Sasuke sighed as he dropped his suitcase on the floor of the fancy hotel room. The concierge had offered to have the porter bring up his bags, but Sasuke had always found it strange to have someone carry his bags for him when he could manage perfectly fine on his own.

He turned to survey the room around him. He'd been on plenty of business trips for the firm and stayed in countless hotels, but this had to be the nicest. Surprising, he thought, considering the city was a small one.

Leaf City.

He hadn't heard much about it. As far as he knew, it was a beautiful little city on the coast and was a popular spot for tourists looking for a short quick getaway. Hotels and casinos lined the main streets of Leaf City, and he was staying at the most opulent of them all – The Magellan.

He noticed a card on the minibar:

Mr. Uchiha,

As a show of appreciation for your time and efforts,

please feel free to make full use of all hotel facilities on the house.

We hope you enjoy your stay and do not hesitate to call should you require anything at all.

Regards, Momochi Zabuza.

It was a message from the hotel owner himself. Sasuke walked over to the window and was stunned by the ocean views. These people really knew how to make their auditor feel at home, he smirked. Not that it was anything new. His reports could make a break a business, and every hotel he had ever audited treated him like royalty. His every need was attended to and he spent his time travelling from city to city staying in the most luxurious hotels, all on company money. He was one of the best hotel auditors in the business, at one of the biggest firms in the country.

And he was suddenly reminded of how much he hated his job.

Sunday night.

Sasuke didn't have to properly start his audit of The Magellan until the next day, but it wouldn't hurt to take a quick look around to see what he was working with. After grabbing an amazing (and free) dinner at one of the hotel's smaller restaurants, he made his way to the casino.

It was incredible, and extremely packed.

Sasuke wasn't allowed to gamble due to the nature of his work, but he wasn't a gambler anyway. Still, he always found it interesting to watch the behaviour of other casino patrons, especially at poker tables.

"Good evening, Mr. Uchiha," a female voice called from behind him.

He turned around to face an attractive blonde in her early twenties. "My name is Ino Yamanaka," she introduced herself. "Mr. Zabuza has requested that I be your personal assistant throughout your stay here to ensure that any and all of your needs are satisfied," she added huskily.

"Call me Sasuke," he said as he shook her outstretched hand. "Thank you for your hospitality, but I'm all set for tonight."

The woman smiled at him, taking the hint, but handed him a card with a phone number. "This is my personal line. Please call if you require any assistance at all, work-related or otherwise," she said, before bowing slightly and walking away.

Sasuke couldn't help but notice her figure, perfectly displayed in her formal but slightly-too-tight pencil skirt.

She wore that on purpose, he thought.

Then he spotted what he had been looking for. The Paragon Room. That was where all the high-stakes poker games were played, and that would be where all the action was. It would probably also be the biggest source of his problems on this job.

I can't believe I'm still thinking about work, he reflected glumly.

He made his way up the short flight of six steps to the arched doorway of the room. The double doors were half open, and he took a step inside, only to be met by green eyes and a shock of pink hair.

"Can I help you?"

Sasuke stepped back outside, and the girl followed, shutting the doors behind her. She was dressed in the hotel uniform of a hostess; a fitted buttoned shirt tucked into a tight floor length skirt with a slit on one side that ran up to just above mid-thigh. What was most distracting, though, was the pair of bright green eyes that looked up at him from behind pale pink bangs.

"Can I help you," she repeated when he didn't answer, more curtly this time.

"Yes," Sasuke replied, putting on an air of confidence in the hope that she'd be persuaded into letting him in. "I'd like to get into The Paragon Room."

"I'm sorry, sir, but the game has already started and we can't let anyone in until it's over," the girl smiled apologetically.

"I'm sure no one will notice me," Sasuke said smoothly. "My name is Sasuke Uchiha, and I'm here to audit this casino. I'd just like to observe tonight."

The girl frowned a little but said politely, "Yes, welcome, sir. I hope you're stay here has been enjoyable so far. Unfortunately, I cannot allow anyone into the room that has not been authorised prior to the beginning of the game. If you would like, I could speak to management about having you sit in another night." She took his arm lightly and began walking him down the steps.

Sasuke was becoming impatient. He preferred to remain anonymous while on the job, and having his name and role "on the list" did not lend to natural behaviour from anyone at any high stakes poker game. The girl must have noticed his displeasure as she started speaking again.

"I'm sure you understand the nature of the game being played behind these doors, and how your presence at this point would cause the gentleman inside to-"

She was cut off by a loud yell from inside the room, followed by a crash. Sasuke caught the flicker of alarm in her eyes as she turned back to see the doors to The Paragon Room flung open and a waitress in tears rushing out.

"Sakura," the waitress cried hysterically. "Sakura, come quick. Mr. Hyuuga, he's been... he's been-"

Sasuke craned his neck to see what was going on inside the room as the hostess dashed back up the steps. It was chaos. There were men yelling angrily at each other, and one rather portly gentleman bleeding on the floor. He could see security rushing over from across the casino floor.

"Where's the doctor?" he heard one of the angry men call out.

"That would be me," the green-eyed hostess answered as she entered the room and the last thing he saw before the doors were shut was the young girl feeling the injured man for a pulse.

Sasuke walked back to his room slowly after that, thinking about what had just happened. High-stakes poker was clearly serious business at The Magellan. And why was the hostess also a doctor? Was that intentional? Did the casino really require a doctor on hand at all times?

I need to really look into this, he reflected as he drifted off to sleep that night.

But not until tomorrow, he thought.

Sakura.

That was her name.