My Dear Love

...who has loved me; killed me.

"What's wrong with Sasuke-kun?" came the concerned voice of Karin while she glanced between Suigetsu and Jugo expecting an answer. They both shrugged, their faces straight, "He doesn't seem to be suffering from any injuries, that wouldn't make sense." was the only thing Jugo could voice.

Karin glared in annoyance, "I already know that, moron." she took a deep breath and began to pace around the cold room, "I found him on the floor of his room and he wasn't responsive until I transferred my chakra into him. That's how weak he was."

The three members of Team Hebi looked at each other, each with a look of confusion on their faces.

"All we can do now is to keep him alive long enough until we figure out what's going on."

Silence ensued.

I can't move... It hurts everywhere.

His obsidian orbs glanced about the dim room, his vision was blurred, his body was covered in cold sweat and his head pounded intensely. He made a look of disgust as the familiar taste of blood, his blood, filled every crevice of his mouth.

His head shot to the side as he spat out the crimson liquid, staining the side of his cheek and throat as well as the crisp, white pillow beneath his head. With every breath he took a scorching pain spread through his lungs and settled deep within him until it became almost unbearable to inhale any longer.

He could hear the blood pumping in his ears, as if the sound was maximized somehow, and the beating of his heart that almost seemed to waver every now and then.

"I'm dying." he breathed with a gurgle in his throat as more blood entered it. The matter-of-fact statement, the truth, bounced off the walls with an intensity that hit Sasuke full on. "I'm dying, I- no! Fuck, I can't die, not until -" he was delirious, it was that obvious, even to him.

His listless body, flesh and bones, felt as if it was sinking into the mattress because of the force that the truth was weighing upon him. The hatred, lust, desire, vengeance gathered in his core and flared outwards, licking at his broken and vulnerable body; coaxing him to go on, to allow his body to be fuelled by hate only.

His nostrils flared as a tremor shook his body violently, a shiver ran up his spine and the on set of nausea took over him. He could smell her, vaguely, but the scent was present. The bittersweet odour of their hungry sex, fucking, clung to the room, permeated his skin.

His eyes flew open, his heart was beating erratically and his body lurched forward with the intent to kill.

Kill her.

Kill Sakura.

"I'll fucking kill you." He spat with venom dripping off of each word, syllable. At that moment he knew that he had been betrayed, tricked, and now he was paying for his stupidity. He let his guard down for her, no, he let down his guard for sex.

She had done something to him, he was almost sure of it. Sakura would pay dearly for her betrayal, for making a fool of Sasuke Uchiha. And as the overwhelming realization, the stinging pain, ate away at him Sasuke let his head lull back onto the pillow and a horrifying scream was released, hit the bare walls and evaporated into silence.

This... the vial containing a deadly elixir would be the end of him. The end of heartache, of vengeance... of hatred. He would be rendered useless in the eyes of the creature that desired him most. This elixir would destroy him from the inside, leave him weak and powerless.

Could he still call himself a shinobi? No... not after he betrayed them all, he had lost that title long ago when he sided with the enemy.

She shouldn't worry over such things, trivialities, at a time like this; a time fuelled by paranoia and tension. This mission had to be carried out, Tsunade – the entire village was counting on her to see the mission through.

Her vision blurred and her head ached, was her heart aching too? Sakura pressed her back against the trunk of a great tree and glanced up at the midnight sky above her. Had another memory come back to her just then?

"That boy..." she breathed and touched her sweaty brow. "I poisoned him because that women told me I had to do it. But I -" she felt an unfamiliar prickling sensation behind her eyes and a tightness in her throat that proved to be uncomfortable, and her orbs felt heavy all of a sudden before the hot tears slipped past the closed lids and slithered down her red cheeks.

"What is this?" she fingered the trail of wetness along one cheek, "I'm crying, but I don't feel any sadness." her throat tightened on the last syllable and she was forced to choke back a low wail. Disgusted with the apparent weakness she was displaying Sakura stood abruptly and used her forearm to wipe away the tears on her face.

What was this aching feeling? She placed the palm of her hand over the area where her heart was located and could feel the steady rhythm it produced, but there was a pain located there too.

Heartache.

She brought her thoughts back to her saviour and what he had required of her, but the thought of him made her skin crawl and a shiver to run up her body; her heart began to beat quickly and foreign feeling entered her being. Was this anger? Revenge? Hatred?

Itachi had warned her not to trust Orochimaru, but... then who could she place her trust in?

Clearing her head, Sakura went in the direction that she had been instructed to travel in. To retrieve that boy and to bring him back to Orochimaru at all costs.

"Sasuke-kun! You can't leave like this!" Karin shouted as she stormed after the male. Suigetsu and Jugo appeared suddenly, both confused, "What the hell's going on, Karin?" asked Suigetsu. The red-haired woman glared at him, "He's trying to leave. He won't listen to me when I tell him that he's not in any condition to leave the base."

Sasuke glanced over his shoulder at the group and continued to secure the sheath of his katana to his side. "Please, Sasuke-kun, stay... with me." Karin pleaded, her eyes filled with concern. She had once said that exact thing to him years ago, right before he had walked out of her life, out of their lives. Suddenly, at the thought of her, he grew angry and putrid hate coursed through his veins. He turned to look Karin in the eye, his own were filled with hate and anger, "Fuck off. You're concern is annoying, Karin."

And he turned and walked away, out of the base, out of the area that they remained and in search of that girl with pink hair and lustful eyes.

She was aware of his presence in the area and immediately came to a halt to survey the environment for any signs of him. He came rushing down from the tree branches and landed on his feet, almost in a sloppy manner, and glared at her.

"No more fucking around, huh? I'm going to slaughter you where you stand." he spat and unsheathed his katana, ready for battle. Sakura bent her knees slightly in case she was forced to evade the barrage of attacks she was sure he would send her way.

"You're supposed to come with me. I need to take you to him." her green eyes met his black ones and the tension settled between them. "You've ruined me, Sakura." he frowned and gripped the hilt of his katana tightly, "I'm a mess! What did you do to me?" he yelled and flung himself in her direction, katana raised and ready to kill.

Sakura dodged easily and countered with hand-to-hand combat, but he blocked and countered as well with ease. She could sense, however, that his chakra was draining at an increasing speed and not too soon after this realization Sasuke was forced onto one knee, out of breath.

Suddenly, seeing him like this, she had an urge to gather him up and comfort him, save him. She could feel the tears welling again, but there was no sadness present whatsoever. She took one step towards Sasuke's keeled over body, but he tensed every muscle at the sound of her approach.

"Sasuke..." she breathed as the tears fell freely. Her body had a mind of its own because she rushed towards him. Sasuke's eyes widened a fraction and before she could fully reach him he used the last remnants of his chakra and poised his katana towards her abdomen. Using her hand she grabbed the katana and forced it away from her body and tackled Sasuke to the ground. Sakura managed to remove the katana from his grip and tossed it to the side, "Wait a second." she shouted in his face, tears still spilling from her eyes.

"Don't fucking cry, Sakura. It makes you look weak." he taunted with evil glinting in the depths of his black orbs. She tensed at his statement and, without thinking, raised her fist and landed a hard blow to his right cheek, leaving it dark red.

He was stunned into silence and glared up at her, "I don't know what's going on!" she screamed at him in anger, "I can't remember anything! I don't even fully recall who you are or what you are to me." He almost began to laugh like the sicko he was, "We fucked. That's the extent of our relationship." Sakura grabbed him roughly by the front of his open shirt and dragged his upper body upwards and closer to her.

"I don't want to do what he says. I feel... no, I know it's not right." Sasuke laughed at that statement and tried to break her grip from him, "You're more stupid than you ever were before." Sakura glared at him in warning, "I want to fix this, I want to make things right."

"Unless you can cure a dying man then it's futile." Sakura's eyes widened at that, "You're dying?" He looked deep into her eyes, "You poisoned me." Sakura's grip loosened only slightly, but it was enough for Sasuke to reverse their positions, he on top and she on bottom. He gazed down hungrily at her partially exposed breasts and tightened the hold he had on her.

She struggled beneath him, rocking their bodies in a motion that caused Sasuke to become aroused, she could feel the bulge pressing against her and colour rose to her cheeks. "Do you remember this?" he breathed against her neck and rubbed himself against her sex. She moaned and turned her face away from him, but Sasuke forced her to look back at him.

He brought his face close to hers but never once succumbed to kissing her, instead he attacks her neck and throat with nibbles and licks that only aroused her further. He unzipped her shirt and pushed it open before he devoured the skin of her chest and took the creamy mounds into his hands and nibbled at the tight, pointed peaks.

"Sasuke..." The murmur of his name, faint as it was, broke him out of his reverie and the next thing he knew he had pushed himself away from her, his body still craving the closeness of flesh on flesh. He began to sway and felt that his chakra was spent, he collapsed on the ground before Sakura could reach him.

"It's odd, but I feel as if he meant more to me at an earlier time." she mused aloud and cradled his head in her lap, brushing the dark locks away from his passive face. "I did this to him." she stated matter-of-factly, her eyes half closed and her heart lurching at the thought of it.

"What is our true relationship, I wonder..."

Author's Note: Woah... It's been a while, but I'm in University so I have no free time on my hands, but I hope those of you who are still following this fanfic enjoyed this chapter; I know it was a little on the short side, but I'm saving the rest for later chapters.

m.L