Ch.9

The Lifting Fog

Sakura woke up to warmth.

Warmth seemed to be the only thing she could pick up in her sleepy state. It enveloped her whole body and presented itself in a enjoyable way she hadn't felt in a long time. She let herself enjoy the sensation of this warmth…of how good it made her feel a bit longer as her mind began attempting to turn on; the pistons in her brain pumping slowly.

The next thing Sakura could recall is laying on something very comfortable. She couldn't put her name to it though…it was better than any bed she had ever rested on. She sighed and snuggled deeper into whatever it was.

Last was the smell. Sakura breathed deeply of it with every inhale she took. The heady scent of mint and a damp dirt path brought to mind the dream she had last night of running through a field of bright green that seemed to stretch far beyond a sensible size...her laugh echoing through the night as she ran from a mysterious man that kept hiding his face in the green expanse whenever she looked his way. Even so, the thought of being caught by him was so thrilling she had to let the chase continue just a little longer. Adrenaline coursing through her veins while she called teasingly to him.

Sakura smiled at the remembrance of the wonderful dream. That is, until she felt her bed shift slightly and mumble something.

Wait…mumble something?

Sakura's eyes flew open to an astounding sight indeed.

There she was, on top of her former sensei, entwined so intimately with him she feared she would wake him with the slightest move. Her head lay on his chest with only one of his dark blue, flimsy masked undershirts to cover his modesty. Her thighs, clad only in her black short shorts, were wrapped tight around his torso with his gloved hands gripping the backs loosely in a sleepy embrace.

Thankfully, his eyes were still closed. Sakura totally felt her face heat up bright red with embarrassment as she frantically thought of a way to extricate herself from this potentially horrendous situation… while Inner Sakura was purring with delight. She knew she should have kept that extra set of clothes in her office! That would have been a much better defense than ripped up shorts and a torn tank top. The doctor's coat she had changed into 48 hours ago had been thrown aside in Sasuke's hospital room. Sadly, it seems she also had forgotten her decency there as well.

Dear Kami..how in the hell did she end up here?

Thoughts of Kakashi forcing her to his apartment to help her recover from her chakra burn out slowly started flashing behind her eyes.

She had slept it off here and then…

Things had gotten a little too close between her and her silver haired friend. The memory of how it felt to hold Kakashi in her arms and his acceptance of her touch shot a bolt of pleasure straight through her.

Shyly, she looked up to focus on his masked face.

The Copy Nin's headband was sitting on the stand next to him so she could clearly see the upper portion of his face. He seemed more relaxed in sleep which gave him a boyish look that emphasized his impossibly young face. The scar that bisected his right eye should have made him look disfigured but somehow worked in a manly sort of way. His Romanesque nose was half hidden underneath a navy mask. Sakura would think he would feel so suffocated. She would have if her nose was always covered but everyone has their quirks.

Last, she looked at his covered lips. However, this close up she could see how full they really were. A hint of the previous spark that made her come alive last night made its way down her being. The more she gazed at him the more Sakura couldn't help that said spark making a trail straight to her lower extremities. Enough of a spark that she had to squeeze her legs together and press into him slightly to ease the sudden heat.

It probably wouldn't have been too bad if she wasn't already sprawled on top of said unsuspecting victim. But, the feel of him underneath her mixed with her arousal was just too much; she had to get the fuck out of here so she would not do something that would ruin her.

Before she thought up a good enough way to get up and be on her way, since she had much more pressing issues to attend to than an insane sexually charged situation she should never have found herself in to begin with, there came a grumbling sigh from the person beneath her.

"I was hoping you would find an excuse to run out of here before I woke up."

At the timbre of his voice, Sakura should have jumped up and ran like hell all the way back to the hospital like the good wife she was. That is what she was frantically screaming to herself. However, for some reason she was glued to him; grabbing him harder trying to make her tense muscles work. In the attempt to take control of the situation and not just stare into his eyes like a rookie Genin, Sakura grabbed for the only thing she could make sense of; him and of course…anger.

"Well if you hadn't abducted me we wouldn't be in this mess. I told you I was fine." Sakura spat right into his face, enunciating every word with an edge of irritation.

Everything was silent for a moment before she felt him start to shake. He started laughing harder than she had ever heard. Frankly, she couldn't decide if it was terrifying or excited her even more.

Kakashi gave her a covered grin before he sobered up enough to realize how entangled they really were. Sakura took great pleasure in seeing his own mini panic attack and felt better that at least she wasn't alone in that aspect. However, once his grey eyes settled back on her smug verdant gaze her breathing came to a screeching halt.

Even Inner Sakura quieted at Kakashi's heated gaze.

Slowly, his gloved hands glided up her creamy thighs, past her hips and up to rest on the middle of her back. The whole time his intense eyes never left her face…as if he was still searching for the same answer…the once embedded into her very soul. At the end of his perusal the cheeky man had the audacity to lift his eyebrow in a silent challenge.

It took every ounce of will power Sakura had to not whimper at his touch. She was not some hormonal teenager experiencing her first man god damn it! If he wanted to play that way he was in for a rude awakening.

Sakura returned his challenge with a smirk of her own as she loosened the messy bun her hair had been in and let her pink tresses fall to frame her face. She then walked her fingers all the way up his arms to loop into his own hair; which caused her upper half to become dangerously close to his face.

"I don't know what kind of risky game you're trying to play here Kakashi or what you're trying to accomplish but I can guarantee you I won't go down so easily. I am already in a committed relationship after all."

"I don't know what you're talking about Sa-Ku-ra. Perhaps you still need more rest to dissipate your delusions?" He pronounced her name in short, clipped syllables to let his breath fan on her face. A fact that let Sakura know he knew about her fascination with his scent. She also didn't know which part of her statement he was questioning. Shit.

"Well in any case, I think I should be reporting to Naruto soon. Do you think I could use your shower?"

Kakashi nodded and let Sakura up, but not before she saw that he had been IMMENSELY happy to have her on top of him the whole night. Well, his body had at least.

Sakura let it slide without comment though when she looked at him and he silently dared her to say something. It was almost as if he wanted her to address the elephant in the room, but that wasn't like him at all. It was weird he even let her see to begin with. Just what was he aiming for?

"I didn't say I wish you would have left because I wanted to get rid of you. I thought it was best that you didn't see how much lying with you affected me…what with you being a happily married woman and all. But, you're still here."

Sakura blushed. There was no way she could say anything to his comment because he was right. What was she still doing here? Sasuke was in a coma and her daughter was most likely at the academy worried sick about him while she was off pushing boundaries with her best friend.

No. This was too far… sleeping was one thing but the extreme flirting going on in the after math of something innocent was not.

Although…

seeing a very impressive hard-on through his ninja pants was enough to have her thinking she could be persuaded to not leave his bed for the rest of the day; consequences be damned.

At that thought, Sakura nodded absent mindedly before turning and making a beeline for the bathroom.

She needed to focus today. For once her Inner agreed with her leaving Kakashi alone, knowing there were bigger problems on the radar. She was satisfied with the night's events…for now.

While she was stripping her clothes off, Sakura had caught a glimpse of herself in the mirror over the marble sink top. She hardly recognized the woman in front of her.

This woman had a glow to her skin, emphasized every so often with a flush of red. She had a spark of excitement to her normally dull eyes. This woman's clear sea green eyes had not only life reflecting back at her but a hint of mischief.

She hadn't seen these eyes in so long.

Before she could ponder that thought further, Sakura hopped into Kakashi's small shower and scrubbed herself clean of the past 48 hours. It didn't help that she came out smelling of mint but at least she felt more physically and mentally presentable. After brushing her teeth using her finger and a quick comb through of her hair she felt ready enough to act normal in front of Kakashi. No more weird innuendos or sexual advances for this girl; no sir.

When she walked into his kitchen he had already made her some eggs and toast with some more green tea. He had also put his full uniform on, vest and headband included, so she felt even more capable to talk with the sometimes stoic, sometimes joker she knew and loved…not the half dressed, fully sexy man she knew little of. She gave him a toothy smile and dug in.

While she ate, Kakashi said he would go with her to hear of any new findings with their mystery villain and to also see if he could be of any help.

Sakura agreed and after scarfing down her breakfast to avoid any awkwardness, almost as fast as Kakashi, they were on their way to the Tower.

It was starting to get a little chilly in the mornings and without the adrenaline of going to a spar Sakura could actually feel the cold in her skimpier workout clothes. She decided she would go home and change as soon as Naruto briefed her.

She found herself looking over at her companion more than necessary and it started to irritate her how completely non-chalant he was; not to mention how high school crushy she was being.

But still…how could he go from one hundred to zero in the span of half an hour? He wasn't even paying attention to her at all what with his nose in Icha Icha Tactics…yes, she knew which series it was. Her curiosity got the better of her one long, boring night doing paperwork so she decided to take pity on the Copy Nin so he would stop using pathetic deer eyes on her.

It began a tradition for them to take a smut break every couple of hours to recharge and Sakura was amazed to find that the orange monstrosities were begrudgingly good…especially when his deep voice would read them aloud.

How dare that old pervert use excellent smut to ignore her!

They walked a few more minutes in silence, passing the few vendors that were brave enough to venture out in this semi state of emergency, before Sakura couldn't take it anymore. She had to know what he was thinking about what happened between them. It was eating at her to not know his intentions.

"I think we should discuss what happened last night."

With her statement, Kakashi gave her a side glance and a flippant wave in her direction. "I have no clue what you're talking about Sakura. You slept off your chakra exhaustion; nothing more."

Okaaayyyy. Sakura was slightly taken aback by his attitude of the situation. Maybe his interest was all in her head…maybe she was projecting her painfully inappropriate desires onto him because she was finally done with being in a relationship with no spark, no passion.

Well this was awkward.

Sakura nodded and turned her head before he saw any kind of emotion on her face. What was she even contemplating anyway? A relationship, a fling…whatever would never work for her to begin with. Even if she accepted the repercussions of everything a fling with Kakashi Hatake meant there were still two people she loved that would always need her to be their rock. How could she turn their lives upside down just to run after a man that she honestly knew nothing about except for his willingness to be there for her in hard times?

Sakura walked brusquely next to Kakashi and spoke no more of her silly thoughts.

When they reached the doors of the Hokage Tower, Kakashi opened the door and gestured for her to go in. However, before she could sway fully in, the infuriating man bent down to whisper in her ear as she went past.

"On the other hand, I do enjoy sordid love stories every now and again."

Sakura stopped dead in her tracks to look up at him open mouthed. He just gave her his signature eye smile and strode away whistling the same tune from before when he left her office.

Did he just really hint to what I think he did? Oh fuck….fuck….

Inner Sakura just sat in her mind projecting to her all the fun things she wanted to try with the Copy Nin as they both watched his retreating figure.

Some Time Later

"Sakura, while you were resting some of Shikamaru's clan members spotted our guy. You will go to the area of the shadow man's last sighting and see if you can find anything that the Anbu might have missed."

Sakura nodded determinedly at Naruto's orders. She was ready to go out there and get some answers.

"After we realized we had to look for shadows they started popping up everywhere, but we haven't been able to pinpoint the target's location. Maybe there is a clue somewhere in the two spots he has been seen. You and Sasuke are the only ones who have physically seen him in the flesh so naturally having you search around would be the wisest choice." Shikamaru explained to her while looking through more paperwork that the ANBU had been furiously working on.

Sasuke's attacker has been the first bit of real action for Konoha in some years. Every ninja on duty must be itching to get a piece of the action. Frankly, Sakura already missed her routine at the hospital. All these new happenings left her feeling a bit anxious. But, In order to get back to her ordinary life she had to work for it…such is life.

It seemed that the conversation was over so Sakura headed toward the back window she was used to exiting when a hand reached for her shoulder, She turned to see Naruto's worried gaze on her; his whiskered face more solemn than she had seen in years,

"How are you holding up? I checked on Sasuke this morning and the nurse said you hadn't been by yet. Don't worry, we'll figure this mess out."

All Sakura could do was nod and give a small smile before fleeing out the window and running as fast as she could towards the Uchiha Compound. She wrinkled her nose at the thought of Naruto worrying about her.

It was nonsense… but she loved him all the more for it. Of course he would think she'd be in hysterics over Sasuke being so thoroughly beaten. Her impossibly wise friend knew she was in a state of turmoil but his naiveté in other matters, like the heart, caused him to believe the best of her when she was far from the tearful wife left behind.

Standing in the front room of her home, well more like Sasuke's home, she felt like she hadn't been there in ages. The rooms she past to get a change of clothes all seemed so clinical. When did she stop thinking of her home as such? Now it was just a nice looking house that didn't move her in the slightest. She peeked into Sarada's room just to be sure that her vibrant little girl existed in a space so drab. The sight of bright reds and purples clashing with the pink accessories gave her heart the jumpstart it needed to get on with her tasks. She had to find a way to bring her family back together…and soon before her resolve wavered and she did something to throw everyone into turmoil.

With a new goal in mind, Sakura went to her closet and threw on some thick black leggings and matching sports bra to go with her red zip up hoodie with the Uchiha fan emblazoned on the back. It was the first birthday gift Sasuke and Sarada hand-picked for her and she always brought it out when the weather started getting colder. With a pair of black boots in hand, Sakura made her way to the front door.

She paused to put on her shoes when she saw a quick black mark move on the wall out of the corner of her eye. Sakura paused for a moment before deciding she was being paranoid. She definitely would have sensed someone's chakra if there was anyone around.

However, she made her way to Training Grounds Three with all her senses open just in case she was wrong.

Training Grounds Three

Sakura touched down by the small lake Sasuke and she had fought by days ago and proceeded to run the spar in her head for the millionth time. This time though she mimicked her movements precisely and when she got to the spot where Sasuke had fallen she threw her chakra as far as she could in every direction to see if she could sense anything.

There was the occasion animal moving on the ground and a bird in its nest but no residual chakra.

Looks like I'm going to have to do this the old fashioned way…Sakura started grumbling under her breath about crazed men and their quests for power while she searched the area on foot.

An hour later, when she was about to give up and go to the other location Naruto had described there was a soft fluttering noise. She would have thought it was a bird but this sounded different somehow.

Sakura whipped herself to face the opposite direction just in time to see a man materialize out of nowhere and catch the kunai he had been throwing.

"Ahhhh, you came back for answers I see."

Sakura tried to get a look at his face but for some reason the hood he had on completely darkened his features. It had to be some type of genjutsu because the late afternoon sun was shining in his direction perfectly.

"Tell me what you want with Konoha." Sakura used a small amount of chakra to thrust the kunai back at him like a bullet. However, it went right through his face to hit a tree in the distance.

The man belly laughed at her attempt to subdue him and took a step closer.

"Now that sounds like a boring conversation. I think it would be more fun to talk about you! How about it Ms. Uchiha…or perhaps we can discuss your daughter? "

Sakura bared her teeth at the mention of her little girl. How dare this nobody come and intimidate her using her own child?

"No? Well, alright then. I'll know everything I need to know as soon as I get a little closer to you. Then all of your secrets will be revealed to me…especially how to unlock your husband from his slumber. His Rinnegan saw right through me and thought a self-induced coma was the best way to shut me out the bastard." It was unnerving to hear a voice but not see a face moving. There was no way to read him damn it.

" Hahahahah! He didn't take into account I could learn all I needed to from his little wife. The secrets of the Uchiha and the Rinnegan revealed to me. Now won't that be a great thing indeed!"

The shadow man walked closer to her as she retreated, trying to think of a game plan. He had to have some sort of mind reading kekkei genkai in place. Sasuke aside, there was no way she could allow this man to read her mind with how close she was to the inner workings of her village. She would rather kill herself than give him that information.

"What makes you think he tells me anything about his powers? You must not be a very good scout if you didn't know that Sasuke isn't that type of man." Sakura laughed at her remark…trying to throw off her potential attacker. This guy was in for a rude awakening if he thought anyone knew ANYTHING about Sasuke Uchiha but Sasuke.

Just then a water dragon shot out of the lake to their left and hit the shadow man directly in the chest and did some damage before he dissipated into shadows once more and reappeared next to Sakura's side. She tried to dodge his arm but was too slow and felt his hand catch her wrist in a vise like grip.

Sakura had no time to even take a breath before she felt the sensation of her chakra channels imploding throughout her whole body. It was agony. She screamed out and fell to her knees while trying to wretch her arm away.

It felt like hours but only seconds had passed before the man released her and dodged a barrage of kunai. She then felt familiar hands wrap around her body before hearing returned to her.

"Sakura! Sakura are you okay?"

Kakashi's insistent voice helped her to focus and she nodded once before attempting to get back on her feet.

"Ohhhh, I think I found something better than Konoha secrets but next time I'll get there my dear."

A huge laugh came right from where the attackers face should be and echoed throughout the trees.

" This is just too delicious! What would Sasuke think of his dear wife if he knew the kinds of things that went on in her head. Poor Sasuke. Maybe it's better for him if he stay in his coma. Wouldn't you agree Sakura Uchiha?"

All Sakura could do was watch helplessly as the man cackled one last time and disappeared right before her eyes.

Dear Diary,

Today was definitely one of those "I wish I had a drink for many different reasons" type of days. If there is a justu for mind reading there must be a rewind time jutsu out there somewhere. No? Well fuck…

A/N: I hope everyone is enjoying the story as much as I am writing it. Tell me what you think!