And I'm back with another chapter of Healing Eyes! I hope everyone enjoys and I also wanted to say that I was very very pleased at how many reviews I got. Twelve on my first chapter? That's almost unheard of for me, but now I must warn you. Since this is my second chapter and all I will be expecting TEN reviews before I update again.

Disclaimer: I don't own fishcakes, nor do I own Shika's letter/poster thing.

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The Warm Ice that Graces my Cheeks

Haruno Sakura

A kunai whizzed past my face. It had been thrown by Sai. My own team member had attacked me and I knew exactly why. "You bitch!" He screamed, losing control of all his emotions. "What the hell were you thinking?"

I had already activated my mind reading jutsu to tell me what the cause was of his slurred anger. It wasn't hard to find. That particular thought seemed to be controlling his rash actions. "I believe I was thinking we should complete this tedious mission, Sai-san."

"Don't give me that 'san' bullshit! You knew that I knew that boy," Sai snapped.

I felt the urge to smirk at his remark. I preferred to keep the killing at a minimum during a mission, especially when that includes my allies. Of course, I had never had any regret for the lives I took, I just despised the reports I would have to give to explain my reasoning behind the murder. I had already earned two enemy reports. I would have to write at least a page for each member of Akatsuki that I sided with for this mission and give my motivation for not killing them on the spot.

"Does it matter if I did?"

"That boy, he was my brother! My dead brother from all those years ago! How could you send to kill the one person who I wished would still be alive?"

"You already know the answer Sai-san. Your mind is cluttered with fury and revenge. The answer will come to you if you-" Another kunai sliced the air beside my cheek.

"You still sent me and you knew! You whore! You are a heartless bitch!"

"Of course I did Sai-san," I stated calmly, refusing to cease my formalities towards him. "This is an important mission."

"You still could have allowed me to fight Sasuke instead. There was an alternate option!"

Sai's arguing was beginning to become pointless and threatening towards the other on my team. The time had come to end this ridiculous dispute. I had already started to dig through the filing cabinets of my mind before Sai ended his last sentence. I finally came across something that could be of assistance. One of the oldest tricks in the book.

"Sai-san, Sasuke-san was much more powerful than the person you defeated. I would have been sentencing you to death."

"And sending me to kill my brother isn't?"

As Sai continued to rant on about how horrible and heartless I was, I made the proper signs for a mind-numbing jutsu from behind my back. If Sai would have been in his normal mindset, he would have known and countered what I was doing. The behind-the-back-jutsu was one of the first things we were taught in the academy.

"And you always kill-"

I chose my next words quickly and carefully before I spoke. If I didn't, Sai would soon become out of control. "You have become a threat to this mission Sai-san, I must do this."

An almost invisible force flew from my body and leaped into his. He fell immediately to the bloodied ground next to Sasuke and the squirrel. I gestured towards Kakashi to attempt to uphold his attention span and quit with the irksome flinching.

"Please carry him and I will lead."

Kakashi nodded with a somewhat solemn look intended for Sai. I am not exactly sure why he gave Sai that look. The numbing jutsu wasn't particularly painful. It was more pleasant if anything, but I could only guess that it had something to do with me.

I turned my back when Kakashi had begun to bend down so I could avoid his disappointed eyes. We had no more time for any arguments. Without speaking another word, I pounced into the tree I had previously been leaning upon.

I ignored the sound of Kakashi's feet prodding behind me and carefully revealed the note from Naruto. I opened it as neatly as I could. Naruto had spent more time folding this piece of paper than actually writing the letter. That was just how he was.

Before I even attempted to read Naruto's chicken scratch, I smoothed it out to make it a bit more legible.

My Dearest Sakura-chan,

I want you to know that I could never live without you. We will soar together, if you die, I think I will too. I want to live my faerytale life as I planned it and never wake up, but I always forget there is no such thing. Awake and unafraid; asleep or dead. This is ours.

I want to swim through the water and look at the moon and be filled with the music of the dead of night even when we are on our own. I love you, I love you, I love you. I could never live without you and I want this to last. I want to run through the long grass and feel the rain on my face and be able to look around and see you until my heart bursts.

I want angels to run through our heads and a feral spirit to haunt us and be part of us in this wasteland we call home. I want us to dance under the hill and get drunk on life and cry and laugh and scream and feel our hearts as one. I want to see the beauty in everything like we did when we were children. I want to take pictures of everything and hear and touch and taste until we fall into the grace forever.

Sakura, I'll be there through it all, even if saving you sends me to heaven.

-Uzamaki Naruto

A warm sticky liquid slid down my cheeks and onto my chapped lips. It tasted…salty. I stopped on a branch and brought my fingers to my face.

This salt water, it was coming from…my eyes? What was this trickery?

I had paused long enough for Kakashi to catch up with me. He came to my side and laid Sai on a wide branch. Gently, he placed his arm around me and whispered into my ear. "Sakura, what's wrong?"

I was slightly annoyed by him not using the formalities that I had become so attached to, but for some reason, it didn't bother me too much. It was like nothing else mattered except this moment. I looked up at Kakashi and saw his face contort into one of shock.

"Sakura, you're crying…"

At that moment, it seemed that everything was crashing down on me from the past few years. All the people I had killed, all the people I had hurt, all the people I had turned down because they wanted to help me, they all came back to haunt me. I Haruno Sakura, the emotionless ANBU captain of Konoha, was crying.

A nostalgic voice entered my mind.

'It's ok Sakura-chan. I'm back.'

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Tada. There was the moment we have all been waiting for! She's back! Cha!

Ok, now a few of ya'll were wondering about my myspace. I have the url up on my profile so check it out and add me. Sneak Peeks etc. will be there!

Anonymous Review replies:

Don't feel like signing in: I hope this was soon enough for you and I hope you enjoyed!

Carolyna: No I didn't think you were criticizing me, but I reread what I said and it sounded a little ride so sorry 'bout that. And thanks for sayin' I have talent. J

Unnamed: Cha. Update for you. Thanks for the review.

Pinkcrayon: Still a bit short I know, but it is longer. Thanks for the review.

Your lovely authoress,

SachiruNatsu

Fun Fact: You swallow at least three microscopic spiders every night. O.o