Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto, or any of the characters.

Hiiiiiii, just me bringing another update. I'm hopefully going to work on getting through this story and not drag it out, so I'm not sure how many chapters it will have but I guess we'll see! Anyways, I hope you enjoy this chapter, as it's told from Sasuke's POV. Lemme know what you think :) and thank you for taking the time to read it!

Also, to answer the question about Sasuke not knowing Sakura: I had mentioned that he didn't really pay attention to the kids while at the academy, but he DID know her, just not entirely recognize her at first. Anywho, enjoy!


Familiar
"everyone's face
keeps changing,
yet yours,
chooses familiarity."


"My wife is going to hear about this and give you all HELL!" The screams came from behind bars as Sasuke pushed through the doors, his onyx eyes glanced to the man.

From behind the metal cage, he could make out the unnatural shade of hair that the man possessed, and like himself, it sprouted in different directions. He simply shook his head before clocking back in from lunch and reported to Shisui, who was simply seated at one of the tables in the back room, sipping on a small cup of coffee.

"Oi, Sasuke. You ready?"

"Yeah," his reply was simple and quiet. The day had been quite busy, considering the loud man they had taken in that morning.

He was nothing more than a drunk, unconscious on the side of the street closer towards the center of the village. When Sasuke had found him, the man did nothing more than take a swing at the Uchiha before stumbling to the dirt road and finding himself with his arms placed firmly behind his back.

"It's part of the job," Shisui coughed out before tossing the paper cup to the garbage. His captain's hand came to clasp his shoulder and as Sasuke offered a not-so-real smile, the older Uchiha grinned ear to ear. "I can see through that, Sas. I've known you since you were little."

Sasuke rolled his obsidian eyes before smirking deeply. "What's on the agenda for this afternoon?"

"I thought you'd never ask," Shisui's grin never vanished, and as he swung his arm around Sasuke's shoulders, he began to steer him from the back room and towards the hallway located near the back of the building. "Seeing as we've had a somewhat successful morning, why not spend some time on guard watch?"

Sasuke frowned slightly, not liking the way their conversation was headed; nor the way they were headed. Instead of walking through the large doors that resided at the end of the hall, Shisui began to walk left, taking his arm back and leading the way. Their boots clicked through the halls as they walked in perfect unison. Sasuke took into account just how bare the walls were around him, and as Shisui's pace slowed, the small jingle of a key caught his attention. The door ahead of them opened as his captain shoved it, and on the other side was a set of stairs.

"Almost there," his voice echoed through the stairwell, along with their foot falls as they began the climb up them.

"Itachi is home," Sasuke spoke quietly.

Shisui stopped mid step and turned to look at Sasuke. "Is he okay? I haven't heard from him yet."

The older Uchiha's tone changed, concern coating his once excited tone and while his eyes remained on the wall to their left, Sasuke could see something break from the inside.

"He's got a medic doing some work on him as far as I know. I'll see him again tonight, though. He's on bed rest -"

"I'll come with you tonight then. I'm curious to see just how hurt the great Itachi Uchiha actually is," Shisui snickered before walking once more.

Sasuke only frowned before falling into step with him once more. Once the pair reached the top, natural light flooded the floor. Sasuke squinted his eyes as a hand flew up to shade them, balancing against his forehead as he overlooked the yard below them. From above, Sasuke stood next to Shisui as a small handful of prisoners spotted the ground below.

"While we not only take them in and lock 'em up, but they also qualify for some fresh air here and there," Shisui explained in a stern tone. His onyx eyes held a fierce look now as he explained more information to Sasuke, leading the way along the upper wall.

While the Police Force building had been large, Sasuke hadn't thought that on the backside of the building, it had an actual yard for the inmates held there. Sunlight reached down the ground, hiding behind minimal clouds as the blue skies expanded above them. A slight breeze was also present that day, but after standing in the light, Sasuke could feel himself heating up slightly.

"Now then," Shisui turned his back to his younger coordinate. "Are you ready for the most exciting part of the job?"

Sasuke inhaled deeply before running a large hand through obsidian locks. Had Shisui always been this sarcastic, even while working?

"Sure thing."

xxx

It had been hours since Shisui left Sasuke to watch over the yard and prisoners; while it wasn't the same group that had been there all day, Sasuke had noticed - although Shisui had explained briefly before he left - that a different crew overtook the yard every hour. Sasuke was now on his fifth hour of watching the inmates wander, no action arising and leaving the younger Uchiha to do his own wandering on the wall.

It was when his eyes noticed the unnatural head of hair in the yard that he squinted. It was the drunk man that they had taken in earlier that day, and while he was minding his own business, it had occurred to Sasuke that the man's eyes were narrowed sharply at him. He neither spoke nor moved from his spot in the corner, only stared with a pissed off facial expression, resulting in Sasuke to roll his eyes and continue his walk.

"Shifts up, " the sudden voice pulled him from his thoughts, startling his body and making his obsidian eyes to find his captain. Seconds after the interruption, the alarm sounded for the inmates to return to their cells. "We need to do a release. The man from earlier? His wife wouldn't talk to anyone, so his daughter is here to grab him."

"Lovely," Sasuke replied with a dry voice. He'd have his father's head if he had to pick him up from the confines of one of the well known police stations.

Sasuke was already guzzling water the second they reached the break room. He hadn't sat down or even thought of taking a short break since his lunch had ended, and now that the cool air blew from the vents overhead, he felt like he could finally relax. His report from earlier had been written in deep description, filed and taken care of - the only thing left was to release to the bastard to his poor daughter.

"Oi, Sas. She's here," Shisui called from the entryway.

With his captain by his side, the two walked in unison to the holding chamber. From within, the man sat on the bench with that same pissed off expression from earlier, only his eyes landed on the older Uchiha.

"Scumbags," the man snorted as Shisui opened the door.

Sasuke raised a single brow as he remained waiting for the man to exit the door. With a slight limp, he emerged from his holding cell and began to fall in step behind Shisui, and Sasuke behind the man.

"Your daughter came to pick you up tonight, Kizashi."

Kizashi Haruno.

The small sigh didn't go unnoticed as Sasuke remained behind the man. Not only did his head drop slightly, but his shoulders tensed, as well as his back. "Stay out of trouble next time, yeah? That, or call us to at least come take care of you, instead of pick you up in the wee hours of the morning."

It amazed Sasuke how sincere Shisui's tone had been with the man. It wasn't out of character for him to do, but to see and hear the amount of sympathy coming from Shisui was definitely strange; but the strangest thing that happened that day was a pair of familiar viridian eyes that latched on to Sasuke's as they exited the building. The look that he found there was hard, fire blaring from within. Even the way she held her body had anger written all over it. Was the Sakura Haruno daughter to Kizashi Haruno? Sasuke glanced once more from the pale and dirty man before meeting Sakura's stance with a sense of reality.

Kizashi, as hard headed and stubborn of a man that he was, didn't look to meet his daughter's eyes. He neither said a word, nor even looked to his surroundings - only kept his gaze on the ground.

"Thanks for picking him up this morning. I'm sure he had a great day."

Sasuke watched as the medic from earlier glanced at him once more, before offering a small smile and a slight wave of the hand. Had she left from his house and came straight here to pick up her father? If that were the case, then he was curious to see exactly how Itachi was doing now. Sasuke was still looking into Sakura's emerald orbs, lost in thought as he watched the way her eyes began to grow soft, faint memories of a dream he'd had recently returning to his mind, only to be ripped from such a familiar presence as Shisui's elbow dug into his ribs.

"He wasn't an issue. I'm glad he didn't cause any harm," Sasuke caught on carefully before Sakura smiled once more, amused with the way Shisui rolled his eyes playfully. "Have a good night."

The pink haired medic glanced at her father before narrowed eyes turned and she began to walk away from both Shisui and Sasuke, leaving them to stand alone at the departing doors.

"All right, I'm out of here. I'll catch you later if you swing by to see Itachi," Sasuke quickly noted before pushing through the doors and making way for his locker.

There was something eerily familiar about Sakura, and he'd be damned if he didn't want to find out. Instead of removing his clothes in a neat manner, he discarded them, threw them into the metal closet and slammed the door with haste as he pushed from the locker room and quickly towards his file. He'd marked his time, finished signing his papers and began to jog down the steps that led to the doors of the Konoha Police Force Institute.

He'd been in such a hurry, he didn't even have time to throw his sweater on over his head. Instead, obsidian eyes scanned the street for a pair walking with unnatural colored hair; one with tensed shoulders and one that walked with such a temper, he'd never reckon with. Sasuke's feet carried him quickly down the street, waving a quick hello to relatives and stall owners that had seen him wandering the streets, and as he finally reached the main gates to the Uchiha's section of town, he had found her.

Her chakra presence was rather overwhelming, he noted, as she continued to walk alongside her father. Faint words passed through his ears as he walked slowly towards them, careful not to intrude any meaningful conversation. Alas, nothing more came from their walk. Instead, they walked side by side, the medic looking at her surroundings, while Kizashi kept his eyes on the ground. Sasuke could only cringe at the tense atmosphere, acknowledging just how different their relationship was than his with his father.

"Don't be getting into anymore trouble. Mom can't afford to keep up with your hectic and childish behavior," she finally scolded as she fiddled with the key in the door. Her hair fell slightly over her face as she pushed the door open and glanced back at her father with those dazzling green eyes. Her lips remained in a firm line, her body still holding a strong posture. "I love you. Please don't get into anymore trouble, dad."

Kizashi didn't respond, only walked straight by her and through the doorway before shutting the door behind him and turning the lock with a short click. Sasuke's eyes narrowed, his brows furrowing as he watched from across the street. Had her father really been that selfish of a man that he wouldn't even acknowledge the love she held for him?

"Although you're an Uchiha, you certainly stand out like a sore thumb."

Her words pulled him from his thoughts, flustering him to no extent before he turned his face slightly, hiding the red that began to rise to his cheeks. She stood near him now, only a few feet beside him with a soft smile lining her lips, and gentle lime eyes shining in the orange sunset glow.

"Don't underestimate the Uchiha," he retorted back quietly before rounding to face her. "I wasn't aware that your dad was such a trouble maker, Sakura."

It didn't take her any less than a second to frown, her ears lighting up with a hint of red at the tips as her hands balled into fists. Sasuke could feel the excitement bubble in his stomach, acknowledging that he'd just flustered her right back.

"That's not something to joke about, Sasuke," she hissed back. "Aren't you someone that keeps these streets safe? Shouldn't you be acting professional even when you're off the clock?"

Sasuke began to scowl, noting just how mad and hurt he'd made Sakura, but now she was attacking him personally. "Whatever. Just keep an eye on him next time."

Sakura scoffed before crossing her arms over her chest and leaning against the building behind the two of them. "It's absolutely ridiculous that you're here, bossing me around when you know nothing of my life. The last you'd seen me was when we graduated from the academy and you took off to do your own thing."

Memories of a young girl with long locks of rose quarts hair filled his mind; eyes of green filled with admiration as she watched him from afar, and guilt suddenly began to take over his body. Was this actually Sakura Haruno? The girl who would follow him around occasionally? Timid and quiet, yet now she was a strong lioness asserting her dominance and making her way up the ladder in the world?

"Speaking of which, how was that? You disappeared for such a long time, no one even talks about you anymore," she smirked deeply with a smug look on her face.

If there was one thing that Sasuke hated, it was being compared to Itachi and that was exactly what Sakura was getting at. Although she'd been born to a mother who was still a genin, alongside her father that was not only a genin, but a raging alcoholic, he knew that she'd worked her ass off to get where she's at now. Sasuke didn't answer her, only turn to face her with narrowed eyes and a smirk of his own.

"Why would I tell you?" He half mocked with a serious tone.

In a matter of minutes, the tense atmosphere slowly began to lighten and a comfortable feeling overtook the two; exactly like it had earlier that day. Now that he really looked at her with the orange lighting casted over her body and the way the stall lights reflected from within her eyes, she looked genuinely sad. Who would've thought that a girl with bright pink hair and dazzling lime eyes could ever possess such a melancholy look in her eyes.

"Figured," she finally gave him a real smile and pushed away from the wall. "I've got to go now. I still have stuff to do and-"

Her eyes were no longer holding a false sense of happiness, but a rather shocked and worried expression - "shit, shit, shit!" Sasuke frowned, suddenly aware of her drastically changed attitude and how panicked she actually looked now. "I need to report to Lady Tsunade. My god, she's going to kill me!"

"Uh?" He began to ask, but quieted down almost immediately, reminding himself that he hardly knew the girl and had no intention of interfering with something that could be incredibly serious. Of course it'd be serious if it involved Tsunade, the Fifth Hokage.

"I've gotta go," Sakura exhaled before walking quickly away. Before she could evade Sasuke, though, his hand clamped around her wrist and he could feel his eyes baring into her own eyes.

"I'll go with you," he felt himself offer. Her skin felt incredibly soft under his fingers and while Sakura's weight still slightly pulled him off his own balance, he couldn't help but relish in the way she looked at him; almost like lightning had coursed through her body at his touch. "Or at least let me walk you."

He wasn't sure what had come over him, but the feeling to watch over her began to rain down from above. Her presence was calming, and whatever she'd done from the moment they met this morning, he felt the need to just be around her. Even with her sudden screams of realization that she'd screwed up, or the way she'd come unglued at a simple statement.

This was Sakura Haruno; once so small and afraid, now loud and thunderous with a strong aura that made the Uchiha curious.

"Fine. But we have to go now."

The rush in her sentence didn't go unnoticed, nor the way she was talking incredibly fast. Once Sasuke released her, she began to sprint down the street with Sasuke on her heels. From behind, he caught the relaxing scent of lavender that flowed from her pink locks and a dash of vanilla that was probably still clinging to her skin from a morning shower. Regardless, he could feel himself slowing down behind her as they stopped outside of the Hokage Tower.

It'd been years since he'd visited this building; right before he'd departed from the village and went on his own journey to begin training for the Police Force.

"Okay, I'll be back in a few minutes. You can either stay, or leave. I don't care..." she trailed off as her hands clasped to one another behind her back.

Sasuke couldn't help but notice the way her eyes changed as she looked to the stair case and began to walk slowly towards it. "Wait," he called after her. "Is everything okay with Itachi?"

Sakura didn't turn to meet his face, only stop before she reached the first step. "He's, uh... he's going to be okay."

Her response wasn't entirely convincing, and that made Sasuke nervous. It was a feeling he wasn't entirely familiar with, and before he could inhale deeply and process her words, he was met by a pale face with concerned green eyes. "It's not my place to disclose information just yet, Sasuke."

"I'm his immediate family. What do you mean it's not your place to 'disclose information?'"

Sakura immediately bit down on her lip, revealing the girl she once was and as she took a small step towards him, Sasuke noticed the way she held her body with confidence now. "I'm sorry, but until our check ups are complete, by order of my mentor, I cannot disclose to you any medical information on Itachi. Today went better than yesterday, unfortunately, that's all I can say."

She was sincere in her explanation, and while Sasuke wanted to pull every little detail from her pretty little head, he nodded instead.

"I'll be back in a bit," Sakura spoke once more. Her voice hesitated slightly, along with the first step she took away from him and while Sasuke didn't answer, he watched as she skipped up the stairs gracefully.

The sun was no longer in the sky, only stars that stared down from above and passing clouds that offered soft rain.

xxx

Through the medical terms and long sighs followed by extreme silence, Sasuke felt like his world would come crashing down at any point in time. As much as he had enjoyed being around the pink haired girl earlier, it felt like everything was flip flopping within.

"As far as I could tell, it's something to do with his eyes. I stopped by last night but you were gone-" "-Jiraiya stopped by-" "Anyways, I was looking to borrow a medical book, or either talk to you about his current condition. He may need to be transported to the hospital and looked at in better detail. He was dehydrated when I showed up, and the longer I looked at his eyes, something strange occurred."

From Sasuke's seat below the window, the entire sentence made no sense. Who was she to, again, underestimate the Uchiha? Itachi had just returned home from a long S-Rank mission. Of course he was going to be exhausted; none of this had to do with his eyes. Sasuke pulled a knee to his chest before balancing his weight on it. The night air was cool now, as he felt exposed to anything and everything.

"Is that your diagnose, Sakura? It's something to do with his eyes?"

"Yes, my lady. It may just possibly be the beginning stages of a tumor forming in the brain, but you'll need to check for yourself-"

Sasuke refused to listen any longer. His heart was clenching in his check, his throat constricting as it felt like buckets of sand began to flow freely down his throat and making it dryer than a desert. He didn't remain there any longer, only slid down the roof and began to make his way down to the ground and on his way home. It'd been a somewhat long and boring day (despite taking Sakura's father in), and now that he'd learned that Itachi could potentially have a tumor located in his head, Sasuke was just done.

"It's impossible," he found himself spitting out as he shoved his hands deeply inside his pockets.

Itachi had been his number one since the day he was born, and he's always been there throughout his entire life. He was of the Uchiha bloodline, and to think something as simple as that would take him out? Impossible. Sasuke decided that he'd talk to Sakura again tomorrow, as early as possible, and rearrange that she fix this mess that she thought she'd encountered; after all, she was a medical ninja studying under the Fifth Hokage. Regardless of the situation, Sasuke found himself wandering through the familiar gates to his home and waking down the stone path.

The light from the kitchen was still visible and as Sasuke wandered through the door - discarding his sandals neatly to the side - he stood in the entryway to the kitchen and found his mother, father and brother sitting at the table. Even Shisui was still there, giving Sasuke a lopsided smile.

"Well hey there, rookie," his captain joked, knowing that the simple term of endearment got under the Uchiha's skin.

Sasuke ignored the teasing jab and took the last open seat at the table, across from Itachi and next to his mother; Shisui to his right. He found it hard to look at Itachi, but he also noticed that his brother looked relatively better than last night.

"Shisui told us that you took your first person in this morning, honey," Mikoto patted his head softly as she offered a gentle smile.

Sasuke only scoffed before shooting a knowing look at the goofy man sitting to his right. The comforting silence began to fill the space, and while Sasuke knew they had been talking about something rather serious before he stepped in, he refused to bring the subject back up. It was getting late after all, and if he'd be having another day like this tomorrow, then he thought he'd rather be going to bed than living through the nightmare that today offered.

"Sasuke? There's leftover dinner. Where are you going?" Mikoto asked, her hand on his arm before he could leave the kitchen.

"I'm going to bed," Sasuke glanced back. He had caught the sight of Fugaku's eyes on him, stern and tired looking as the man simply sat with his arms crossed firmly across his chest. He didn't have much to say that night, not with the gnawing pain occurring in his stomach, or how tight his chest felt and how hard it hurt to breathe at that point in time.

Mikoto released his hand before giving him a slight nod. Sasuke hated seeing that heart broken look in her dark, dark eyes, but he also felt heart broken himself. He didn't feel like socializing that night, he only wanted to be by himself in the confines of his dark room with an open window and a cool breeze blanketing him; and that's what he did.

The comforter felt warm as he laid in bed, staring out the open window to his right. The stars that had spotted the night sky were now hidden beneath a blanket of clouds, and soon, rain began to spit from the skies above and the comforting patter was like a lullaby to Sasuke. Even with the crisp air entering in through his window, Sasuke soon found that his body was entering an unconscious state, followed closely by his mind.

His dreams were far and brief, but what he remembered seeing were Sakura's lively green eyes, and a head full of long, flowing pink hair. Even in a world of dreams, he felt comfortable and the warm pulling at his stomach was the exact same feeling he felt while he was near Sakura earlier that day.

Pink and green; colors that resembled spring and life and Sasuke's thoughts soon began to circulate around those two things. Work wasn't something that constantly circulated through his mind, and although he found it something still important in his life, he was also interested in what Sakura liked to do for fun, in her free time, or if she was ever sent off on missions. After all, both being shinobi, they still lived entirely different lives but had such a familiar pull to one another.

What was going on in his mind? Even while sleeping, he felt disgruntled and his emotions began to drown him. Not only did he dream of bright, spring colors, but of deep grays and raven wings, even the spinning tomoe of the Sharingan entered his dreams.

As the sun began to enter through the opened window, Sasuke's eyes cracked at the rays of light. Unfocused as they were, he could feel his head pounding from such a deep sleep; even the painful clench in his chest hadn't vanished.

Today was going to be lovely.