, since she's moving to Suna permanently."

Sakura pulled him into a bear hug. "I'm going to miss you too Naruto."

Naruto reached out, pulling Sasuke toward them. "Group hug!"

"Is this the part where I tell you I'll miss you too, hag?" Sai asked. Sakura nodded and he smiled. "Then I'll definitely miss your ugly face."

Sasuke sighed as he was released and Itachi took Sakura's hand. The hugs and goodbyes were getting him down and he wasn't quite sure how to respond to everything happening so fast. He watched Sakura disappear with Itachi. "Why couldn't you guys have just left me in that dimension?"

X X X

A/N: I feel there's something I need to apologise for, but I can't remember, so SORRY for whatever it was I did wrong, lol. Eh whatever. ;)
Can you tell this was originally going to be a multichapter? It didn't grow big enough in my head, so here we are. If it was a multi I wouldn't have written so much of it already – and there'd be even more to it. But whatever. I love it as is. And so do you… *hint* Lol. Lotsa love. ^_^

R&R.