She gently slapped his cheek repeatedly with the palm of her hand. Still he gave no response. She then took him by the shoulders and shook him violently.
"WAKE UP BAKA!" Sasuke shot out of his bed clenching his ear.
"OW! What do you think gives you the right to-┘┘..Oh Hokage-sama. What are you doing here? It's not like you to make house calls."
"I have a mission for you."
Sasuke put on his usual straight face and got back into bed. After he had his back to her he told her in his usual monotone voice:
"Go get Naruto to do it."
Tasune's face became worried as she looked towards the ground.
"I wouldn't trust him with this kind of mission. Especially if this mission involved Sakura."
Sasuke's eyes shot open but the rest of his body didn't react. Her voice was barely audible, but he heard it perfectly. He calmly sat up in his bed and rubbed his eyes. He then looked straight into hers.
"What's wrong with Sakura?" She looked a little relieved.
"Does that mean your accepting the mission?"
"Yes."
He responded before he could even think about it. And for that he was worried that she noticed and, she did. But, that had to be put aside until later.
"Are you going to tell me what's wrong with Sakura or not?"
"What? Oh, right." She sat down on his desk chair and faced him.
"Someone is after Sakura and we don't know who or why. What we do know is that he has been torturing her through her dreams to make her weak enough for him to kidnap her. We also have a feeling that he is going to strike again tonight. Sakura has fought off long and hard, but┘┘┘she might be weak enough tonight for him to take her this time."
Sasuke scowled. 'Not if I have anything to say about it.' Wait, did he just think that?
"So what am I supposed to do Hokage-sama?"
"I'll explain as soon as we get there."
"There?" He raised an eyebrow.
"Where exactly is there?"
She walked up to him and motioned him to get out of bed. He stood up wearing grayish pants and a dark navy blue shirt; his usual pajamas. She put one hand on his shoulder, formed a seal with the other, and they were gone in a puff of smoke arriving in Sakura's bedroom doorway.
She stepped inside quietly and walked up to Sakura's bedside. Sasuke quickly followed her seconds later. Both gazed downward to look at the sleeping girl. She looked different in the moonlight to Sasuke. She looked more radiant than she ever had. Hold it, what was he thinking? He couldn't be starting to like her. Even though the silver moonlight cast on her face perfectly and made her skin glisten, her hair silky smooth, and perfect soft pink lips couldn't make him like it? He shrugged it off; he did have a mission to get to. Wait, why is he doing this mission anyway? Why couldn't he let Naruto do it?
"Hey are you even listening to me?" She whispered with a little anger in her voice.
"Hunh? Oh, could you say that again Hokage-sama?"
She sighed in annoyance and repeated herself.
"You are to watch over Sakura and see if her attacker comes again tonight. If he does┘.."
She pulled out a sealed test tube with clear liquid inside.
"Drink this vile in one shot and you will be sent into her dreams. There you are to confront the attacker and stop him at all costs. Any questions?"
"Just one. How will I know he's entered her dreams?"
She chuckled. He raised a darkened eyebrow in question.
"Sorry; it's just a little funny┘┘"
The seriousness came back to her features; her hazel eyes fixed on Sakura as if a memory poured into her mind.
"She'll scream as if her life depended on it. That's why you have to calm her down without waking her up before you drink this elixir."
She watched Sasuke look at it with a concerned stare.
"Don't worry I made this myself only a few hours ago. I wouldn't let anyone else do it."
He nodded his head showing that her answer was enough.
"Anymore questions?"
He shook his head with closed eyes.
"No Hokage-sama."
"Well then that is all I'll leave you to your mission."
She disappeared in a puff of smoke.
'Finally.' He thought as he turned to Sakura and brushed a lock of her hair that was in her face behind her ear. He had to really hold himself back so he wouldn't do it in front of Tusnade. Then he pulled a chair that was at her desk up to her bedside and sat down.
A half an hour later, Sakura started to stir and Sasuke froze. He slowly looked at the clock seeing how much time had passed, and wondered if this was it. She relaxed and turned her back to him and quickly fell back into deep sleep. He sighed and closed his eyes with his arms folded and decided that it couldn't help to relax.
An hour and a half later, Sasuke was just about to fall asleep when he heard a piercing scream. He shot his eyes open to find Sakura tossing, turning, kicking, screaming; all she could do to get away from what ever it was that was attacking her. Sasuke looked around and found nobody other than himself and cursed under his breath for it. He never wanted anything bad to happen to Sakura. Her piercing screams filled the room getting louder and louder.
"NO!┘..NO!┘┘Get away from me!┘┘┘Just leave me alone!" Tears started to fall down her cheeks showing how much immense pain she was in. Unsure of what to do, Sasuke hesitated before putting an arm around her rubbing her own arm to calm, and hold her down. Now practically in the bed with her, he whispered in her ear with the most soothing voice he had:
"Shhhh┘Sakura don't cry, it's alright. I'm here with you now and I won't let anything happen to you." She started to calm down as she buried her face into his chest. He held her close trying to think of where he put the elixir. He then reached into his pocket and quickly found it, drinking it in one gulp after he took the cork out with his teeth.
He felt dizzy as the room started to spin and turn black. He began to fall spinning continuously, until he landed standing up on his own two feet, in a place he'd never seen before.
He looked at what he was wearing after feeling slightly uncomfortable and found himself in a full tux with dress shoes and a red rose in his breast pocket.
He then noticed that music filled the air as he looked up to see the DJ on the opposite side on the dance floor from himself. He gazed at the beautiful room with the half wooden half carpeted floors, to he creamy beige walls, to the huge extravagant chandeliers landing on the sign stretched above the DJ booth. It read: KUNOICHI BALL.
He remembered hearing about this before┘┘┘.but where?... That's right, it was Sakura! They were on the bridge a week ago when she was talking about it to Naruto. Now he wished he listened more because all he remembered was the title. He cursed himself for it, and then saw that every man was wearing a black mask that only covered their eyes and the bridge of their nose. Now he remembered! Naruto was complaining to Sakura that he wouldn't go because only the women could speak and the men had to hide their identities with a black mask. He turned around to the entrance and put one on from a box and started to look for Sakura.
He finally found her as an intro to a song started to play. He stared at her pink locks draped over her shoulders as he started to walk over. But someone beat him to her. He offered his hand and she accepted it as the beat quickened and he pulled her on to the dance floor. With nobody else on the floor, all eyes were on them. They danced with their feet moving at a quickened pace that matched the beat perfectly. Each step was exact, just as if it had been practiced a million times before. Sakura as in awe for she had never been a good dancer. She could manage to slow dace, and just dance with her friends but never like this. Sharp, fast, spins turned into graceful gliding across the floor as the song softened and started up again. Before she knew it, the song had ended finding herself in a dip with his face only inches from hers. She could feel his breath mingle with her own. As the room applauded, both stood up and bowed still trying to catch their breath. After they got off the dance floor, her friends walked or rather ran up to her from the small distance of the table where their dates sat.
"Wow Sakura! That was amazing!" a girl with brown hair usually in two buns except for tonight said excitedly.
"Thanks Tenten. You're quite a dancer yourself ya know."
"Yea, but Neji could never dance like that, even if he wanted to."
"T-that was really beautiful, Sakura. I wish I could dance like you." She turned to the dark haired, shy girl next to Tenten.
"Thank- you Hinata but I didn't think I had it in me."
"Of course you did!" A platinum blond girl with blue eyes hugged her from behind. "You finally did it billboard-brow." She laughed.
"Thanks Ino-pig."
Ino was wearing a halter, ankle length violet dress, silver sandal high heels, with semi-long dangling silver earrings. Tenten was wearing plain pink dress down to her ankles with two inch thick straps and a U-neck collar line. She also had pink flats and small gold earrings. Hinata was wearing a lavender dress with matching small heels and diamond posts. Sakura was wearing the best of them all. She had a red, ankle length, strapless dress embodied from top to bottom in red beads that glistened in the light when she moved perfectly. She also had matching red heels and small gold earrings.
A boy also with blond hair and blue eyes walked up to them and put his arm around Hinata.
"Yea, it was really good Sakura. But I think you need a drink; you still look a little winded."
"Yea you're right Naruto." She turned to the mysterious man behind her. "How about it? Wanna go get a drink?"
He nodded and they walked over to the bar in the far corner of the room. Sasuke was frozen still in shock as he watched the two walk over to the bar. Who was that? It sure looked like Sakura didn't know him. He took a seat at the empty table next to theirs. It was perfect. She sat directly in front of him with her back turned. He could see her but she couldn't see him. When both of them sat down, Sakura saw Naruto talking with Hinata.
"Hey Naruto, why are you talking?" He abruptly stopped and lowered his voice to a whisper.
"I don't care if I'm talking┘┘.I've already found the girl I love." Hinata turned a light shade of pink and looked downward to her hands in her lap. "Anyways, if they don't catch me I won't get kicked out┘..."
"Oh, ok I always knew you couldn't keep your mouth shut."
"And what's that supposed to mean?" He eyed her playfully.
"It adds to your signature. Right next to your "Naruto" grin that makes everybody smile." Everybody nodded and went back to what they were talking about. Well, if you could call it talking. Tenten was talking about new weapons to a shaking his head, silent Neji. Ino was continually blabbering about something to a distracted Shikamaru. Hinata was giggling at the whispering jokes from Naruto, and Sakura was basically asking twenty questions with only getting nods in response from her mysterious companion. She giggled. Who was this guy anyway? Sasuke clenched his fist around his drink as he took a sip burning holes through the man with his glares. He wasn't even saying anything to her and he was making her giggle! Sasuke wasn't pissed; no he was pissed when the jerk got her on to the dance floor. Now he was outraged. What gives that guy the right to take his Sakura away from him?! Hold it. His Sakura? His Sakura.
'Yes your Sakura. Just get it over with and admit it.' His inner self said annoyed.
Sasuke sighed. 'I thought you were gone. And I don't have to admit anything because there's nothing to admit.'
'God stop lying! Ya know, if you never admit it to even yourself, she'll never be yours.' That part went right through Sasuke and stung even harder when she giggled even louder and flirtatiously cuter than before. He was just about to walk over and punch the guy, but he was stopped when the first course had arrived.
Black and white filled the room quickly with the dinner orders that were taken earlier. Surprisingly Sasuke received the dinner that he would of preferred over the other choice. He watched the two eat, as he was quiet with every bite of his meal taken. That man's head should have been melted off his shoulders with all the glares Sasuke had given him nonstop.
As everyone finished their dinner, the music started up again with a mellow slow song. The mysterious man offered his hand once more and she gladly accepted. As they walked to the dance floor, each man gradually offer their hands to their dates to dance. Sasuke watched them all dance and noticed that everyone seemed to be together. Well, everyone seemed to be together except for one couple. The one he was supposed to be in. Sasuke watched them with immense hatred.
Sakura was in heaven. She loved every second of being with this person and she didn't even know who he was. He reminded her of someone special to her but she couldn't put her finger on it. She took in his forest sent again at the crook of his neck. As she breathed out on to his neck, he tightened his arms around her waist even more.
A few moments passed and Sakura couldn't take it anymore. She grabbed his hand and pulled him off the dance floor and to the side of the room. They passed by Sasuke's table, his head turning and following them with his eyes. As they stopped in one spot he got up and followed them at a distance so he couldn't be seen, but they could be heard. After Sakura's eyes settled to the dim lit spot they were in she had to ask.
"This has been one of the greatest nights of my life and I don't even know who you are." She looked straight into his eyes and whispered, "Who are you?" With her face so close to his, she slowly lifted off his mask.
With Sakura's back to him Sasuke couldn't see who the man was.
She was shocked who her mystery person was. "Sa... Sasuke-kun...?" did she just say Sasuke-kun? But that couldn't be possible... because he was over here and she was over there.
The two's faces were so close and slowly got closer.
"Sasuke-kun..." She breathed on to his lips right before they kissed. Sasuke was shocked and at the same time filled with rage and he couldn't take it.
"Sakura! What are you doing?!?!" She turned around to see who was talking to her. Her eyes went wide with shock and confusion.
"Sa...Sasuke-kun?" she turned and looked at the other Sasuke that was behind her and started to back up. She stopped herself in the middle making sure she wasn't too close but, wasn't too far from the real one. She looked from one to the other a couple of times. 'Which one is the real one?' She asked with her voice panicking in her head. Both Sasukes stared at each other with intense anger. One Sasuke was placed not to far from the entrance door, and the other who had kissed Sakura was in the opposite direction in the slightly darker light.
"Who are you anyway?!" Sasuke yelled at his mirror self in the dimmer light. The figure chuckled evilly.
"Foolish little brother..."
'Little brother?' Sakura looked at them one at a time again. Sasuke was blown from his mind.
"No..."