Chapter 10: Wedding Preparations
They closed the door and sat down next to each other. "Alright, first is the basics." Gaara said. Sakura glanced at the small list he called 'basics'. Sakura laughed at Gaara's expression and took the paper.
"Alright, first one is the seating. How should we do that. Do you want the seating horizontally or vertically mostly?" Sakura drew a quick picture to show the different decorative ways of the seating. Gaara picked horizontal seating arrangements.
"Alright, second one is Guests which we can work on later. Next is the timeline which I have to work on separately. So the next one is Location. Where should we have the wedding?" Gaara thought about it. He didn't want it in the sand village, it was too hot and Sakura's dress wouldn't look as good with brown setting.
"How about Konoha? It would give you a chance to visit your old home and your friends." Gaara asked and he could see her eyes light up and she agreed and thanked Gaara for allowing it. Gaara smiled. "Alright the last on the basics list is Music. I think we should have a nice slow music choice." Gaara agreed and kissed her again. His excuse was 'he couldn't help it.' Sakura giggled and kissed back.
She pulled back when they heard Temari walking up to the room and enter. "Sakura, come on, I'm supposed to help you with your wedding attire with Tsunade and Gaara? Dad says he wants to help you along with Kankuro and Naruto." Gaara smiled and excused himself to track down the two. "Come on Sakura."
Tsunade was waiting for Sakura on the outer gates of Suna. "Ready to go?" She asked and the three left for Konoha to do wedding shopping. "So where are you getting married Sakura?" Tsunade asked after a while of walking.
"Konoha. It was Gaara's idea actually. He said he wanted me to visit my old home and all of my friends." Tsunade smiled and thought to herself. 'Wow, Gaara must really love Sakura. I wonder…' "Where's Sasuke Sakura? Is he with Gaara or no?"
Sakura grew quiet. "He left." Tsunade barely heard her because she said it so softly. "He left Suna and went to father. I guess he wanted more power. I guess I wasn't enough to keep him in Suna."
Tsunade looked at her daughter. "No, sweetheart, something tells me he would have left sooner or later whether it was Suna or Konoha. His heart is like Orochimaru's. We can't help that. It's who they are, the need the power to protect the ones they love, it doesn't mean that they lose the feelings they have for us." Tsunade explained.
"What if in the end, those very feelings and desires to protect kill your soul? What good is all the noble ambitions and goals if you can't be alive to fulfill them?" Sakura said as she snapped. Tsunade looked at her. 'So, it was a three way relationship. Well, who would have thought, Sakura with Sasuke AND Gaara.'
"Look at your father and I. We are not together because of the fact he desired power more than his family, but he did it, to protect us and he still loves us Sakura. You KNOW that." Tsunade said as she lifted Sakura's face to meet her gaze.
"Yeah, but what if Sasuke is different? What if his motivation to killing Itachi is just that, revenge? What if it's not really protecting us at all?" Sakura said as she saw the same hurt in her mother's eyes.
"It's something you have to trust in him. I trusted your father and I was right to do so. He wouldn't do anything to hurt either of us. What he did, was an unforeseeable circumstance. He's home now. That's all that matters. Sasuke will return if you believe in him. He may be in Otogakure with your father, but he wouldn't allow Sasuke to hurt his baby girl. Kay?" She said. Sakura felt better.
***Konoha***
"SAKURA!!!!!!!" Sakura turned and looked as all her friends ran up to her. Sakura hugged them all tight and cried. "I am so glad to be home again." They all began to comfort her.
"How are you? I heard you're getting married." Tenten said. She glanced at Neji. "We have to talk Sakura. I'll be the first to help you shop for your wedding. Come on." She said pulling Sakura away from the others.
Neji followed Tenten and Sakura. "So, Sakura, how are you?" Neji asked. He'd heard about Sasuke's disappearance from Suna, 'Or betrayal' he thought. He looked at Sakura and she smiled at him.
"I'm alright I guess. How have you two been? Together I hope." She said and was rewarded by a blush from Tenten and a smirk from Neji. "Oh come on, you guys did it already? That was fast, I've only been gone for about a month and you couldn't stand each other then."
"That was before…" Tenten started and blushed more. Sakura looked at her. Tenten noticed her raised eyebrow and continued. "That was before I saw Neji… Naked…In…The…Hot springs." Tenten murmured and looked away. Sakura burst out laughing.
"So the Great Neji Hyuuga has a hot body huh? Hot enough to make Tenten squirm with excitement." Sakura said and laughed even more. Neji noticed Sakura laughing and smiled. 'At least she's happy again. Even for a short while.' He thought. He put his arm around Tenten and took Sakura's hand, much like he used to as a child.
He lead them to a clothing spot and waited outside as Tenten went in and had the measurements put in for a pale, pink, sparkly dress for a wedding bride. The veil was going to be pale and sparkly with a cherry blossom flower on top, maybe three clustered together.
The two did everything else they needed for a bride and her maids. Sakura even filled out her timeline with appointments for her hair, etc. Neji walked around with them "Neji, Shouldn't you be with Gaara and the other men?" Tenten whispered. Neji looked at her.
"Ssshh, don't tell Sakura, Someone's watching her. It's not a friendly gaze either." Neji said as he used his Byakugan discreetly so as not to arouse suspicions to the enemy he was on to them.
Neji walked away from the group for a few minutes and Tenten kept Sakura occupied. Sakura felt an unfriendly presence and slammed her fist into the ground towards the presence. Itachi and Kisame jumped out.
"What do you two want? If it's Sasuke, he's not here." Sakura said and turned to leave. Itachi grabbed her and was flung back when her chakra powered fist punched his chest. "DON'T TOUCH ME ITACHI!!"
Kisame grabbed Sakura from the back and Itachi injected her with something to make her pass out. They quickly tied her and took off before Neji and Tenten could react. "We need Sasuke and Gaara." They said simultaneously.
"Lady Hokage!!!!" Tenten and Neji called as they ran up the steps. Tsunade looked out her door and asked what was going on. They quickly informed her of the events and said she should inform Orochimaru and Sasuke while they went to get Gaara. Tsunade wrote a note after they left and sent it to Otogakure.
***Otogakure***
"Sasuke, use your Sharingan. That's why you have it." Orochimaru said, easily dodging his attacks. Orochimaru saw the bird and called their training to a stop. Sasuke looked up and saw the White Konoha bird.
The bird landed on Orochimaru's arm and he took the note off and opened it. Instantly his anger fueled. Sasuke sensed his anger and asked what was wrong, Orochimaru handed the letter to him and as Sasuke read it, he too became angered.
"Let's go, we're going to Konoha to find out where she is. We'll resume training when we find her." Orochimaru said and left. 'I hope you're okay Sakura. Please don't die on me. I lost you before, please give me a chance to change and be a real father.' He thought.
***Akatsuki Hideout***
"Wake up!" Itachi yelled as the back of his hand collided with her face. Sakura's body landed with a thud onto the ground. She sat up and glared at him. She tried to move but couldn't.
Itachi had tied her up and she couldn't use her strength jutsu. Sakura silently cursed herself for not being smarter than that. Because of her stupidity, not only was she ensnared, but so would Sasuke, Gaara and Naruto. Sakura couldn't allow that.
"Let me GO!!!" Sakura yelled out, only to be answered with another backhanded hit. Itachi's fist hit her face and sent her back to hit against the wall. Itachi smirked and Sakura could feel blood trickling down her face.
"I don't think so. After Sasuke gets here and everyone else, I'll deal with them. Then you and I will have some fun." He said as he licked her neck. He looked into her eyes and Sakura spit at him. Itachi smirked and slid his hand between her thighs and massaged her clit.
Sakura felt the intense heat and arched her hips against his rapidly moving hand. Gaara's image entered her mind and she struggled between her need for pleasure and loyalty to Gaara and Sasuke. "Itachi, No. Please Stop." Sakura whimpered as Itachi slid a finger into her and slid it in and out.
"LET… HER… GO… NOW!!!" Sasuke's voice called out and Sakura looked up to see a sharingan activated gaze upon her and Itachi. Sasuke watched Itachi stand up and he tossed a kunai at Sakura and it cut her bindings. "Get out of here, Gaara is outside." Sasuke grabbed her arm as she passed him.
Sakura looked up at him and he leaned down and kissed her. Sakura moaned softly as his tongue pushed into her mouth to tangle with hers. Sakura was about to deepen the kiss when he pulled back. "Get going Sakura. Tell Gaara I'll be out later." Sakura nodded and left.
***Outside Akatsuki Hideout***
"Gaara!!!" Sakura called as she ran into his arms. Gaara caught her and held her tightly. "I'm alright. Sasuke said he'd be out later so we can't leave without him. Kay?" She said. Gaara nodded. 'So Uchiha didn't betray us after all?'
"We'll wait Sakura."
***Itachi and Sasuke***
"Face it Sasuke, you won't win. You'll die here and soon Naruto and Gaara will follow you, leaving the pink haired girl…All for me." Itachi said. Sasuke felt his curse mark spread and he allowed it. Itachi felt a small amount of fear grow in his stomach as he watched Sasuke transform into the stage 2 form.
Sasuke's speed was faster and his attacks were sharper and more accurate. Itachi was getting hit with kunai and shuriken and his were not even going close to hitting Sasuke. Sasuke grabbed another kunai and disappeared and reappeared behind Itachi and shoved the kunai through his chest.
Itachi spat out blood and keeled over. "H…ho…how? My… you..nger…bro…ther" Itachi gasped out as he fell to his side. After coughing up a little more blood, Itachi stopped moving. Sasuke used sharingan and made sure Itachi was really dead.
"Hn. I guess you couldn't beat me in the end, could you? Big brother?" Sasuke said as he gave a last fleeting glance towards his brother's corpse and left the hideout. He ran down the hallway and out the opening.
***Back to the Group***
"SASUKE!!!!!" Ino and Sakura cried out. Sasuke dodged Ino and hugged Sakura. No one aw the flickering glance between Gaara and Sasuke except Sakura. Ino walked up to Sasuke and Sakura and glared at Sakura.
"INO!!!" Sasuke said. "Stop glaring at her like that. I'll rip your eyes out if you don't." Ino walked over to Shikamaru and Temari. "Well, we'd better head back to Suna. Right Gaara, Sakura?"
Gaara, Sasuke and Sakura all walked off to the Uchiha home. Once they were out of eyesight from the others. Sasuke placed his hand on Sakura's hip and Gaara held Sakura's hand.