Chapter 2
Sakura awoke. She was at home in her bed. She laid there staring at the ceiling, crying uncontrollably. Why had Sasuke left the village…Naruto…her? she thought to herself.
What she hadn't noticed was that he had brought her back to her house, almost all the way across the village from where they had been.
Her alarm went off but she didn't leave her room. She was too emotionally drained and confused. She had to take time to sort out all of the events that had happened the night before. She remembered leaving Naruto at the ramen bar and heading home. Then she had met Sasuke and begged him to stay. Next thing she knew, he was behind her and he whispered, "…Sakura…arigato." What did he mean?
Sakura stayed in bed until nearly noon. It was a Saturday and she didn't have anything to do. After getting showered and dressed, she went downstairs only to find Kotetsu and Izumo in her living room talking to her mom. She knew what it was about…Sasuke.
She had a somber look on her face and they understood that she knew why they were here.
"Sakura, I assume that you know why we are here," Kotetsu stated.
"Yes, I do. You are here because you found out that Sasuke-kun left the village to go to Orochimaru," Sakura said, sounding much older than she really was. "You're here because you think that I know something."
"Yes, we were hoping that you could tell us if Sasuke had been acting strange lately," Izumo replied.
"He wasn't acting strange at all. He was quiet as usual. Then, last night…" she paused. "Last night, I had been at the ramen bar with Naruto…"
Flashback
"Naruto, I'm gonna go home now." Sakura said. Thank you for the meal."
"Anytime," Naruto said. "Do you want me to walk you home, it's getting dark out."
"No thanks. I like walking and the moonlight is bright enough," she said still worried about Sasuke.
Sakura left Naruto and headed for home. Then she thought, "What if he tries to go with Orochimaru?" Instead of taking the direct route, she went the long way that took her to the edge of the village. After a while she ran into Sasuke, his head was down and it looked like he was thinking. She begged him to stay here with her and Naruto. He didn't listen to her. Instead, he just left.
End Flashback
She had left out the part about him saying, "…Sakura…arigato" because she knew it wouldn't matter. After she had told her story, she went to a park near her house. She sat on a swing and started to gentle rock back and forth. Her heart ached. It felt like it had been ripped out of her chest.
Just as she was about to burst into tears, Naruto came running up. "Hey Sakura, great morning, isn't it?" he said jumping up and down. Once he saw her face, his attitude changed completely. "…It's Sasuke…isn't it?"