Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto.
She shifted uncomfortably in the plastic chair of the hospital cafeteria. A white lab coat lay folded on her lap where her fingers picked at each other anxiously. Across from her, a smiling young man with rather unfashionable round-rimmed glasses had been conversing with her for the past five minutes. In that time, she had gathered that his name was Yakushi Kabuto, a medical student with Japanese origins. He was also apparently the assistant to Orochimaru – the world's leading expert in regenerative medicine. Sakura had heard some rather unsavory things about the rather strange researcher and had pointedly avoided coming into contact with him. It seemed like Tsunade didn't want her to either.
Kabuto's pale hair was messily tied back at the base of his neck and his scrubs were in an equal state of wear. "So, Sakura," he rolled her name out in a way that made her shiver unpleasantly, "there's been a lot of talk about you. Is it true that Tsunade-sama really recommended you?"
"Yes," she responded politely, forcing a smile onto her face as she discretely scooted away from the intensity of his gaze. "She was the one who convinced me to apply to an American university, so it was only natural that she would know me best."
"No wonder," he went on, nodding with a calculative gleam in his dark eyes, "there are rumors that you're the most talented intern to join our ranks since Tsunade-sama herself."
She shook her head quickly. "Those are exaggerated," Sakura chuckled, "I'm still only an undergraduate."
"Not for long, right?" he mused, "Your senior year starts next week, right? Besides, it's already guaranteed that you'll start up at our med school right away. I'm sure she wouldn't let anyone else snatch up her precious apprentice."
The edge to his voice only made it harder to refrain from bolting. Quelling the nerves, Sakura met his gaze. "Well, it's never good to be overconfident, right, Yakushi-san?"
"Kabuto," he corrected easily, his smile grim, "we are in America. No need to be so formal."
"Of course," she murmured carefully, sipping the cup of coffee in front of her thoughtfully. After a moment, she opened her mouth to speak, catching his attention. "Tsunade-sama told me that Orochimaru-sama is only a visiting researcher."
"That's right," Kabuto nodded a bit, "we have our main base of operations in Germany; however, he wished to conduct some research on poisons and everyone knows Tsunade-sama is the expert in that department." He pushed his glasses up. "Which reminds me, it seems that although you're her apprentice, you've been gaining recognition for your work in ophthalmology rather than toxicology. Normally, those two fields don't intersect."
Sakura wondered silently why this man seemed to be trying to pry information out of her. Why was he so interested? Or rather, how did he already know so much? Had people really been talking about her to this extent? Slightly disturbed at the notion, Sakura downed the remainder of her coffee and stood up with an apologetic glance at her watch. "Sorry to run like this. I have to be getting back to work." She flashed him a smile. "We'll talk next time. Nice to meet you, Kabuto."
A thin smile worked its way onto his face. "Of course," he murmured, "next time."
The cafeteria door shut behind her and she heaved a sigh, rubbing her temples tiredly. Her eyes fell to her pocket that vibrated. Slipping out the phone, she found several text messages from Naruto. They had stayed in contact via an international messaging app, and while she had been happy about it at first, it seemed as if recently he had been blowing up her phone with numerous, needless texts.
Nonetheless, she checked them all dutifully.
Sakura-chaaaaan! Are you coming back anytime soon?
You promised me you'd visit this summer!
It's already August…
Is Granny Tsunade locking you up in some lab again?
Teme got the highest score in the first criminology exam of the year. He's such a show-off!
Sakura giggled, despite herself. Of course, there was no way anyone could beat Sasuke – even in university. Walking back toward her office, she scrolled the remaining few messages and was unsurprised to find that they were mostly about his growling stomach and figuring out a way to get his best friend to buy him ramen for dinner.
Pushing the door open, she gently shut it and flopped down in her chair. There was a large window behind her, offering a view of the manicured courtyard. Patients walked about at varying paces, some in wheelchairs and crutches while others made their way alone. She turned away from the sight and rummaged through her drawers, searching for the rice balls she had packed that morning. No matter how much she enjoyed the heartiness of American food, she just couldn't get herself to eat much of it.
Her fingers brushed over the opening of her purse and she stuttered. Feeling silly, she bent down and pulled out the object that had frightened her. A small smile touched her lips but refused to reach her eyes. The white and red fan charm had migrated with each new house key she obtained over the years. Wasn't it too strange to throw it away?
He eyed the very pink, very feminine object that had found its way onto the normally empty ring his keys hung from. One dark brow rose with a mixture of chagrin and curiosity.
Sakura laughed behind her hands, watching him affectionately from her perch on the couch. "It's cute, right?"
"For you." He retorted.
"What? No! For you, too!" she argued, unable to stop the laughter from spilling over. Clearly displeased with her teasing, Sasuke went about disengaging the offending charm. "Don't take it off!" Sakura jumped up, hurrying over to stop him.
Grunting, he moved it out of her reach, continuing to slide the chain in reverse around the metal ring.
"Look, we're matching!" She quickly fumbled around for her purse and pulled out her own keys. There were numerous trinkets hanging from it, but one in particular caught his eye. Sakura picked it out, holding it up for him to see more clearly. "It's an uchiwa in your family's colors," she explained, slightly flustered.
"Why do you have that one?" he responded, lowering his arms, confused.
Her face reddened further. "Well, because," she mumbled, looking down, beginning to fidget, "…I want to be reminded of who I belong to." Playing with the smooth fan-shaped charm, she added in a softer voice, "It doesn't make sense for you to carry the Uchiha symbol like this."
Sasuke was quiet for such a long time, Sakura was forced to check if he was still there or not. Indeed, he was still standing in front of her, an inscrutable look on his face. Ebony locks fell in a tousled mess around his porcelain face, tickling the strong column of his tensed neck.
Slowly, he picked the cherry blossom keychain back up and secured it to the ring once more. His dark eyes settled on her brightened features and he raised two fingers, tapping her forehead gently. A faint smile curved his lips.
Sakura blinked away the memory, patting her cheeks several times in hopes of cooling the heat that had risen. Slumping back against the cushioned chair, she groaned into her hands. It was pathetic, she was quite aware, to be hung up on a man who she had severed ties with.
In the end, it was her fault. But perhaps it was righteous punishment for giving someone like him yet another bad memory. Perhaps she was to suffer an undying love never to be reciprocated again. Sakura laughed humorlessly at herself.
"Really…I'm an idiot." She smoothed the pad of her thumb across the uchiwa, memorizing it, soothing it, caressing it in a way she was sure would never reach him again. But it wasn't a lie. It was a reminder – even now – and that was why she couldn't simply discard it.
She belonged to him until the end of time itself.
