She'd never forget that night; it had carved out a piece of her soul and placed it in her memory. No, she'd never forget, even in death that image would carry with her. She knew the risks, as they all did yet knowledge and experience are two things that do not coincide till the other is made a reality.
It was storming; Sakura's least favorite type of weather and it wasn't the type of storm that moved around you when you entered its clutches, no. It was the type of rain that went through you and pealed your skin and stung your flesh. It was times like these that she hated being alone while her husband was seemingly miles away on a mission, fulfilling his duty as Captain of the Anbu Black Ops. She shifted her weight nervously in the rocking chair they had made for when the baby arrived, which would be any day now. She was always nervous and depressed when Sasuke left on a mission, but never to the point of nerve rattling; perhaps it was the storm and the lingering darkness that filled her with such an empty pit in her stomach but she wasn't certain. While the rain slammed into the side of the apartment she attempted to read by candle light in an attempt to settle her nerves, but when the sky split open and lit the room with its electric energy and the crack of thunder that was followed by the sound splintering wood of her door being kicked open she found herself frozen with fear. She watched intently, her eyes fixed with horror while her gaze followed the two shadowy figures that slowly moved to the ground, gently stepping into the miniscule candlelight that caught their familiar faces.
Naruto gently placed his comrade on the stiff wooden floor, sweat mixed with rain and blood dripping on the polished oak while he breathed through his lips, his hands clutched tightly around his knees while Sasuke lay unresponsive. It was obvious by the intensity of their wounds the mission had gone bad and possibly failed by the looks of things. Naruto slowly rolled his body upward before leaning on the now fracture door frame, his body screaming with cuts and gashes as he fought to keep his wits about him. Sakura wasted little time, pushing her swollen body out of her chair in an attempt to rectify the situation her attention fixated on her husband who had not moved from the spot Naruto placed him a moment ago.
She didn't bother asking what had happened, what could have possibly gone wrong, words were nothing more than a waste of time when there was little to spare. Gently she placed her hands around her loves temples, bouts of erratic charka streaming through her digits while she focused her efforts to get him breathing again. They had all cheated death once before and she hoped that Sasuke hadn't used the remainder of his good luck on various other close encounters. With a final push of her energy she sparked his airways his lungs rapidly sucking in the air they had been deprived of and with a gentle smile she watched him open his charcoal eyes before she swiveled on her posterior to examine her friend who was in need of her services.
Even in her pregnant state she had not lost her strength or wits. Gently she strategically placed the men on wooden mats, stripping them of their tattered and damped clothing, covering them each with the softest blankets in the house before she shuffled to the kitchen to brew some warm tea. Deep down she never thought the life of a housewife suited her as she grew into her later teen years yet she became accustomed to the way of life and found it rather relaxing even if she did miss the intensity of battle. Her mind swirled with memories of her younger years that really weren't so long ago and she sighed deeply, a smile creeping across her face before the kettle demanded her attention with a high pitched squeal. With her mind still else where she poured the tea and brewed two bowl s of ramen, setting them each on their own separate trays before she turned to carry the sleeping Anbu men their nourishment. One tray in hand at a time she gently placed the food beside Naruto before returning with Sasukes, smiling gently at the two men that rested in her presence, Sasuke's lips catching her attention.
"Itachi…" he murmured.
Without thinking she let the tray slip from her grasps, clattering to the floor as dishes broke and fluid leaked from its broken restraints. Sakura knew that name; she knew it all too well and it was the only name that could render her motionless with fear and in the two years of their fairy tale marriage she had never heard her love utter that disgusting name, till now. She knew the bastard was still alive and it was almost impossible to forget, how could she? After all it was his blade that had sent her and Sasuke on death's ferry to be judged, Sasuke had kept that blade on display in their house as a constant reminder of where he came from and to never go back and Sakura hated that damn thing, she'd melt it down if she could and she had told Sasuke many times before that it glowed with evil yet he ignored her all the same. She sighed at the mess that rested at her feet, thankful the crash had not woken either of the sleeping nin, for then she would have had to conjure up an original excuse which probably would blame her rather pregnant belly getting in the way. She struggled to the ground, bracing herself against a wall in order to inch herself back up before she retreated to the kitchen, porcelain and pieces of ramen stuck to the tray she had used to carry the one intact dish and she prayed her husband's older brother had not been the cause of such an unfortunate night.
O-o-O-o-O
AN: I'm baaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaack. Well…really I was never gone…this was meant to be a one shot…but obviously it's not. I don't know if I'll have time at all to update this story like I did the last one…I'm getting promoted…and I don't have net at my house because I'm poor, but that's about to change. So please…bare with me…