Sakura leaned over the bridge that overlooked the forest next to the village. Up above her, the clouds drifted lazily, covering the light from the sun and sparing her from the heat. She sighed, closing her eyes to listen to the sounds around her. There was not much to listen to but the gentle stream that flowed under the bridge and the cicadas that were chirping lively in the woods, trying to find their mate before the summer was over. It was a quiet day in Konoha. The school was closed, the stalls had not opened, and her friends were still on their missions. Even Tsunade was too busy tackling a pile of paperwork on her desk which needed to be processed and sent to the other villages.
Her thoughts brought her back to her fight two days ago, when she stood face to face to one of the strongest Akatsuki members. Scenes flashed in her head, and she could still feel the adrenalin of the fight, and how close she had been to death, how close she had been to him. Her eyes shot open and she stood up straight. She stood still looking at her feet, trying to recall what she had just thought of. There was a warm feeling inside her, so warm and caressing that it felt almost nostalgic. It didn't take her long to realize that this was the same sensation that she felt when she used to think of Sasuke, but that was a long time ago, why were those memories being brought up now?
She put her hand to her lips, something that she did whenever she was deep in thought. No matter how she tried to think of a possible reason to her predicament, all she could think of was his deep red hair and his eyes staring at her with intensity as she rushed in to kill him. Sure he was practically a puppet and could be considered borderline insane, but there was something about the way he talked and looked that she seemed to find…appealing.
"Wait," she said, her eyes widening in disbelief, "do I…like him?"
Her words startled her, and she covered her mouth and looked around cautiously, afraid that somehow people were watching her and knew exactly what she was thinking. She thought things over again. It wasn't possible, was it? To fall in love with him, an Akatsuki no less. The sensation she felt when she thought of him and the feeling of warmth when she used to think of Sasuke did add up, and though she never admitted it to Grandma Chiyo, her heart did feel like it was being squeezed when she saw the kunai pierced into his 'heart', and she did have a sudden urge to pull them out and heal him on the spot. At that time she thought that she was slightly delirious due to the poison that had managed to spread in her body, but her mind now told her a different thing.
"If…I really do like him…" she said to herself softly, "I- "
"Sakura!" came a high pitched voice from a house just a little distance away, "you're needed at the hospital! What're you still doing there?"
She turned and waved to the nurse, signaling that she was about to leave.
"Well, anyway, even if I did like him, I can't do anything about it. I…killed him…" she sighed, turning to leave.
"Why?" she said to herself, her eyes slightly tearing against her will.
"Of all the people, why must it be you?"
"Sasori…"
--
A dark figure watched as she turned away from the bridge, tears welling in her eyes, and ran back towards the village. He had been observing her for the past few minutes since she had come there. It wasn't that he was looking for her, she just happened to appear near the place where he was secretly recovering, and he had no choice but to hold his breath and keep perfectly still to make sure she could not sense him. He remembered what she had said to herself, what she had said about him. He thought about it for a while, and smiled to himself.
"My dear Sakura…I never knew you felt that way. Why didn't you tell me?" he said to himself, a hint of amusement in his voice.
"Don't worry, I never died, even if it seemed that way. Besides…"
The figure stood up and jumped off the tree branch, landing quietly on the soft grass. He pulled off his cloak and ran his fingers through his dark red hair, grinning at the pink-haired girl as she walked away, unaware that someone was watching her. He gave a small laugh and sighed as he pulled off the rest of his cloak to reveal a black cape with red clouds printed on it.
"Haven't you ever heard of kage bunshin?"