There was a meeting tonight. There was some sort of meeting most nights, of course, but tonight was different. Every Unit head and department leader had been called - or the entire Hyuuga clan, the rank and file joked. They were abuzz with speculation, and Sasuke heard it all, passing among them like a ghost. If they noticed him at all, it was with a blank stare or a frown and occasionally something more unpleasant.

"Hatake-sama, don't you think?" a young Konoha nin said reverently, clasping her hands to her bosom. "He'd look so nice in the Hokage robes."

"Ai, you're so gross," her friend grumbled, grabbing her arm and dragging her along. "He's like, ancient. And the new Hokage's not even going to wear robes."

The girls were soon out of earshot, but their talk wasn't out of the ordinary - though Sasuke shook his head to himself about the stars in Ai's eyes. What girls - girls Sasuke's age, even - saw in Kakashi, Sasuke would never understand. Girls like Sakura.

Then again, Sasuke had never quite been able to change his view of Kakashi from the weird guy who got hit with erasers and giggled over porn. Sakura never seemed burdened by this affliction, leaving behind her disdain for Naruto, her childish crush on Sasuke, the bitter edge of her rivalry with Ino, all like a snake shed its skin. She always seemed the better for it, in the end, after somehow cutting through to the heart of things. Sasuke envied her this.

Logically, though, it was clear the ninja in the alliance saw Kakashi as a man of prestige and power. Sasuke wondered if he knew how many of the whispers favored him for Hokage. More to the point, Sasuke wondered if he even cared.

Sasuke remembered declaring that he would be Hokage. He'd done it mostly to annoy Naruto, but everyone else had been the ones to get upset. Kiba - long dead, now - had been incensed, challenging him. It had all been talk. Everyone knew it would be Naruto, knew it so deeply no one had even felt the need to say it.

And Sasuke had been glad, in truth. How much easier it would have been to let someone else change the system, someone he could trust. By himself, he was no closer to achieving anything. His supposed comrades walked past him without seeing him.

"Ah, Sasuke."

Sasuke nearly jumped when Kakashi stepped into place beside him, so long had it been since someone addressed him directly. Kakashi had bags under his eyes, looking haggard, and he ran his fingers through his hair with a sigh.

"Headed to the meeting, then?" Sasuke's voice was clipped, trying to contain his bitterness.

"Thinking about it. Was kind of hoping I'd come across a lost kitten or something, but..." What was probably meant as a charming smile stretched Kakashi's mask. "But maybe Sasuke-chan can keep me company, eh?"

Sasuke looked away. "I wasn't invited."

Kakashi chuckled, clapping Sasuke on the back. "That's never stopped you before, you little party crasher you. Besides, I wasn't invited either, technically, but you know how these things go..."

Sasuke didn't know how those things went. He hadn't been a fan of official procedures before he left Konoha, and now, he was removed from it almost entirely. From what he gathered, though, despite lacking an official title, Kakashi was expected at all happenings of import, whether he liked it or not.

Sasuke didn't comment on that, though. His steps continued in time with Kakashi, and that was answer enough.

"What's the meeting about, then?"

"I don't know," Kakashi said, wiping a palm down his face. "Probably the grain. But I don't have an answer for them. At least not one they'll like."

Sasuke doubted the meeting was about the grain. Kakashi wasn't a stupid man; he probably didn't think so either.

"You seem pretty tired," Sasuke said instead, sidestepping the issue.

"Yeah, well, people keep running off with our livestock under their petticoats, don't they? And Sakura's picked a fantastic time to develop a snoring habit."

It couldn't be a coincidence when this "habit" cropped up.

"She didn't pick it," Sasuke said, fighting to keep the prickle from his voice. Now was not the time to re-start their pissing match.

It was too late. Kakashi's face grew pinched and it was like a door was slammed, the rare openness between them evaporated.

The long trek to the Nara estate continued in silence - or what used to be the Nara estate. As the only surviving building, far enough out in the forest to be spared by the bijuu blast, it had been re-appropriated as the new base of operations.

A stream of Hyuuga walked by, with some others interspersed in. When Shizune, Sakura, and Ino passed, engaged in some spirited discussion about healing jutsu, they didn't break their conversation but naturally matched Kakashi and Sasuke's pace, falling in beside them.

When the argument was over - chakra scalpels, apparently, were superior to metal scalpels after all - Sakura turned to Kakashi with a smile as if five minutes hadn't already passed.

"Sasuke," she said, but he knew it wasn't what she'd meant to say, for when her gaze had slid from Kakashi's face to his, her eyes widened in surprise.

"Sakura," he returned, inclining his head.

She had already lost interest, though, his presence not strange enough to hold her attention, and rekindled her conversation with Shizune. Ino, though, sidled up to Kakashi.

"We'll have to report, won't we?"

"It's likely," Kakashi muttered, frowning.

"I don't even know what to say, though. 'We're screwed, we don't know what happened, see you later, let's talk again sometime?'" Ino looked to the darkening sky, searching. "I'm going to lose my job, aren't I?"

Kakashi said nothing for a second too long. "It's not your fault."

"Since when has that mattered?" With a false nonchalance, Ino inspected some split ends. "Oh well. I'll go be a medic, I guess. More time with Lee-kun."

"Shut up, Pig," Sakura broke in as they approached the Hyuuga guards stationed at the manor. "No one could do that boring job half as well as you. No one else is obsessed with weevils."

"You'd be obsessed with weevils too if you were me," Ino said, nostrils flaring as she glared at the back of Sakura's head with considerable venom.

"Am I supposed to be jealous or something?"

"Am I supposed to be jealous of that humongous forehead?"

They bickered right past the guards, nearly to the point of hair pulling. The Hyuuga didn't bat a pale eye, apparently used to it.

"Uchiha Sasuke is not authorized," the guard on the left said as Kakashi and Sasuke passed.

Kakashi frowned, and that alone was enough to make the guards exchange glances. Sakura stopped dead, turning back around, and Ino copied her, though Shizune went on.

"It's just … he's not on the list," the guard on the right said, apologetic.

"Neither is Sakura," Ino supplied, looking hopeful. Sakura actually did reach up and yank a lock of Ino's yellow hair at that.

"Not going to kick me out, are you, Arata?" Sakura pouted, utilizing her full lips and wide, green eyes and turning a shy knee in for max effect. "After I came all this way."

"Haruno-san is Hokage-sama's apprentice," the right guard said, unable to hide a blush and a flicker of his eyes down to Sakura's chest, which was hard to miss these days, especially when she crossed her arms underneath her breasts as she was doing now.

Even the more professional guard nodded. "Her medical opinion is valued in conglomerate meetings such as this one."

Sakura beamed. "How's your ankle feeling these days, Ko?"

"Very well. Thank you."

Sasuke tensed, having seen enough. Sakura knew how to be well liked, one way or another - yet another skill Sasuke did not possess. He was not in the mood to compete. Before he could turn to go, though, Kakashi put a hand on his arm.

"Sasuke is my apprentice."

Arata hesitated, looking at Ko. It was easy to see the cogs turning behind their blank gazes - after having allowed Sakura, could they deny Sasuke? When the guards stood aside to let them pass, it said a lot about how they viewed Kakashi: on par with the Hokage, title or no.

Kakashi walked forward, turning back expectantly to Sasuke when he didn't follow. Because it would be too conspicuous to turn back now, Sasuke did as expected.

"You whore!" Ino hissed at Sakura as they all approached the manor. "I saw what you did there."

"I have no idea what you're talking about." Sakura stalked ahead to catch up to Shizune, nose in the air.

Ino rolled her eyes, but stayed in step with Sasuke. "Who does she think she's kidding? She's worse than a whore. She's a tease. No way she'd follow up, not in a million years. Not with that guy, anyway."

With a smirk, Ino's gaze lingered on the back of Kakashi's head. "But why am I telling you? I'm sure you know already. Right, Sasuke?"

Ino said Sasuke's name, but her eyes were still trained on Kakashi. Kakashi didn't notice, or pretended not to, and Ino lost interest.

"It's bullshit, you know," she said to Sasuke as they finally entered the meeting room. "I brought Shino and Lee to a Provisions meeting last week just because they were bored. They work over in the Structures department, not even in the same unit, but no one said a word."

"I know it's bullshit," Sasuke said quietly, squeezing into a space along the back wall behind Sakura and Shizune, between Ino and Kakashi.

When Tsunade and Hyuuga Hiashi entered the room, all the useless chatter ceased. They sat down and immediately began addressing business. Hiashi gave a basic summary of each unit's recent goings on, tone impartial no matter whether he was describing the Structures Unit's progress (promising) or the Provisions Unit's (abysmal). Tsunade, though, cleared her throat and gave the report on the Medical Unit.

She rattled off the list of the past few week's deaths, both civilian and ninja alike, squinting to read the paper. There were too many names for comfort, but Sasuke didn't recognize any of them, so it was hard to fathom the significance even when the murmurs began anew, troubled looks exchanged generously.

Though Sasuke had stopped listening to the specific names, he still noticed when Sakura's spine stiffened like someone had jammed a metal rod through it.

"Shishou just said Sari. Our Sari."

Kakashi closed his eyes, laying a hand on Sakura's shoulder. Seemingly without thinking, she reached up to squeeze his fingers, but her eyes were on Shizune.

"What did she die of?"

Shizune wouldn't meet Sakura's glare.

"She was eight months old," Sakura said too loudly, knuckles white against Kakashi's. "Why didn't you tell me?"

The shifty look on Shizune's normally placid face spoke of exactly why she hadn't told Sakura. "Sakura, now is not the time or place -"

Sakura did not relent. "What happened? Why did she die?"

She was almost yelling, now, the rest of the room staring at her. Hiashi was glaring down his nose at her in disapproval, and even Tsunade was massaging the bridge of her nose. Kakashi leaned over and whispered into Sakura's ear, but she was having none of it.

"No! Don't you care? She was a healthy little baby when we left her, and now she's dead! Find out what happened and I'll shut up then."

Kakashi's lips were moving again, and this time Sakura paused her tirade, but was already blinking tears from her eyes.

Sasuke cleared his throat. "We escorted that child from Mist. Be kind. She had no family left."

Shizune turned to Sakura, meeting Sasuke's eyes guiltily for just a second. "Malnutrition. I'm sorry. No one brought her in until it was too late -"

"Who was her wet nurse?" Sakura demanded. "How could she not notice?"

There was a pause that stretched for too long. "It was -" Shizune took a shaky breath to gather herself. "It was an oversight. Sakura, I'm sorry -"

Eyes bright, Sakura turned her face away. For a minute, she said nothing. Kakashi reached for her again, but she shook him off, rigid.

"I apologize, everyone."

She sank back against the wall between Sasuke and Kakashi. "Thank you," she muttered to Sasuke.

"Proper nutrition continues to be a struggle for us all," Tsunade said wearily, resuming the meeting. "Particularly for the very young and very old. All of us here are doing our best to improve the situation as we can, and I thank you for your efforts. The more we refine our system, the healthier we will be. Bettering the communication between units is a step towards that goal and part of the reason we are here today."

Tsunade's bland justifications continued and Sasuke tuned out, his stomach tight and rolling, like he'd eaten spoiled meat. But then perhaps he had.

Sakura was still staring at some indeterminate spot on the floor, inconsolable against Kakashi's quiet efforts.

"What did you expect me to do?" he murmured, frowning deeply.

"Maybe stick up for her? She doesn't - didn't - have anyone else to do it but us," Sakura hissed, still not looking at him, even as Yamato quietly pushed through the crowd to stand beside Kakashi, glancing between them in alarm. "Sasuke had to do it instead, and he's not half as respected as you."

"Sakura, maybe that's not fair," Ino whispered, tawny brows furrowed. "Are you PMSing or something, because -"

"I'm not hormonal," Sakura insisted, fighting to keep her voice down once more. A single tear streaked down her cheek and she wiped it away furiously.

Sakura almost certainly was hormonal, so far was this outside of her usual behavior, and as Kakashi met Sasuke's gaze, Sasuke knew he wasn't the only one thinking it. Neither of them were stupid enough to say it, though, and even Ino seemed to sense that she'd misstepped.

"I'm sorry," she said softly, concern evident. "It's terrible what happened. She was just a little baby."

"It could have been Asuma. Did you think of that?" Sakura's voice, quiet though it was, was harsh, her expression unforgiving.

It seemed this thought had not yet occurred to Ino, for she subsided, looking stricken. In front of them, Shizune's shoulders tensed visibly.

Another tear leaked from the corner of Sakura's eye and she let this one drip onto her chest. Once again, Sasuke met Kakashi's pained gaze. None of them were thinking of little Asuma, in truth.

Yamato looked totally bewildered, jaw slack as he stared at them all. "Are you okay, Sakura?"

"I'm sorry to upset you, Yamato-taichou," Sakura sniffled in a non-answer.

"Tenzou," Tsunade snapped, jerking his attention back to the meeting at hand. "What's the status on the overcrowding in Waterfall district?"

Sasuke was sure Yamato hadn't been called on by coincidence; dirty glares were still headed towards their corner of the room, and Sasuke could hardly blame them. Right now, Sakura and all those involved with her were a distraction. Gradually, the tension eased as Yamato fulfilled his role as head of the Village Planning department, a subsidiary of the Structures Unit.

The meeting went forward as normal, their group now quiet despite Sakura practically buzzing with dark tension at Sasuke's side. It wasn't until things were drawing to a close and Tsunade pulled herself to her feet with a cane that Sakura stopped scowling at her feet as if they were gravely offensive and looked up.

"I am old," Tsunade said simply, and she sounded it, her voice like a crackling of wet air, exhausted. "It is time."

Very few faces around the crowded room were surprised.

"We have no daimyo," Tsunade continued. "We have no council. Our traditions are broken, so we must make new ones. My advisors and I have decided that there will be a jounin forum. All Konoha ninja of the appropriate rank will vote on the Rokudaime Hokage. Soon. I will pass on my recommendation at that time."

A few heads swiveled towards Kakashi, a few towards Hiashi, but most stayed silent.

"Yamanaka Ino, stay behind. The rest of you are dismissed."

Ino made no sign that she had heard except for her hands balling into fists at her side. Sakura snapped out of her sullenness long enough to whisper something into Ino's ear, then turned and fled the room. The other ninja trying to leave all made way for her, some with sympathetic expressions, others hard.

Sasuke followed Kakashi out the same way he'd followed him in, except Yamato tagged along. Outside, they located Sakura, who was currently giving Shizune the cold shoulder.

"Please, Sakura! I didn't think it was what you needed to hear right now -"

As they approached, Shizune glued her mouth shut, blinking away tears of her own.

"I'm waiting here for Ino," Sakura said stiffly, not turning towards the men. Then, with a bit of hesitation, she softened. "Yamato-taichou, would you do me a favor?"

"Of course," he said immediately, frown lines etched into his face.

"Can you find Lee and tell him that Ino's probably getting fired right now." It was meant to be a question, but it came out dull and flat. "You know where their tent is, I think."

"I do." Yamato hesitated. "You know I would help you, if you needed it. With anything."

"Thanks." Sakura was listless, but she still tried to summon a smile for Yamato. "This is what I really need right now, though. I'd do it myself, but I don't want her to walk home alone."

"I understand." He lingered only a moment more, trying in vain to garner some clue from Shizune, Kakashi, or Sasuke, but none of them were budging.

After Yamato was gone, Kakashi put a hesitant hand on Sakura's lower arm. "I'll see you later tonight."

The opposite of Sakura, Kakashi's statement came out uneven, his uncertainty in her answer evident.

She contemplated, still not looking at him, and then sighed, the tension in her posture easing slightly. "Yes. Later."

Mollified for the moment, Kakashi swept away, leaving Shizune to plead with an implacable Sakura. Hovering between them, Sasuke paused, uncertain, but Sakura still had her back to them both. Sasuke turned and trod after Kakashi.


"Juugo said I'd find you here."

At the sound of Sakura's voice, the small fire he'd lit lost the entirety of Sasuke's attention. Glancing up, he saw her, leaning against a tree, a thin blanket wrapped around her shoulders.

"Suigetsu didn't give you too much trouble?" he asked, a smirk working its way on his lips.

"He wasn't there, thankfully," she sighed.

Noticing her hesitation to join him, he gestured for her to take a seat on the grass at his side. "Come sit."

The tension fled her shoulders and back easily as she made her way to him. Coupled with only the noise of the crackling of the fire, her steps filled the air with the sound of rustling grass.

"I still expect you to tell me I'm stupid at any second," she chuckled, a gentle smile brightening her features in the weak light of the fire.

"We've grown up," Sasuke said while he poked the fire with a branch he'd picked up earlier. "I've grown up."

The silence he'd first came here for returned as if it had never been disturbed. Sasuke breathed out slowly, leaning more of his weight on the trunk of the tree behind him. For a moment, he let his eyes slide shut while his mind focused on the soft sounds of the forest surrounding them. Although he was slightly curious as to why Sakura had come looking for him, his lips remained sealed. She would talk soon enough.

"Ino was promoted to jounin."

The hint of excitement in her voice was enough for him to crack an eye open. "She wasn't fired?"

"No. Shishou thought she was doing an amazing job," Sakura answered as she stretched her legs, leaning back on her hands. "Considering the lack of resources or help she has, she really has been humongous help in keeping everyone fed."

Sasuke nodded, returning his attention to the flames that had been his main subject of interest before Sakura's presence.

"Do you want to play?"

Before he saw the deck of cards in her hand, Sasuke had been mildly curious, but now his eyebrow raised high as he stared at her openly.

Sakura squirmed and looked away, probably trying to hide the redness that spread around her cheeks and made him grin and wonder if she understood just how wrong her invitation sounded to him.

"I can't believe you!" she blurted out, clutching the deck tighter between her fingers. "Why would you have that in mind?"

"Oh, I don't know," Sasuke chuckled, shifting forward. "Probably because that's how you invite certain people to do certain things."

If her cheeks had been red before, they were beaming now.

"You're not certain people," she scoffed, scrambling ungracefully to sit cross-legged.

"No need to be so embarrassed, Sakura," he replied, his voice as light-hearted as he felt. "I didn't think I was, if that's what you thought."

Sakura's lips puckered, though her blush was starting to fade gradually. "I can't believe you noticed that too."

"Does it really surprise you that much?"

Slowly, her chest rose and fell again in a soft sigh. "I guess not."

When her green eyes grew distant, Sasuke reached for the deck of cards that she held against her knee, prying it from her fingers without much resistance. "What did you want to play?"

"Go fish is usually our -" She coughed into her fist. "- my go-to game. It's easy."

"Go fish it is."

Needing no more directions, Sasuke shuffled the cards and distributed them appropriately. "You start."

Thoughtful, Sakura scanned the cards, running the tip of her index on the top edges of the cards in her hand. "Any sevens?"

Sasuke glanced down at his cards, squinting as his eyes struggled to identify the cards in the glimmer of the fire. The queen of spades was the first card he spotted, followed immediately by the sevens of clubs and diamonds. Scowling, he handed the cards to her.

"Threes?"

He shook his head.

"Any eights?"

It would go well with his eight of hearts, which was far too lonely for such a lovely card. Soon enough, his card was the proud companion of the eights of clubs and diamonds. Much better.

"Nines?"

When three cards left her hand to join his, Sasuke's grin widened considerably. Just like that, he now had nines of each suit.

It seemed his luck ended there, as he was wrong on his next guess and had to pick a new card.

"How are you feeling?"

Barely, her body tensed, her fingers flexing only a hint harder around her cards. "I'm fine. Why?"

"Just asking," Sasuke replied with a shrug of his shoulders. "Kakashi tells me you've been keeping him awake with your monstrous snores."

"I do not snore."

The glint of anger flashing in her pretty eyes only spurred him on. "I can hear them from my tent."

"You can't!" she burst out, eyes widened in embarrassment she tried to masquerade as indignation. "I know you can't."

Loving every second of her flustered ramblings, Sasuke raised an eyebrow, flashing her his cockiest smirk.

And, just as expected, her temper took the bait. Sakura threw him a punch he didn't bother trying to dodge, though the decision was immediately regretted when her fist connected and sent pain through his whole arm.

Mocking, he shoved her shoulder. "Quick to resort to violence, just like I'd heard."

"I'll show you violent!"

Another punch was aimed for his chest, but this time, having learned from his previous mistake, he caught her wrist and tugged on it before he stood on his knees to keep his balance. Cheeks flushed, Sakura stumbled closer to him, on her knees as well.

"Hormonal, too."

Eyes burning with playful anger, she tried to slap his chest, but he was quick to grasp her other wrist.

By now, Sasuke could feel the heat radiating off her body, much more forgiving than that of the flames they stood so close to. Though she kept her eyes locked with his, her body wriggled, struggling against his hold.

And from the corner of his eye, Sasuke could see one button too many of her already too loose blouse come undone. His right hand let go of her wrist, going down to pull the garment closed before he could see more than the slight darkening of skin on the swell of her breast.

Glancing back up, he could see Sakura's cheeks had grown a few shades redder and her eyes wider.

Sakura's body remained still, except for her lips that parted ever so slightly.

Acting on a simple impulse, Sasuke tugged on the wrist he still held until Sakura was pressing against him and his lips caught hers in a relaxed kiss.

Just for a few seconds, they didn't dare move even an inch.

Timed with one another, their eyes blinked open and they watched each other before pulling away slowly.

Silence.

"Should I apologize?"

For some reason, those were the only words to cross his mind, even if a thousand ran through it, all screaming the same thing: wrong.

Sakura's eyes were as wide and dumbstruck as his, her lips pursed in apparent surprise.

"I don't think so."

They didn't say anything again, until her expression twisted in a grimace and she shuddered slightly, to which his body responded on its own by imitating. "That's really not what I expected when I was twelve."

"Me neither," he said.

Once they registered his confession, Sakura's eyes grew wide and she burst into a fit of cute giggles, throwing her palm over her lips to cover the sounds.

Though he tried to grit his teeth against it, Sasuke's laughter rumbled with hers, until they were both out of breath and looking at each other, jovial complicity shining in their eyes.

Without taking her eyes off of his, Sakura reached for a card in her pocket and handed it to him, her lips parted in an exaggerated grin. "For you."

A quick look at the card revealed it was the king of spades.

Sasuke chuckled, flashing her a smirk. "I'm your other king, now?"

"The 'not certain people' king," she precised, hugging her knees to herself, her smile still as cheerful. "In case you got the wrong idea."

"With a kiss so…" In front of him, his hands moved in incomprehensible gestures. Still, he smiled just like her. "So…"

"Horrendous!" she laughed, swatting at his knee. "You're a horrendous kisser."

Sasuke rolled his eyes in mock annoyance. "With such a horrendous kiss, there's no chance in hell I'd want to be that kind of king."

Joining the sound of the dying fire, their laughter echoed against the trees.


Sasuke would be glad when they exhausted the stash of sake once and for all. The buzz wasn't bad, by any means, but he was beyond buzz at this point. He and Kakashi had been taking turns drinking from Sakura's cup this time so she didn't attract attention. At this point, Sasuke couldn't quite remember whose idea it had been, but either way, they hadn't spoken of it. One of them had grabbed her glass and chugged while no one was looking, and she had smiled so gratefully that tomorrow's headache had seemed worth it. Sasuke tried not to go competitively shot for shot with Kakashi, but somewhere along the line, he had forgotten that, too.

But as Sasuke stretched out next to the fire, nursing a spinning head, he wondered if maybe they oughtn't just come clean instead of playing such charades. Then he laughed quietly at himself. He really was drunk, to be thinking things like that.

At least the celebration for Ino's promotion had finally wound down. Like most such gatherings in the new Konoha, the group of "friends" that ostensibly accepted him had begun together but slowly splintered off into smaller units. It was unthinkable that Sasuke ever end up alone with anyone but Team Kakashi or Team Taka. Whenever he got too close, most of the others simply stopped talking awkwardly, childhood comrades or not. Still, at least here, Sasuke got the impression that they just didn't know what to say more than actively wishing he would go away. Sasuke didn't know what to say either.

Despite it all, Sasuke felt rather comfortable in the soft heat of the fire. In another circumstance, he might find it too hot, but the alcohol warmed him from the inside, so it was only right that the flames warmed him without.

Of course, it was easier to feel at ease in current company than any other. Suigetsu was just as drunk as Sasuke but without any excuse, crooning a song in the unintelligible Mist dialect he rarely spoke. Yamato and Sai sat close by, only pleasantly buzzed but more than happy to enjoy the silent comradeship. Kakashi and Sakura were laid out like Sasuke, curled into one another so conspicuously that Sasuke almost warned them - but he didn't want to spoil the nice feeling of the night, so he didn't.

Sakura's eyelids were drooping, fighting sleep as Kakashi traced up and down her arm languorously. She leaned her back against his chest as she stretched to ward off yet another yawn.

The only thing missing was Juugo, who had scampered off to bed the minute the sake bottles came out, fearing any sort of loss of control. There were a few other things missing as well, but Sasuke didn't let himself dwell on those.

"Things like this will change when you're Hokage, won't it, Sensei?" Sasuke said.

Kakashi's hand paused mid-track and Sakura blinked back awake. Even Suigetsu cut off his song mid-melody.

"Why would they replace one geezer with another?" Suigetsu said indignantly, sitting up so fast he sloshed some sake out of his cup.

"He's not a geezer," Sakura said.

Sasuke watched her for a reaction, but she only covered another yawn with a fist. It wasn't the first time she'd heard the idea, it was clear.

"Traditionally, Kirigakure and Konohagakure have opposing views when it comes to authority. In the past, Konohagakure has selected stable, seasoned candidates, while Kirigakure has favored the intimidation of power and youth." If anything, alcohol only made Sai look more bored, but his explanations were as succinct as ever.

Suigetsu thought about this for a moment and then sat back with a shrug. "No skin off my back."

"Undoubtedly," Yamato said, stirring the flames with a stick to make them hiss, "if Kakashi-senpai is honored in that way, it will mean some changes."

Kakashi resumed his lazy movements along Sakura's arm. "I wouldn't worry about it."

"You know she's going to recommend you, don't you?" Sasuke said with a small frown. "Ino is another jounin to vote in your favor. It couldn't be more obvious."

"Don't you dare imply Ino didn't earn her rank," Sakura said with a scowl, still unconcerned with the rest of what Sasuke was saying.

"I didn't say that," Sasuke said. "It's just the timing. You might have been promoted, too, if it wasn't for last night."

Even the oblique reference to the disastrous meeting turned Sakura's eyes to stone. The thought that he shouldn't have said anything at all crossed Sasuke's mind, but now he had and the cat was out of the bag.

"Tsunade-sama can do what she likes," Kakashi grunted. "If she does, I'll just decline."

"What?" Sakura's whole body tensed.

Kakashi's hand dropped away from her as he frowned. "I have no interest in being Hokage, Sakura."

She sat up, scrambling to face him, sitting back on her calves. "No interest? You were about to do it last time and the stakes weren't half as high -"

Kakashi pulled himself up, too, facing her the same way, the drink showing in the way his torso just barely swayed. "I didn't choose anything last time -"

"Because you were never given the chance." Sakura's voice was even, but artificially so, and Sasuke realized with some alarm that she must be fighting to stay level. "Danzou cheated with that creepy stuff, the eyes on his hands, Izanagi -"

"That was never confirmed," Sai said quietly, mouth downturned.

"You know it's true," Sakura countered Sai, though she had eyes for no one but Kakashi. "It was supposed to be you, and everything might be different if it had been. But if they'd come to you then, what would you have said?"

Sasuke frowned, sitting up slowly. He hadn't realized there was a history here, but it didn't take him long to fill in the blanks.

Kakashi's face was impassive. "Things were different then."

"Different how?" Sakura's voice was losing its carefulness, taking on a sharp, demanding edge she was still working to control.

Kakashi didn't respond, just looked her straight in the eyes.

Her expression softened as she found some answer in him that Sasuke couldn't read. "You were going to do it then, I thought. Isn't there even more reason now?"

Kakashi still said nothing, averting his gaze.

"Kakashi," Sakura said, sharpness returning.

Kakashi reached out and put a hand on her thigh, so far up that Sasuke could see across the fire when Temari's eyebrows raised practically to her hairline as she trained an intelligent gaze on Kakashi's too-casual touch. The conversation had slowly been garnering more and more attention as the others quieted and keyed in. Kakashi and Sakura didn't seem to notice that they were practically announcing the sexual nature of their relationship. The start of a plan to take the attention off of them formulated in the back of his mind, but Sasuke could tell the damage was already done and it was too late.

"Kakashi," Sakura said again, "you know it's for the best. You know -"

"I know no such thing," Kakashi snapped.

"Stop running away from who you're meant to be," Sakura said, this time so softly Sasuke almost couldn't hear.

"I'm not," Kakashi said quietly. "It wasn't meant for me."

"Naruto is dead, Kakashi!" Sakura's voice was pleading now, quivering on the word dead. "You can't use that as an excuse anymore."

Sakura's words didn't take long to register in Sasuke's mind, bypassing the thick alcohol-induced haze his mind was in. He could feel his throat constricting, but the shaking in Sakura's voice kept him focused on their conversation.

"I know that." Kakashi's other hand came down on her opposite thigh and he leaned in closer to her. "I can't make such a selfish decision right now -"

"Selfish? Selfish?" Sakura's voice was carrying now; Sasuke caught Yamato and Sai exchanging concerned glances. "It's like you're not thinking at all -"

"We can't be concerned with everyone else right now," Kakashi said, and though the shadow hid his face at this angle, Sasuke could hear his voice waver with repressed emotion. "With the baby -"

"Kakashi!" Sakura yelped, startled, and yanked him down by his shirt so their noses were almost touching. "What is wrong with you?"

Sasuke heard someone gasp and there was no question now that everyone was listening carefully. At some point, Sakura had realized and her cheeks were blazing. So much for trying to cover up for them if Kakashi was just going to blurt it out like that.

"The baby," Kakashi repeated plaintively, sliding one hand up to the curve of her waist. "That's more important than my position, or yours. We need -"

"We need a way to make sure it doesn't starve to death like Sari did," Sakura hissed through clenched teeth. "Don't you think being Hokage takes care of that little problem?"

"You're not seeing the big picture," Kakashi said, and she pulled away from him abruptly.

"I'm not seeing the big - I'm not -" Sakura put a trembling hand to her mouth, words beyond her.

Although Sasuke knew full well that Kakashi was right - he had even tried to warn Sakura about this, but she had been as naive and idealistic as ever - he felt sympathy only for her. She was breathing heavily now, almost huffing, blinking rapidly, and Sasuke recognized the signs. She was about to cry. Kakashi tangled his fingers in her hair and cupped the base of her skull.

"You don't get it," Kakashi said, still pleading, patience clearly wearing thin. "People aren't going to view me kindly for this. They're certainly not going to favor my illegitimate child -"

"Illegitimate?" Sakura screeched, suddenly untying her tongue. "Illegitimate?"

Kakashi's face locked into a scowl, eyes burning. "You know what the word means, Sakura. Don't act so fucking shocked -"

Sasuke blinked, making sure what he was seeing was real, still unfamiliar with this cursing, dark man who lacked all of the composure of Hatake Kakashi. Sakura didn't seem to find it strange, but her wide green eyes filled with hurt all the same. What was Kakashi like, when he was alone with her?

"That's how you see it, then," she said dazedly, slowly climbing to her feet and shaking off the hands that touched her with such ease. "Illegitimate."

Kakashi quickly followed suit, grabbing her arm too roughly. "It's not about how I see it, it's about what it is -"

Sakura shook free. "Never mind. Just never mind. Do whatever the hell you want."

Kakashi snatched her arm back. "Wait. What if I married you? Would you be happy then?"

With a shove, Sakura pulled away from him for good. "Are you kidding me? Happy? Is that a joke?"

Sakura wasn't laughing, though. The floodgates had finally opened up, staining her cheeks with tears that came so hard and fast she began to hiccough. Kakashi stood there staring at her, face as blank as his mask.

When Sakura could barely stand for weeping, Sasuke heaved his body off the ground and stood beside her, placing a gentle hand on her back. Through her watery eyes, she looked up at him, almost with the same pleading they'd held for Kakashi - begging Sasuke for his help and support, which he would oblige for once.

"You can sleep in my tent tonight, if you want privacy," he whispered carefully enough so the others wouldn't hear.

Quickly, she nodded, following his lead when he gave her back a soft push. Suigetsu and Juugo would have to find another place to sleep tonight.

With a final glare at Kakashi, Sasuke left with Sakura. All of the faces he left behind wore identical expressions of shock, except for Kakashi, whose face was unforgiving and emotionless. Sasuke wrapped his arm around Sakura's shoulders, tightening his hold on her and tangling his hand in her hair when she pressed her cheek into his shoulder.

No one would hurt her again tonight.


Authors' Note: This update is late. Sorry. :( Will post next chapter early to make up for it.