Chapter 8:

Of Cherry Blossoms and Silhouettes

The floor fell out from beneath Sasuke's feet as Naruto's words sank in; the blonde's hand clutching his own the only thing anchoring him in place. His fingers dug into Naruto's shoulder. He ignored the man's wince as his fingers fisted in Naruto's vest.

Sakura. Sakura.How could she do this? He remembered the small, lovestruck girl with the long pink hair and the modest dress, trailing after himself and Naruto. He remembered the budding medic, unconscious and trapped against a tree as Naruto and Sasuke fought to save her from the Shukaku-overtaken Gaara. He remembered the older, stronger, woman he had seen four years ago, shocked into silence as she gazed upon his face. He remembered all of these people, the growing and changing forms of his teammate, and he found that he just couldn't mold them into the persona of an Akatsuki member. Was she capable of killing without batting an eyelid? Did she agree with Pein's ruthless idea of "peace"?

And Naruto. Sakura loved Naruto. She loved them both so fiercely. How could she turn her back on Naruto, on the village? She was the Hokage's apprentice. He expected her to be the one to keep Naruto in line while he was gone, to rise up in the ranks and continue to improve her skill as a medic. This was so…unexpected. She was their rock; the one constant in their team that kept them from falling apart. And now…now she had joined the ranks of S-class criminals. Sasuke felt numb. He felt angry. But above all of that was the burning question: Why?

"She's not evil, Sasuke," Naruto said, eyeing Sasuke warily. "There's more to this than meets the eye."

Sasuke jumped at the sound of Naruto's voice. "What do you mean?"

Naruto didn't answer at once; he opened his mouth and sucked in a breath, but closed it again. Then he gently removed Sasuke's hand from his shoulder and placed it at his side.

"I have to go now. Tsunade is expecting me."

Sasuke was silent, but he clenched his fists at his sides and glared at Naruto's retreating form, realizing that information was being kept from him again. Suddenly, he relaxed. Naruto was his partner. One way or another, he would gain the information he desired. It was only a matter of time.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

Naruto sighed as he walked away. He wanted to tell Sasuke the truth, and it hurt him to walk away. Sasuke deserved to know the truth. But it wasn't his secret to tell, not really, and he refused to place Sakura and the village in potential danger. He couldn't say that he didn't understand Sasuke's pain. He remembered how he had felt when he found out. Sakura had been gone for nearly a year, and Tsunade received a scroll from the kunoichi informing the Hokage of her betrayal. She had been furious at first, and sad; Naruto remembered her being drunk for days after the initial news.

Then Sakura herself appeared to them. It was the middle of the night, and the village was asleep. She had managed to slip easily past the sentries and traveled to the Hokage's office. Naruto was awoken by a call from the Hokage, and he had rushed to her office. Sakura was there, and she had been…different.

Her pink hair had grown again, and she kept it in an intricate braid that rested over her shoulder. Her hitai-ate rested on top of her head as a headband, the same as she always wore it. She wore black shinobi pants and fishnet, and a metal vest similar to what Konoha's ANBU wore. Her customary gloves covered her hands. A simple and vaguely familiar necklace rested along her collarbone. The Akatsuki cloak whirled around her as she turned to face Naruto. Then he had seen her eyes.

They were a bright, luminous emerald, catching the light of the moon. They seemed to shine with a vigor that had been missing ever since Sasuke's departure. He knew, looking into her eyes, that she was happy. No matter the pain he felt, he had to let her go.

Houses and people flew by in a blur as Naruto ran towards the Hokage tower in the middle of the village. Excitement bubbled up within him and his spirits lifted at the thought of seeing Sakura again. It had been a long time. He had so much to tell her! Naruto wondered how she would react to the news of Sasuke's release. She would be happy, he knew, but also apprehensive.

For when she had come that night, so many months ago, she had not been alone. Her partner traveled with her, and revealed himself to the Hokage and to Naruto.

It was Uchiha Itachi.

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Naruto stopped to catch his breath as he reached one of the Hokage tower's wide windows. It was open slightly, so he pushed himself through and landed softly behind Tsunade's desk.

She whipped around and glared half-heartedly. "Oi, ever heard of a door, you fool?!"

Naruto just grinned and scratched the back of his head sheepishly. "Whatever, baachan. Where's—"

"Right here, Naruto."

He looked up, a smile growing on his face, as his gaze landed on Sakura. He opened his arms, and she instantly ran over and hugged him tightly. She smelled of cherry blossoms and vanilla and running through the forest at night. He breathed her in, not worrying about the reason she was here and instead enjoying her presence. She looked the same as the last time he had seen her, except for long cut that marred her temple and part of her cheek.

"What happened to your face?" he asked, pulling away from her to study it.

She brushed off his hand nonchalantly. "Ah, it's nothing. We just ran into some trouble along the way. I swear, they spot you from a mile away with these damn cloaks."

It was almost funny, watching Sakura complain about her Akatsuki attire. The organization they had all feared for so long…Naruto shook his head and sighed at the irony.

Then Sakura's words sank in completely. "We"? Then that meant…

"Sakura-chan," he said softly. "Is Itachi…san here?"

Naruto knew about Itachi. He had learned all about the horrible mission he had been forced to commit from Sakura and Itachi himself on that night. He was still wary of the older Uchiha because of how his actions shaped so much of Sasuke's life, but once he understood, it was difficult for someone as forgiving as Naruto to blame him. He knew that Sasuke knew as well, and he wondered how the younger Uchiha would react if he came across his brother.

"Yeah, of course. We always travel together."

Naruto looked her in the eyes and gripped her shoulders. "Sakura…they released Sasuke from prison."

Her eyes widened. "What…when? And why?"

"Tsunade decided to release him a few days ago. He's been appointed leader of the Konoha Military Police."

Sakura turned to her old teacher, who was watching the exchange with mild interest. "Is that wise, shishou?"

"I want to give the boy another chance. He's still young, so I think there's hope for him yet." She paused. "Besides, who are you to judge him? You're a missing-nin yourself, Sakura."

Sakura looked away, even though the comment was not meant to be that harsh.

"So where's Itachi?" Naruto pressed.

"…I left him at the Uchiha compound. He didn't feel the need to be present at our reunion."

Tsunade narrowed her eyes. "While I don't appreciate you allowing missing-nin to roam my village at ease, I suggest you both go over there to prevent Sasuke from having a conniption should he see his brother. His reaction is unpredictable at this point."

Sakura and Naruto shared a look and headed for the door, but Tsunade held up a hand to stop them. "And Sakura, after this is sorted out, we need to discuss your reason for being here, which I'm sure is not trivial."

"Yes, shishou."

With that, they both headed out the office door and raced to find Sasuke.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

Darkness descended on Sasuke's large office as the sun disappeared behind the Hokage monument. Sasuke sat at his desk, clearing papers and tidying up. There was nothing left to do really, until the ninken contract arrived and the teams were able to start accepting cases. He had spent the last hour or so packing away the last of the boxes littering the formerly empty room and walking around getting to know his staff.

He reclined in his leather chair, facing away from the door and towards the large window; he stared out at the empty Uchiha compound, his mind wandering to aimless places as the sun's last dying rays touched the roofs of the houses. Loneliness suddenly crashed down on him, suddenly and unexpectedly. He idly wondered what his partner was up to…

He didn't turn around as the door opened; he could see the silhouette of someone standing there in the reflection cast by the mirror.

"Naruto?" he asked. "Is that you?"

The silhouette did not answer, but moved forward silently until they stood directly before Sasuke's desk. He sighed and whirled his desk around, then looked more closely at his visitor and gasped.

"N…Nii-san?!"

(A/N: Did I mention that I'm an ItaSaku fan?

However, don't worry. This is SASUNARU, Sakura and Itachi's relationship will just be on the side. I'm sure you have questions, but they will all be answered. And whoops! I guess the developing SasuNaru-ness is next chapter, not this one.

As always, please review! I thrive on your comments…)