Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto, but if I did, I would keep him in my closet and hand-feed him ramen every day.

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Going Out with a Bang

Sakura was halfway to the Hokage's Tower when the dummy went off. She was suddenly glad that Tsunade had forced her to carry that trick around with her. It was bulky, but she had never been so happy to remember that it was in her Weapons pouch.

She could only hope that Sasuke hadn't noticed that it wasn't really her lying in a heap on the ground. But she also hoped that he hadn't been killed. A good maiming would suffice, really.

After all, I can't just forget the past as easily as he did. I'm not so heartless.

She shuddered a little and leapt on. Arriving at her destination, she limped in and made her painful way up the stairs, eventually finding herself on the business level. A twinge of exhaustion burrowed into her shoulders. Shizune was not to be found, and the place was utterly silent.

How bothersome. And, if I might add, extremely inconvenient for injured people.

With no real wish to bleed to death, Sakura headed for Tsunade's office. If the Hokage wasn't awake, she could let herself in; surely bleeding abdomens gave one clearance into the Hokage's office without announcement.

This was, however, supposed to have been part of a well-earned vacation for Sakura. Tsunade had ordered her to take some rest, and claimed she didn't want to see the girl again for at least a week. Sakura remembered this vividly, since it had sent her into a short trance of happiness upon its proclamation. It had been so long since she'd had a break…

Oh well… Sakura thought, approaching the Fifth's door. It's not like I have enough chakra left to heal this up myself.

Hushed but angry voices could be heard through the wall. Sakura leaned gratefully against it, forgetting completely about the door less than a foot away.

"HOW THE HELL DID HE GET IN?!" That would be Tsunade screaming.

Rapid footsteps grew louder, and the door was yanked open. "AND WHAT WERE YOU DOING JUST SITTING OUT THERE IN YOUR CONDITION?!" That would be Tsunade herself. Sakura almost smiled, but the fire in the Hokage's eyes burned away any thoughts of amusement. Sakura found herself being pulled in and shoved onto Tsunade's handy dandy hangover cot.

The girl was able to manage a weak grin when not directly in the path of the Hokage's terrible glare. "Didn't want to bother you."

"What kind of logic is that?!" Sakura winced; the screaming had barely decreased in decibels. And was it really necessary? So close to Sakura's ears, too…

"Blood-loss logic, it seems." Shizune was there, smiling gently at Sakura.

Tsunade's eyes flicked from one to the other, and then closed with a sigh. "Tangled with him, did you?"

"I assume you mean Sasuke?" Sakura blinked away recycled fatigue. "Yeah. And I got him pretty good too, I think…"

Which is to say, not at all… Unless of course the dummy worked better than I expected.

"Did you use the super-strength technique I taught you?"

"Didn't get a chance to. He came up to me when I was dozing and cut the small talk short before I could fully wake up. Of course, perhaps it was the fact that he… er…" Sakura faltered, only partially from wooziness.

"Yes?" Tsunade was impatient. She needed as many good answers as possible before putting the girl out for recovery.

Kissed me. "…distracted me. I mean, he used a big attack early on…" Right…

"How big are we talking?" Tsunade's concerned voice was tinged with curiosity. She needed details in order to assess how bad the damage could be, but she'd also long wondered just how much her ward could take, fight-wise.

The cogs in her brain clicked and Sakura realized something. "Oh yeah! I wondered why that looked so familiar… he used that Chidori jutsu."

Tsunade gaped. "CHIDORI?! I knew Kakashi taught it to him, but he used it on you, and you SURVIVED?!"

Sakura nodded slowly. The older woman stared at her for a bit longer and then rubbed her face briskly. "Goodness. 'He used that Chidori jutsu' she says with a grin on her face… Grief."

Sakura felt a pang of nostalgia as she remembered the admiration with which she'd watched him first perform the jutsu, back when they were still a team, back when life was simple.

I miss then.

And suddenly Shizune was propping her up on pillows, while Tsunade fished some healing scrolls out of a cabinet. Sakura stared out the window, stretching at the sound of parchment unfurling.

I wonder where he went…

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Sasuke fumed at himself. How had he not seen through such an obvious trap? And with the sharingan, no less?

Now I'm injured too, he complained. The boy sighed once more as he sat in the forest bandaging his various gashes and wounds. He wasn't quite sure what Orochimaru would say about all of this, but his only option was to go back empty-handed.

All of Konoha would be looking for him by now, or at the very least an ANBU team ordered by Tsunade. Surely Orochimaru wouldn't object to his retreating rather than trying to go against the esteemed Fifth, especially now that her temper would be boiling; he had hurt her special girl, after all.

Still… Sakura really did change.

A tentative smile appeared as he vaguely traced his lips.

The question is, was she always that good? Or did she only get better after I left?

In this self-centered state of mind, Sasuke picked himself up and disappeared into the canopy.