So I tried not to really get anybody too...out of character...but I just couldn't help it. It's unavoidable- I'm sorry! Also...Thank you SO much to those of you that review on this story. I LOVE your comments, and definitely appreciate your criticism. I don't focus too much on spelling mistakes, but I probably should. Anyway, since this chapter is kind of a..."turning point" in my story...or something like that...I hope everybody will review and tell me what they think. Really, the more reviews I receive, the more it makes me want to write for you guys!
Enjoy!


Chapter Nine: Our Moonlit Reflection

"One thing is clear...I wear a halo when you look at me but standing from here...you wouldn't say so if you were me."


"Kalei, just come in. You're annoying me." Sasuke said irritably, opening his bedroom window. Kalei was sitting in a tree, facing the opposite direction of his house. Apparently, she was still upset about their last conversation. Sasuke sighed. "You sitting out there ignoring me is getting on my nerves."

"Deal with it."

He was getting angry.

Naruto was right. She had on normal shinobi clothing...and she didn't have that mask on. But she was always facing the opposite direction when Sasuke managed to see her. So childish.

"Damn it, this is a waste of time." He said, taking a step back from the window.

"You suck at keeping promises." Kalei shouted to him. He clenched his jaw. He really was trying to be more agreeable...but it seemed she was trying to be more stubborn. "You're not a very honest person."

"No, I'm not. And you need to act your age."

She jumped up and turned around, shaking a fist at him, her eyes blazing angrily. "Look here, Sasuke, I'm sick of you cracking jokes about my age! Respect your elders!"

He smirked. "Why? I can usually kill my elders."

She growled and jumped onto the ledge of the window, giving Sasuke a perfect view of her extremely angry face. "What the hell is it with you and power?! There are other things in life you know!" She said, crawling in through the window and shutting it. Sasuke walked over to his drawer and peeled his shirt of, revealing a very well built stomach. Kalei's eyes widened. He had a very nice body.

"Power is the only thing I need. Nothing else matters." He said, grabbing a long chain off his dresser and throwing it around his neck.

"Yeah that's because your brother has you tied around his finger."

He turned to glare at her. She smirked victoriously. He made it so obvious she hit a nerve. He grabbed a clean black undershirt and put it on roughly. Then he grabbed the top of his pants and looked back at Kalei. "Do you mind?" He asked, causing her to wince.

"Oh my god...you won't actually change while I'm in the room." She said. He smirked and unbuttoned her pants. Her mouth dropped open and she spun around closing her eyes.

"Shows how much you know about me." He muttered while changing. "You can turn around now."

"You fully clothed?"

"Che- would I really let you see me if I wasn't?" He said, smirking at her as she turned around slowly. "So I need your help."

Her face twisted into a look of shock and anger. He just got done insulting her and now he was asking for her help? This boy was so stupid. "With what?"

He ran a hand through his hair and sighed. "I'm going on a date."

Kalei's throat tightened and for some reason...it felt like her heart dropped into her stomach. "With who?" She asked firmly. Sasuke groaned and adjusting the white shorts he had put on.

"Sakura."

Kalei exhaled a deep breath. Of course it was Sakura. Go figure. "Ahh, finally come to your sense's now? You ready to answer that question of mine yet?" She said, smiling.

"Do you like Sakura Haruno?"

"No. I'm not." He said, putting some yen into his pockets. He sat down on the bed and looked up at Kalei. "What, are you happy I'm going on a date with her?"

"Yes. But more so shocked." She said, tapping her finger on her chin. "And here I thought you didn't like girls."

"Why are you happy about it?" He asked, looking at her thoughtfully. She shrugged.

"Sakura is my friend. I want her to be with the person she loves. I want you to be with her. It's simple math." She said, using her hands to gesture. She giggled.

Sasuke opened his mouth to say something...but nothing came out. He looked off to the side and chuckled quietly. "You're stupid."

Kalei put her hands on her hips and pouted. "I'm not! Love is amazing! I want you to be with who makes you happy, Sasuke!" She said, earning herself a glare from Sasuke.

"I'm not looking for love." He spat roughly.

"Of course not. It just happens."

He rolled his eyes and Kalei sat next to him on the bed. "I have a question for you, now."

He looked at her as she was smiling at him.

"What was...your childhood like?"

His eyes widened. What, was she stupid? Everybody knew about the Uchiha massacre. He glared at her and she shook her head. "I'm not talking about that." She whispered, as if knowing what he was thinking. "I mean...what were your parents like? Stuff like that..."

He scratched his head. "I don't know. My father always payed more attention to Itachi. My mother was really nice and supportive. Itachi always seemed like a strong, trustworthy brother." He said, counting them off on his fingers. His eyes grew dark and emotionless. "My childhood was fine up until that day. After that...everthing's a blur. I know it was lonely..." He said, trailing off.

All of a sudden he felt something warm on his hand. It was Kalei's. He had his hand clenched tightly while resting it on his knee. She had lightly laid her hand on top of his fist, causing him to snap back to reality.

"I think...you're going to break a bone or something." She mumbled, looking down at his fist. He noticed how angry he was and relaxed his hand. "I'm sorry. I was just curious...I wanted to hear it from you." She kept her hand on his, noticing how cold it was. Just like his heart.

"I didn't have a great childhood." He said, looking at her. A look of worry crossed her face. She removed her hand from his and looked at the floor.

"Sorry, Sasuke." She stood up.

"Kalei."

She looked back at Sasuke as he fidgeted with his necklace. "Wait up for me." He said cooly, his face serious.

She swallowed hard. "Why?"

"So I can tell you how the night goes."

A small smile crept onto Kalei's face and she turned around to face Sasuke. "Really?"

"Yeah. You said you wanted me to be with the person that makes me happy. I'll tell you tonight if it's Sakura." He said, standing up. He looked down at her and smirked.

She nodded and brushed the hair out of her face. "Oh yeah. It is."

Sasuke walked past her and grabbed a black jacket. "I should be back around midnight or something." He said, waving goodbye and walking out the door.

Kalei sighed and rubbed her eyes. She didn't know how she was feeling about all this. And she didn't know if she'd be able to stay up and wait for him. He'd just have to wake her.


Sakura was waiting patiently outside of the sweets shop her and Sasuke had met at yesterday. He had told her this morning he would take her wherever she wanted to go, and that she didn't need to wear anything special. She was simply in her pale pink skirt and red top. It was slightly chilly tonight, but Sakura liked the cold...to a certain extent. She was somewhat nervous for tonight. She was going on a date with Sasuke Uchiha.

"Sakura."

She glanced behind her to see Sasuke walking up. He nodded toward the sweet shop. "I'll go get us some cocoa." He said, walking inside. Sakura nodded. So many things were racing through her mind. Before she knew it, Sasuke was back out. He handed her a cup of cocoa.

"Thanks, Sasuke." She said, grabbing the cup and taking a sip.

"So where do you want to go?"

"Lets go to the pond by the gate entrance." She spoke softly, walking ahead of Sasuke. He slowly followed.


"Where do you want to go after this?" Sasuke asked as they reached the pond. It was littered with flower petals, and the full moon reflected off the waters so beautifully.

"Lets just stay here for the night." She said, as she walked up to the pond. She sat down and took a deep breath, taking in the beautiful smell of fresh water and roses. Sasuke sat down beside her.

"Here I thought we would have gone someplace nice for your first date." He said, scratching his head. Sakura looked at him questioningly.

"Who said this was my first date?" She asked, slyly. Sasuke looked at her, surprised.

"Who've you gone on a date with?"

Sakura giggled, noticing Sasuke's face grow dark. "Are you angry?"

"No." He said, looking toward the water. "Just surprised."

"I was kidding. This is my first date."

I knew it. Sasuke sighed, looking at the petals float across the pond.

Sakura took a sip of her cocoa and scooted closer to Sasuke. If this was going to be a date, she wanted to treat it like one.

"What do you think you're doing?" Sasuke muttered, smirking at her. She looked up and blushed at him.

"I'm cold." She lied.

Sasuke rolled his eyes and took off his jacket, handing it to her. Sakura just looked at it. "You'll get sick, Sasuke."

"I'm not cold. Take it."

She slowly took the jacket and put it on. She looked up at him and pouted. "You want me to move back over?"

Sasuke stared at her. In the moonlight, she looked...pretty. He had never really thought of her that way. She had always just been a teammate, but right now...he was on a date with her. With Sakura Haruno.

"No." He said, looking back to the pond.

Sakura giggled and scooted a little closer. Her shoulder was touching his arm. She stretched her legs out in front of her and took another sip of her cocoa. She quickly glanced up at Sasuke. For the first time in a long time, his eyes looked full of emotion. Sadness...curiosity...

"Sakura..." His monotone voice interrupted her thoughts. "When I left...why didn't you move on?" He asked quietly. Sakura swallowed hard and looked out at the pond herself.

"I couldn't have. Even if I wanted to." She spoke softly as memories started flooding back. "I care about you too much, Sasuke. What I told you the day you left...it hasn't changed."

A frown grew on Sasuke's face. He felt...regret. Maybe it was just that they were alone, under a starry sky with a full moon...but he wanted to be close to Sakura. Close to someone.

"Sasuke...did you ever think about me and Naruto while you were gone?" Sakura asked suddenly. Sasuke exhaled a deep breath and looked up into the sky.

"Yes."

A smile drifted across Sakura's face. "Had you ever thought...of coming back to Konoha after you killed Itachi?"

A moment of silence.

"Yes...I considered it." He said, looking down at Sakura. "I didn't imagine I'd be here now. I just wanted to return to my house one last time before I set off to kill him."

She looked up at him. "Because...you don't know if you'll come back alive...right?"

Another moment of silence.

A weak smirk appeared on his face. "Yeah." He said solemnly. Sakura's eyes started watering. She could feel the tears pricking at her eyes. When she was with Sasuke...everything just felt like it did back when they were genin. Twelve years old. All the feelings she had for Sasuke had matured, yes...but when they were twelve...before Sasuke had left...they were happy. A part of her wanted to return to that.

She looked away and closed her eyes. "After you get some training in...when do you plan on leaving?"

Sasuke ran a hand through his hair and shook his head. "I don't know. After I get a lead on Itachi I suppose." Sakura looked up at him confused. "I have some teammates out around the surrounding areas. More than likely, if something comes up, they'll come inform me."

Teammates? But Sakura and Naruto were his teammates weren't they?...Yeah...once upon a time. When they were kids.

Sakura nodded. "Who are they?"

"Juugo, Karin, and Suigestu." He looked back at Sakura...and his eyes widened.

He could see the tears forming in her eyes. Just like when she was a child...she was crying.

"Sakura?" He asked, watching as she wiped her eyes. The tears hadn't started flowing yet, but she could feel them getting ready to. She stood up and stretched out her body, walking up to the pond until she could see her reflection in the water. Sasuke watched her very carefully.

"Sasuke, don't you have any reason to stay here? With us? This is your home...you can deny it, but it's true."

He felt a pain crawl through his chest. It didn't matter if it was his home or not. He had something he had to do.

"Me and Naruto...we'll wait for you for as long as we must. Sasuke, I'm not asking you to give up your goal..."

Sasuke stood up and walked up to her, looking at his reflection in the water as well.

He was standing next to Sakura. The same kunoichi that had graduated from the academy with him. The same kunoichi that had gone through the chunin exams with him. The same kunoichi that had once saved him from unleashing the curse mark's power too soon. The same kunoichi that had confessed her love for him, and begged him to take her along to Orochimaru. That same girl was standing next to him. That same boy. The only thing different about them was how they looked, how much stronger they were, and how much distance had been placed between them over the past 3 years. But right now...he was standing right next to her. And there was no longer that distance. So close, he could reach out to her. He could reach his hand to hers. And slowly...his hand started moving...

"...I'm just asking for you to come home to us...when you've done what you need to do. Restore your clan and live life as any shinobi should, Sasuke. Do it for me and Naruto...but also for yourself...Sasuke."

And with that, he slowly laced his fingers with hers, taking in the feeling of having something...someone...to hold onto.

Sakura looked up at him, with a look of shock on her face, as he held her hand tightly. He looked at their reflection once again.

"Those bonds...I never broke them..." He whispered. The night was still, and the reflection never wavered. The boy standing next to the girl. The perfect image.

"You never had to..." She whispered, looking up at the moon. He took a deep breath and looked up into the sky as well. Maybe she was right. People harbor many emotions, not just one. He could hate, and love...as long as those emotions were for two separate people.

He took in every inch of the sky. The stars, the full moon, the dark layout behind it all. He lowered his gaze and looked at the pond one last time. The pond reflected the sky to every detail. Funny how what we are can be changed so easily. You only realize who you really are, when it's staring back at you.

"Sakura..." He looked down at her. She looked back, eyes glassy, just like the waters. For once, in a long time...he smiled, showing every emotion he had locked up inside. It took her breath away completely. If only for this one night, she wanted Sasuke to be able to be the person he was never able to be. She tightened her grip on his hand and smiled back at him.

"...Thank you..."


Next Chapter: This Little Game We Play