The idea for this story began with a dream I had one night, from which I based the entire first chapter. From there, I was further inspired to write several follow-up scenes where several of the characters have one-on-one conversations with each other, some romantic and some otherwise. Each scene will be rather short, almost to the point of drabble, but the catch is that they can all be tied together in the end (sort of).

Having just recently got into Naruto, I'm still a little vague in terms of characterizations. Much of what I "know" about characters, in fact, comes from various fanfictions on this site I've read. I've only seen a certain number of anime episodes (though I am up to date in the anime storyline), and have yet to read much of the manga. In terms of continuity, I suppose you can place this story somewhere after the time-jump. Specifically when doesn't matter.

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"The Scenario Series"
Part 1 of 10
by Tsubasa Hane

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Instincts where what first told her to run, her women's intuition screaming of the potential danger lurking in the shadows just behind her. The brush was too thick for tree-jumping, and only sporadic beams of moonlight illuminated the way. She could barely see where she was going, and only hoped she wasn't giving away enough for her stalker to discover her. For all she knew, she might as well have been running in pure darkness.

It was supposed to have been a simple mission, hardly worth of a "C" ranking. Nearby villages, three to be exact, had paid what little they could offer for additional medical supplies and assistance in the wake of a vicious attack. The enemy had long since retreated, leaving behind feelings of great relief along with the many wounded, and even a few dead.

She was clearly the best choice to send, according to Tsunade. Med-nins were always hard to lend out, with the constant fear of their assistances being needed at home looming about. Not only were her skills second in the village only to the Godaime herself, but she had enough combat experience as a kunoichi to warrant journey without an escort.

A decision she was suddenly regretting.

Despite her best efforts to remain unseen, there was a sudden strong chakra presence behind her. Too strong to leave to chance. Skidding to a hald, she reached for her weapons pouch. In one swift motion, she spun around and tossed a kunai at the presence.

A distinctive clink reached her ears as it was caught with ease. She didn't dare move a muscle, her eyes remaining focused on the shadows. Not a sound around them could be heard, the silence near deafening, until the mysterious figure finally appeared before her, stepping into the revealing moonlight.

"…Sasuke," she whispered softly.

His eyes were the first she noticed. How could she not, when they still haunted her dreams to that very day? Cold. Unfazed. Red. Sharinghan had been activated. It bore through her skull almost painfully, staring as if it were the first time he'd ever seen her. Like he was reading her every thought. Messy bangs fell over his eyes, further emphasizing their redness, with two long locks framing either side of his face. His hair had grown longer, the back falling just passed his shoulders in a low ponytail. He was pale, too. Frighteningly so. His skin practically glowed in the moonlight, and made the dark circles under his eyes even more prominent.

She never once noticed a thing about his clothing other than the fact that it was dark; her eyes never left his face.

"I admit," he broke the silence first, "of all people, I was least expecting you."

His voice surprised her in its tone, calm with traces of amusement behind it. She couldn't possibly gauge what he was feeling at the moment. For her part, she remained outwardly unfazed by his sudden appearance before her after all those years. Her stance was neutral, showing signs of neither attacking nor running away.

Silence consumed her, and he wasn't sure if it was because she couldn't speak or she wouldn't. The only sign of acknowledgement she'd given him since first saying his name was an apparent unwillingness to break eye contact.

"Sakura," he spoke again, a little harsher than before, "What are you doing here?"

It was then she realized just how coincidental their meeting truly was. By his manner of question, there was suddenly little doubt in her mind that he had nothing to do with the attacks on the villages. Which meant that he hadn't been sent after her by anyone. Chances were, he had merely sensed her presence nearby—considering she hadn't thought to mask her chakra at the time—and assumed she was there for him.

"I just came from a mission," she answered casually, as if it should have been obvious.

"By yourself?" He raised an eyebrow in disbelief.

"It was a medical assistance request." She knew she wasn't supposed to disclose mission information, especially to someone like him, but couldn't stop the words from coming. "Med-nin also trained as kunoichi hardly require escorts, and I'm more than qualified to travel a few hours from village to village alone."

His eyes narrowed considerably at her explanation, and she knew he was frustrated at the thought that she would lie to him. He didn't believe a word of it. Considering his last impression of her, back when they had been teammates years ago, it was hardly surprising.

He stepped forward, eyes briefly closing as a cocky smile appeared. "I highly doubt—"

The words barely passed through his lips before he was send flying backwards through the air. Initially caught off-guard, he quickly regained his composure enough to back-flip into a crouching position, sliding along the ground a few feet before coming to a halt. Without pausing, he looked up and tossed the kunai still in his hand back at her.

It landed in a tree directly behind, having missed her by mere inches. Wisps of hair flew across her face from the sudden rush of air, a few strands falling to the ground from having been sliced off. She hadn't so much as blinked.

Part of him had been expecting her to try and escape while he was momentarily distracted. She was still there. Part of him expected some weak defensive stance, as if she thought she stood a chance in a fight against him. She stood strong. One foot slightly in front of the other, fist still raised from where it had collided with his cheek. As he watched, she casually put it down. Her expression was unreadable.

"Please stay away, Sasuke," she stated softly, almost at a whisper. "I don't want to fight you. Please don't make me."

Confusing taking over, he slowly stood up. A hand went to his now throbbing cheek. The sheer force behind her punch had shocked him greatly. He hadn't expected her to be so…so strong.

Sharinghan faded away, leaving his normal dark eye color.

"You sound as pathetic as always," he scoffed in an attempt to hide his surprise. "Hardly worth my time. I suppose this is the part where you ask to come with me again?"

"No."

He blinked. "…what?"

"I said no. I won't follow you anymore, Sasuke." She stared at him, her eyes softening but her voice strong and steady. "I'll wait for you forever…but I won't follow."

A sudden gust of wind broke through the thick brush around them, stirring a few of the fallen leaves and flora around them. He stared at the kunoichi before him for what seemed like an eternity before stating: "You've changed."

"You've changed, Sasuke. I've grown up."

Her response caught him completely off-guard and without retort. His eyes widened slightly, unable to hide his surprise. This wasn't the pathetic weakling he knew back in Konoha, the whimpering fangirl he had left behind all those years ago. He thought back to the night where she had pleaded with him to stay. The look on her face as tears streamed down her cheeks, her voice saying things her mind couldn't possibly understand.

Up to that very night, he had never seen her as anything more than an annoyance.

Everything she wasn't acting like now. "I…suppose you have."

With one last look at her bewildered expression (having recognized the compliment he'd just given her), he slowly turned away to leave. The will to fight her had long since left him.

Her mouth opened, ready to call out his name, when he suddenly disappeared from her sight. She paused in mid-step, remembrance taking over, and so was not surprised when his presence reappeared directly behind her. She tensed up, expecting her to knock her unconscious.

Instead, he moved closer until his lips barely brushed across her ear. "Forever is a long time, Sakura."

"I know." She visibly shivered as his warm breath tickled against her neck.

"Tell the dobe to stay alive. He owes me a rematch."

With a gasp, her eyes widened at the subtle implication behind his words. Breaking out of the trance, she spun around to face him…

…but he was already gone.

"Sasuke-kun…" she murmured, her voice so tiny she barely recognized it.

Alone, she finally collapsed to her knees, staring blankly at the ground in front of her. It was then she realized just how badly she had been shaking. Her legs no longer wanted to cooperate. And even if they had, her mind was already too far gone.