A/N: Thank you for the all the follows and kind reviews!

"Death leaves a heartache no one can heal,

Love leaves a memory no one can steal"

Sakura stood nervously in front of the all too familiar light pink door. It was a door she had walked through many times as a child. A door that had been painted many years ago, to match the color of her hair.

Gathering the courage, Sakura walked into the small house, following the distant sounds of a breathing machine. The inside of the house was exactly as she remembered, but somehow the warmth and happiness she normally felt while visiting, was replaced with a deep sorrow.

Turning the corner, Sakura spotted her. An old greying woman, sitting in an oversized chair in front of a big picture window, watching the birds eating from the feeder. It was a sight Sakura was used to, but the tubes and overall frailty of the woman surprised her.

"Hey, Great Grandma." Sakura placed her hand lightly on Hoshiko Akira, her great grandmother, to let her know she was there.

"Sakura dear," Akira smiled up at her, "oh, look at how you've grown!" A shaky hand reached up to cup Sakura's cheek, "you're as beautiful as ever."

"Thank you." Sakura smiled down at her, feeling a pang of guilt wash over her. It had been too long since she had visited last.

"How are things going at the hospital? Your mother was telling me you have an apprentice now?" She was out of breath from asking those two brief questions.

Trying to hide her concern, Sakura forced a smile, "yes, Kiyoshi. You remember that little brown-haired boy that used to live next to me?" The older woman nodded her head, "that's my apprentice. He's grown into quite a bright, young kid." She smiled proudly, no longer forcing it.

"Oh, is that so?" Her great grandma asked, her voice rising slightly, in an almost shocked tone, "you know, I couldn't be prouder of you." Feeling her eyes well with tears, Sakura turned to face the window, "my little Sakura, making a name for herself."

A single tear broke free, streaming down her face at her grandmother's words. She had made a name for herself. It hadn't been easy, given who her teammates were; the last of the Uchiha clan, and the nine-tails jinchuuriki, the son of the Fourth Hokage. On top of that, her sensei was the legendary Copy Nin, whose name was whispered fearfully across all the Five Great Shinobi Nations. And her? She was that little pink-haired kunoichi who spent too much time fawning over her moody, raven-haired teammate, instead of honing her skills to become a useful and productive member of Team 7.

Despite all that was working against her, she had done it. She had taken her seemingly average ability as a Shinobi, and became a world-class medical ninja. One that was talented enough to inherit the Fifth Hokage's own jutsu; the Creation Rebirth. Average and useless were no longer words used to describe her. She was Haruno Sakura, a kunoichi whose beauty and strength were known throughout the shinobi world.

"He built me this birdhouse, many, many years ago." The two-woman sat quietly, watching the birds fly in, "I miss your great grandfather dearly." Sakura's hand reached out to squeeze her arm reassuringly, "he was by my side for nearly seventy years. Sometimes I wake up and turn to reach for him, but then I remember that he's no longer there, and I'm forced to relive those painful memories. I just want to see him again."

Sakura sat quietly, feeling a twinge of pain in her chest as she tried to fight back the tears that were forming again.

Shortly after the war had ended, her great grandfather had suffered a stroke and passed away a few days later. The damage done to his heart and brain were irreversible. No matter how desperately Sakura searched through Konoha's medical library, trying to find something, anything, that would help, it was too late. No medical ninjutsu could have helped him at that point.

This was why Sakura dedicated so much of her research into reversing brain damage. At times it seemed impossible, but if Tsunade could develop a jutsu that allowed her to survive being cut in half, anything was possible.

"Make sure you take care of that Hatake boy."

Sakura's head whipped in her great grandmother's direction, "Kakashi?" She had never heard him referred to as a boy before. He had certainly been a man ever since she had known him.

The older woman nodded, "your great grandfather and I used to be best friends with his grandparents." Sakura's eyes widened in shock, why had she never known this before? "We were there the day Sakumo was born." Her eyes crinkled in a smile as she spoke, "it was quite a sight to see a baby born with white hair."

Sakura snickered, "I'm sure he insisted it was silver."

"Like father, like son I suppose." The two women were now laughing together.

"Why hadn't you mentioned any of this before?" Sakura asked, after their giggles died down.

A few moments of silence passed before she finally answered, "they died in the war, a few years after Kakashi was born. After that, we didn't see Sakumo as much." She shrugged her shoulders, "we were at war after all." Sakura didn't miss the pained expression that crossed her face, "My heart used to break every time I thought of his grandparents, and all the suffering that poor family has gone through." A small, sad smile reached her lips, "but, now a Hatake is Hokage. I know they're proud, smiling down on us from above."

Sakura sat quietly, playing nervously with her hands. She desperately wanted to know what happened with Kakashi's father, or just any part of his past, for that matter. Kakashi's past was an enigma. Quite a few of Konoha's records had been destroyed during Pein's invasion, and Sakura wasn't sure if records regarding Kakashi's past existed. Even if she knew the records were there, she still wasn't sure she could pry into his past like that. It felt like spying, but regardless, the temptation was too strong now and she couldn't resist, "if you don't mind me asking, what happened to Sakumo?"

Akira turned towards her, a mixture of surprise, confusion and hurt crossing her face. "If he hasn't told you himself, dear, then I don't believe I should be the one telling you." Sakura lowered her face to her lap, feeling guilty for asking. "I'll tell you this," her head instantly snapped up, not wanting to miss what was coming next, "his death hit Kakashi hard. Harder than most and that poor boy has religiously worn that mask ever since."

Sakura's brows furled in thought, why would his father's death cause him to wear that mask? That threw out their theories of fish lips or crooked teeth. A person doesn't worry about such petty things after the loss of a loved one. No, the reason for his mask was much deeper and more symbolic than her and Naruto had imagined, and perhaps she would never truly know why.

A knock and sound of the door opening drew Sakura from her thoughts, "Akira, I brought you some-," the nurse stopped mid-sentence, "oh, Sakura. I didn't realize you'd be stopping by today." She looked down at the bag in her hands, biting her lip.

Reading her mind, Sakura stood up, "don't worry about the food, umm-," she paused, trying to remember the nurses name, but it was useless. She was terrible at names. "I have to get ready for my shift anyway." Bending down, she pulled her great grandmother into a tight hug, "I'll see you later, okay?"

Sakura was never good at goodbyes.

The funeral was a small, private affair, with only Sakura's family and close friends in attendance. Kakashi stood quietly, listening as family members recalled memories fondly, before breaking off into silent sobs. It was obvious Akira was a woman who was loved by her family deeply.

Scanning the crowd, Kakashi spotted Sakura. He hadn't seen her since their mission to Kiri, which was a little over a week ago. Currently, her back was turned to him, as she held onto her mother's and Kiba's hands tightly. The soft up and down of her shoulders indicated she was crying, letting her tears fall freely.

Naruto placed his hand on her shoulder, causing the shaking to stop as she turned to see who was there. For the first time since the funeral started, Sakura broke free from Kiba's hand, pulling Naruto into a bone crushing hug. Her face was twisted in agony, as she clenched the fabric of his kimono. The two of them stood silently, embracing each other.

After a few moments, Sakura's eyes fluttered open. Sea foam green met charcoal. Her look of agony turned to what he believed was confusion, as a crease between her brows formed. Was he not supposed to be there?

Breaking her gaze, he turned to scrutinize the crowd. Sai, Yamato, Ino, Shikamaru, Temari, Hinata, Shino, Chouji, TenTen, Lee, Tsunade, and Shizune were all present. All her friends were here, certainly he was supposed to be here too. His eyes met hers again, but she quickly averted her eyes as she finally let go of Naruto. Something was on her mind, but Kakashi wasn't going to dwell on it. She would tell him, whatever it was, when she was ready.

There was a small commotion at the front of the crowd, as Sakura's grandmother fell forward, frantically embracing the gravestone. The sounds of her wailing caused Kakashi to turn and quickly leave the cemetery. A coppery taste filling his mouth, as he bit down on tongue hard. Her grandmother's pleading kept ringing in his ears, "Mom, please don't leave me."

Kakashi's chest swelled, as he fought to keep the tears at bay. He bit down harder, angry for almost showing so much emotion. What the hell had gotten into him?

"You'll never believe what your father did, Sakura." Mebuki scowled in Kizashi's direction.

"There's no telling with him." Sakura rolled her eyes, as she took a bite of food. It had been a little over a month since her great grandmother's funeral, and Mebuki had finally convinced her to bring Kiba over for dinner, saying something about formally meeting him under better circumstances.

Sakura figured it was time anyway. Her and Kiba were now officially dating and practically living together, so she might as well get the formalities over with, sooner, rather than later.

"Hey now," her father scratched his chin, a large grin plastered on his face. "I thought it was rather clever, actually."

"Go on, tell them then." She stabbed at her food, clearly irritated.

"Well, your mother and I were on vacation, at this beautiful resort. Had the hot springs, bed and breakfast, the whole shot." Kizashi's hands moved as he talked, emphasizing every word, "so we go to check out and I see they tacked on an extra 5,000 ryo, an extra 5,000," he paused for dramatic effect, "can you believe that?" Sakura turned to Kiba, rolling her eyes again when she realized he was hanging off every word her father said, "so I turn to the guy working the counter, and I asked him why the hell they were charging me all these extra fees. The guy looks at me and goes, 'sir, those are the resort fees. For amenities, such as the spa and gym.'" Kizashi's voice deepened, as he poorly mimicked the hotel workers voice, "I said, 'resort fees, what for? I didn't even use the spa.' The guy just responds with, 'well sir, you could have.'" Kizashi paused, throwing his hands in the air as if saying, can you believe that shit? "Then I mentioned to him that I didn't use the gym either, but this guy says again, 'well sir, you could have.' At this point I'm irritated so I go, 'Well sir, I'm deducting 3,000 ryo for you fucking my wife.'" Sakura's chopsticks dropped from her hand in surprise, "and the guy quickly responds, 'but sir, I didn't sleep with your wife.' So I looked him right in the eye and said, 'well sir, you could have."

Kiba threw his head back, laughing so hard he almost tipped his chair. Sakura's hand covered her mouth as she tried to stifle her laugh. The death glare her mother was giving them was the only thing keeping her from laughing as heartily as Kiba.

"Don't encourage him!" Her mother threw her hands up in the air, exasperated. Kizashi sat there, grinning from ear to ear, clearly pleased with himself.

"Sorry, mom." Sakura was still trying not to laugh. She normally wouldn't even smirk at her father's antics, but she couldn't help it this time. It didn't help that Kiba was now happily wiping the tears from his eyes, his shoulders still slightly shaking with each laugh. "Don't egg him on!" Sakura playfully slapped his arm, laughing harder when their eyes met.

"Unbelievable." Mebuki stood up abruptly, shaking her head as she went to the kitchen.

"I'll take some too!" Sakura called after her mother, knowing she was headed to grab some much-needed sake.

The rest of dinner passed by quickly, as Kiba and Kizashi joked back and forth, much to her and Mebuki's expense, but Sakura didn't mind. It warmed her heart to see Kiba getting along so well with her family.

After a while, Sakura and Kiba said their goodbyes, happily walking side by side towards his house. His arm was draped comfortably around her shoulders, keeping her warm against the cold, winter air. "You know," Kiba looked down at her, a smile plastered on his face, "we should go on a little getaway together."

Sakura's heart leapt as she looked up at him surprised, "really?" She had never been on a romantic getaway before. Sasuke was her only previous boyfriend, and it kind of went without saying that he wasn't into that type of thing.

"Of course!" Kiba squeezed her body closer, if that was at all possible, "I've got some time off in two weeks. Think you could move your schedule around?"

She was now beaming up at him, her excitement clearly etched on her face, "I'm sure I could, but where would we go?"

"I was thinking maybe a cruise on one of those flying ships?" His eyebrow arched as he looked down at her, gauging her reaction.

Sakura's eyes widened, "even after what happened with the Tobishachimaru?"

"Oh, come on, those things have been flying for over a year now and nothing has happened since." Kiba's tattooed cheeks rose as he smirked, "besides, I've been told they have nice honeymoon suites."

"But we aren't married."

She rolled her eyes, but Kiba stopped walking, "marry me then." The smirk on his face was replaced with a soft, hopeful smile.

Sakura's jaw dropped, "Ki- what?"

"Marry me, Sakura." He took his hands in hers.

"Are you joking?" He shook his head, "Kiba, we've only been together a few months. It's a little fast, don't you think?" She bit her lip nervously. Yes, Kiba made her incredibly happy and she looked forward to coming home to him every night, but she wanted their relationship to be a little more established before they made that type of commitment together. Would he understand that?

Kiba's smile faltered, but was quickly replaced with a mischievous grin, "it is. I just wanted to see the look on your face when I asked." The look in his eyes didn't quite match his grin, "but I wouldn't complain if you said yes." He laughed softly, pulling her back underneath his arm as they began walking again.

Sakura placed her arm around his waist, tucking her head in the crook of his arm, "I just want to be more established before we make that leap together, is all. I'm sorry, Kiba." Her hand unconsciously tensed as she grew nervous, hoping he would understand.

"Relax, Sakura," the warm look in his eyes as he placed a gentle kiss on her forehead told her everything she needed to know. He understood.

Sakura pulled away slightly, smirking, "well, we could still get that honeymoon suite."

Sakura fell back on the bed, her arms outstretched with a smile. "Can you believe all these pillows?" She asked excitedly as she pulled one of the decorative pillows to her chest.

"Don't squeeze it too tight, that things bound to burst." Kiba dropped their bags at the foot of the bed, throwing himself beside her.

Sakura let out a squeal as the force of his body hitting the bed threw hers slightly into the air. "Did you pack on a few pounds?!" She giggled, placing her head on his chest as she lovingly patted his stomach, but he didn't have a chance to respond before she let out another squeal. "Look at this! It's umeshu!" She climbed over him, excitedly holding up the bottle, "I've always wanted to try this!"

Smirking, Kiba placed his hands on her hips, pulling her forcefully on top of him, "how about we crack that open and have a little fun?"

The bottle rolled on the floor, forgotten, as Kiba's lips crashed onto hers. They'd have to save that bottle for later.

Looking out the window at the vast land beneath them, Sakura sighed happily. Her head was resting peacefully on Kiba's shoulder. It was the last night of their vacation, but she was too far caught up her in her bliss-like state to think about such things. Words couldn't truly describe the peacefulness of her little getaway. There were no medical emergencies, pulling her from her sleep at odd hours of the night. No rambunctious teammates pulling her into early morning trainings. No stuffy council meetings to prepare for. No seemingly endless paperwork to complete. She could truly relax here.

"Inuzuka Kiba?" The couple broke apart, turning to see one of the ships employees standing behind them. "Sorry to bother you, but I have a message."

Kiba's brow creased as he stepped forward, accepting the scroll. His shoulders blocked Sakura's view, but when she heard the rustling of the scroll, she could visibly see his body tense. Quickly closing the scroll, he shoved the letter in his vest, as he thanked the employee.

Wordlessly, he turned around, looking out the window once again, as he absentmindedly pulled Sakura to his side. From the tone in his voice, it was clear he was annoyed.

"Is everything okay?" Sakura looked up at him, concerned.

He took a deep breath before answering, "yeah, just work related." His eyes flickered over to hers, silently telling her not to dig any deeper.

Sakura bit her lip, deep in thought. Something about the look in his eyes bothered her. His work as a member of the ANBU was rarely discussed between them, and certainly wasn't to be talked about in such a public place, but she couldn't fight the nagging feeling that he wasn't being completely honest with her. Why would he have such a visible reaction to a mission scroll? And why wouldn't they wait to send the mission details when he was back in Konoha tomorrow morning? Wasn't there some risk in sending such classified information outside of the city walls?

Tamping down on the feeling of uneasiness rising inside her, Sakura faked a smile. "Shall we grab some dinner?" She asked, as she grabbed his hand and pulled him towards the dining hall.

He had never given her a reason to doubt him before, and she wasn't about to let her unwarranted thoughts get in the way of their vacation.

After all, she trusted him.