Chapter Eleven
The Results

Tsunade had released Sakura after she had finished stitching her injury back together and ordered her off active-duty until the wound was fully healed. Kakashi had asked if she was sure she wanted to release her that early, but Tsunade had merely said that as long as she didn't over use it, she would be fine. After that, Sakura had asked for a change of clothes before she and Kakashi left the hospital.

It was nearly noon when she made it back to the police department. Almost the entire department was there, but instead of the loud chatter she was used to hearing on the top floor, it was so silent it was suffocating. Everyone appeared to be working as they finished their reports and files, but Sakura didn't miss the way everyone's pens seemed to be still against the paper or the way the air was absent of typing.

Ino was the first person Sakura actually looked at. Her blonde friend was bent over her desk with a pen in her hand, but the tip didn't move as it pressed against the paper, staining one spot a dark blue. Upon her gaze, Ino slowly looked up and her eyes widened when she saw Sakura standing there. Immediately she dropped her pen and they raced into each others' arms when they saw the other was safe.

"Thank god you're alright," Sakura murmured quietly into her blonde friend's hair.

Ino gripped her just as tightly as her arms wrapped around her middle to avoid her shoulder injury. "What about you? Is your shoulder alright? When Kisame pulled you out of the water, there was so much blood."

Slowly Sakura pulled back and nodded. "Yeah, it's fine. I just tore the stitches."

Ino smiled in relief, but it quickly faded and she glanced away. Slowly Sakura followed her gaze and frowned in confusion when she found herself looking at the closed door to Itachi's office. She glanced back at Ino to ask her what was wrong, but her blonde friend spoke before she could voice her puzzlement.

"They're in there," she said quietly. "Itachi had Genma and Shikamaru pick up the twins' mom earlier. They grabbed Hanabi from the hospital too so they could talk to them together."

Sakura felt her heart climb into her throat and threaten to choke her. She glanced at Itachi's office and felt her heart break just a little bit more when she realized all the pain and suffering that family had to go through. In the back of her mind, she knew that there was nothing she could have really done to prevent any of this from happening but an even larger part kept repeating that this was her fault; if she hadn't been so self-absorbed with her own problems this wouldn't have happened.

Though, before Sakura could go any further down that road, Itachi's door opened and an older woman walked out with Hanabi at her side. Itachi stepped out after them and bid them a farewell as Genma approached them and escorted them towards the elevator. Even from this distance, Sakura could see the tears on their faces and her heart flipped uncomfortably. "It's not fair that one person should have to go through so much," she murmured quietly as she noticed the way Hanabi was gripping her mother's hand painfully tight.

Ino smiled at her sadly. "And yet so many people do," she said. Ino threw Sakura a look she didn't understand before she quietly turned and walked back to her desk.

Silently, Sakura watched her for a moment before she turned her eyes down to her Tsunade had found her something to wear, but the material was uncomfortable and a few sizes too big for her. Sighing to herself, Sakura turned to go to the locker room and change into something more comfortable, but before she got very far she felt someone tug on her hand gently. "Sakura-san," a quiet voice said.

Slowly Sakura glanced down and she felt all her earlier sorrow and regret hit her full-force when she saw Hanabi was standing next to her. She was still wearing a pair of hospital pajamas and there was an identification bracelet on her wrist. Automatically, Sakura's heart began pounding in her chest and an uncomfortable lump formed in her stomach as she bent down to be at the girl's level. "Hey, honey," she said softly. She was afraid if she spoke too loudly her voice would crack and all of her held-back tears would fall.

"I wanted to give you this," Hanabi said quietly as she held up a folded piece of paper Sakura didn't realize she had been grasping.

Carefully Sakura took it out of her hands and looked at the front to see there was a picture of two stick-figures on the front. The shorter of the two had black hair and was holding hands with a taller one. It had pink hair. It was obvious who they were supposed to be but Hanabi had put both her name and Sakura's above their respected drawing in case there was any doubt. Inside, in child-like handwriting, there was a short statement:

Thank you for saving me.

Immediately Sakura felt tears spring to her eyes and the few remaining pieces of her heart seemed to crumble just a little bit more as she closed the card slowly. Then she smiled weakly at Hanabi and embraced her with her uninjured arm, careful not to wrinkle the handmade card. "You're welcome, sweetheart," Sakura whispered into her hair as she fought back the tears that had gathered in her eyes.

For a moment, Hanabi hugged her back. Then she smiled at Sakura briefly before she hurried to join her mother at the elevator. Slowly Sakura stood back up to her full height as she watched her go. The moment the elevator doors slid closed, she glanced down at the card. Her heart lurched again as the first tear fell from her eye and landed on the edge of the light blue paper. When Sakura slowly looked up from the card, her gaze immediately sought out Itachi. Surprisingly he was watching her as well and for half a second their eyes met. She saw worry furrow his brows together but before he could react, she turned away and hurried downstairs to the lab where she could hide until she finally got control over her emotions again.

Sasuke found her nearly an hour later in the backroom of the lab curled up on the plush chair in front of the computer. Her tears had mostly dried but she felt worse than before as she stared at the blank screen.

"I was wondering where you went," Sasuke said quietly as he stood in the doorway to the small room.

She didn't look at him. A long silence passed between them before she finally spoke. "Have you ever wondered when someone dies, why their friends and family are the ones said to be left behind even though they're the ones living on?" she asked.

When he didn't answer right away, she looked up at him with a mixed expression. Sasuke frowned at her before he walked into the room and pulled up a chair to sit across from her. Once he was situated, he looked at her softly but seriously. "I suppose it's because they're leaving their friends and family behind to go to a better world than this one."

Sakura slowly closed her eyes and pinched them shut for a short moment to fight off the oncoming tears before she opened them again. Her gaze fell to the desktop where she had placed the card Hanabi had given her. "I hope that little girl goes to a better place than this one."

Sasuke just watched her for a long moment without speaking. She could feel his gaze on her but she didn't look up at him. She just leaned the side of her head against the headrest as she curled up further onto the chair and stared at the front of the card.

Eventually Sasuke sighed quietly, breaking the silence that had fallen between them. "I came down to ask if you wanted any time off. With the case having been closed, and the way it did," he added quieter, "officers are going to be requesting some time off. I know how hard this entire case has been on you – especially with how you and Itachi are acting towards one another – and I wanted to be sure you go as much time off as you need," he said quietly. Sakura just listened to him without taking her eyes off the folded piece of paper. "I can give you medical leave for a week but after that it's going to have to come out of your vacation time."

Sakura nodded slightly. She hadn't taken any vacation time this year, say for twice when Itachi was finally able to take the day off. "I don't know how much vacation I have left," she murmured quietly.

Out of the corner of her eyes, she saw Sasuke shift in his chair. "I looked before I came down. You've used all your sick days from when you were out during the case, but you also have another week and a half of paid leave. And you haven't used any unpaid time."

"So I have a month's worth of leave," Sakura concluded.

Again, Sasuke nodded.

Slowly Sakura picked her head up from the headrest to look at her best guy friend and superior. "I want to take it all," she said softly.

Sasuke's reaction was immediate. His eyes widened and surprise flashed across his face as he stared at her in disbelief. His relaxed posture suddenly tensed and he leaned forward in the chair as he realized how serious she was. "Are you sure?" he asked quickly. Then he shook his head. "I mean, why?"

Monotonously she shrugged as her eyes gazed around the dim room. Most of her things had been moved while Karin had been here during the case and to be honest, her lab didn't even look like her lab anymore. So many things were out of place or missing and she didn't even recognize most of the boxes on the shelves. The problem was this wasn't her lab anymore. Like she told Itachi earlier this morning, her profile said she was a field officer; not a forensic scientist.

And she wasn't sure she liked that anymore.

"I just want to feel the way I felt before this case," Sakura said quietly. "I'm tired of feeling angry and hurt all the time. I just want to be happy again." She sighed softly as she turned her gaze back to Sasuke. "And if that isn't possible, I'll resign when I get back."

His disbelief turned to worry instantly. Immediately he stood up and walked around the computer table to sit on the edge of it so he could see her expression clearly. "Are you sure about this?" Sasuke asked seriously.

She smiled painfully at him and shook her head sorrowfully. "No. But what else can I do?" she asked, her voice clogged with tears.

Since Sakura had been a freshman in college, she had been reading Sasuke's moods through his body language and the brief glimpses of emotion on his face. She had seen a variety from anger and annoyance to frustration and confusion; but never once had she ever seen the look of pure and utter sadness on his face before. It made her want to start crying all over again.

Eventually, Sasuke closed his eyes and sighed out his nose. "Where will you go?" he asked as he opened his eyes to look at her.

She shrugged slightly. "I don't know. Home probably. After that, I'm not sure."

The moment Sasuke's lips pulled down in a frown and his eyes narrowed in her, she felt the tears she had been fighting spring back up with renewed strength. Quietly, Sakura uncurled herself from on top of the chair and placed her hand on Sasuke's knee. "You know I love you, Sasuke," she said softly. "You were there for me after everything happened with Kiba and you've been protecting me ever since. But if I stay here, I won't be able to stay as strong as I've been pretending to be. My heart's been broken before. I can't stand to go through that again."

But she knew Sasuke was aware her heart was already broken. It had been for awhile; perhaps since the start of the case. She had just been too angry to realize it until now.

Sasuke smiled sadly as her tears fell down her face. He grabbed her hands in his and looked down at them for a long moment before he gave them a friendly squeeze. "I hope you do find what you need, Sakura," he said quietly as he slowly turned his gaze back up to her.

She matched his smile for one of her own as her tears finally completely blurred out her vision. "Thank you, Sasuke," she murmured as she quietly stood. She grabbed the card from the table next to where Sasuke was sitting before she embraced him tightly. "For everything."

They stayed like that for a long moment before Sakura pulled away. Slowly she grabbed her badge and gun from her hip before she placed both items on the desk next to him. She gave Sasuke one last sad, departing smile before she turned and walked out of the department.

The sky was dark when Sakura arrived at Tokyo's International Airport. She stepped out of the back of the cab without a word and paid the cab driver her fine and a nice tip before she grabbed her single suitcase from the curb where he had set it down for her. The inside of the airport was thankfully quiet and warm, which was a relief from the cold winds whipping around outside.

Fortunately, there were only a couple of people waiting in line to get their plane ticket when Sakura walked up to the airline counter she was taking. She quickly got her ticket and declined to check in her bag before she bid the woman a good night and continued further into the airport to the large screen that showed all the flights and their departure time. Sakura stopped in front of it with her suitcase behind her and scanned the rows of flights for her own, noting with relief that it was on time to depart in a little under two hours. She had plenty of time.

"Did you really think you'd leave without saying good-bye," a voice suddenly said behind her.

Surprised, Sakura spun around to find Ino was standing a couple of steps behind her with her arms crossed and a small frown on her face. She was wearing a pair of jeans and a deep blue shirt under her dark, knee-length, wool jacket. Her hair was pulled back and she looked as beautiful as she always did, but there was a certain look in her eyes that told Sakura she didn't feel like she looked.

"I can understand why you didn't say anything to Itachi, but not even a word to me?" she asked a little too coldly.

Sakura frowned slightly. "I'm sorry," she murmured quietly. "I was going to tell you tomorrow, but then I found a seat had opened on this flight at the last minute. I really didn't mean to leave without saying anything."

The small glare on Ino's face slowly vanished and she uncrossed her arms to stuff her hands into her pockets. "It's alright, I suppose. You know, Sasuke's not the only one who realized how much you were hurting lately," she said softly.

The corner of Sakura's mouth lifted in a small, sad smile but it quickly fell. "Sasuke told you I was leaving tonight then?"

Ino nodded. "Yeah. He also told me how long you planned on being gone." Sakura watched as a deep frown settled on her best friend's features. "I hope you end up coming back before then, Sakura. You're already going to miss Shikamaru's reaction to my pregnancy."

Sakura looked at Ino sternly. "You still haven't told him?"

The blonde woman waved her off. "It's on my list of things to do, right under saying good-bye to my best friend for a really long time."

Another frown fell across Sakura's lips. "It's only a month."

Ino crossed her arms again and she looked at her angrily to hide the tears gathering in her eyes. "And what happens after that? What happens if you're still not happy? Are you going to quit? Then the next time I see you will be much longer than a month. Who knows? Maybe you'll even leave the country this time and who knows when I'll see you again after that-."

Sakura cut off Ino's rant abruptly by embracing her tightly. She wrapped her arms around her tight enough that her shoulder began to hurt, but she didn't let go. She heard Ino sniff quietly as tears slowly leaked out of the corner of her eyes but that was all the noise she made. They hugged for another moment or so before Ino finally pulled back and wiped her eyes as Sakura blinked back her own. Forcefully, Sakura smiled at her. "I'll come back, Ino. I promise."

Ino took a deep breath before she nodded. "You better." Then her eyes turned to the large screen behind Sakura. "You should go. Security is a bitch to get through and you don't want to miss your flight."

Quietly Sakura nodded. She grasped the handle of her suitcase again and gave Ino a small smile. "I'll miss you."

Ino just smiled sadly as she nodded. Then the corners of her mouth lifted slightly. "You better bring me back a kickass souvenir."

A smiled stretched across Sakura's own face and she laughed quietly as she turned and made her way towards the security line. "I will. Bye, Ino!" she called. She felt her best friend's eyes on her until she rounded the corner and entered the line for security.

Honestly, Sakura didn't know what she was expecting to happen where she was going, but she hoped something did. The constant pain in her chest was beginning to eat away at her and she could only wonder how much more pain she could take in her life before she finally caved in. She had almost completely lost it when that little girl had given Sakura that card and she knew it was only a matter of time before the protective walls she had carefully build around herself came crumbling down and trapped her underneath.

It had been nearly three days since the end of the case and Itachi found himself just now finishing the paperwork for it. For the most part, things had been calm around the department. Nearly a dozen or so officers had requested the rest of the week off, but sense it was now Friday it hadn't been that much of an issue. The only problem was, in those three days, Itachi hadn't seen or heard from Sakura. He vaguely wondered if she had taken medical leave so her shoulder could recover but he still found it surprising there hadn't been any word from her. He could still clearly remember the look on her face after Hanabi had approached her the day the case ended. He had seen Sakura sad before, but never once had she looked so completely heartbroken and it made his chest tighten uncomfortably.

Unfortunately, Itachi had to ignore it for the time being. He had needed to finish the paperwork for the case and he didn't want to have any distractions as he tried to recover whatever he could of his relationship with her.

"Itachi."

He slowly looked up at the sound of his name and found Kisame standing in front of his desk. The older male had decided to stick around even after the end of the case to help tie up any loose ends, but at this point all that was left was the stack of paperwork sitting on his desk.

"Let me finish the rest," Kisame said calmly.

Itachi sighed quietly, but before he could voice his objection, Kisame continued: "You're exhausted and distracted. Besides, there's not that much left. Why don't you start your weekend early?"

For a long moment, Itachi stared at his friend as he weighed the options. Then he nodded as he realized he hadn't stopped thinking about Sakura since he had last seen her and it was getting harder and harder to focus on what he was reading.

With a small nod of thanks, Itachi stood from his chair and collected his things before he left. As he walked out to his car, he pulled out his cell phone and called Sakura, hoping that she would answer. Honestly, he wasn't surprised when her phone went straight to voicemail – they hadn't called each other in weeks even if it was work related. He didn't actually expect her to start talking to him now, even if he desperately wanted them to.

Sighing softly, Itachi put his phone away and decided that after he got changed out of his work clothes he would go see her. If they were to finally have their long awaited talk, he didn't want it to seem too business-like by wearing his suit and dress pants.

The moment Itachi got home, he went straight to his bedroom. Quietly, he sat on the edge of his bed and pulled off his shoes before he began to unbutton his dress shirt. He had made it through the top two buttons before he realized something was off and stopped.

Since Sakura began spending more nights at his house, she had left her phone charger on the nightstand, only now it wasn't there. Neither were the millions of hair ties she left lying around. With a sinking feeling, Itachi glanced at his dresser and slowly made his way to it. His hand hesitated on the handles of the top drawer before he pulled it open. His heart seemed to stop when he found it empty. Quickly, he pulled the next drawer below it open to find it too was empty. Hurriedly Itachi did a quick search of his room and the bathroom to find everything Sakura owned was missing. Her shampoo and conditioner were no longer in the shower, her toothbrush and face wash were missing from the counter, and the drawer she kept all of her make-up in was completely empty; it was wiped clean.

Agitated, Itachi slammed the drawer closed and rested his hands on the countertop. For a long moment, he just stared at himself through the mirror before something hanging on the wall behind him caught the corner of his eyes.

Her crimson nightgown.

Immediately Itachi spun around upon seeing it and walked over to the hook that was holding the material up. He reached for it and carefully pulled it off the wall as he looked at the material. Sakura would have seen this.

Quickly, Itachi hurried back into his bedroom and tossed the nightgown onto the bed before he changed out of his work clothes. Within the next five minutes, he was in his car and driving to her apartment. He parked outside the building a few minutes later and relief flooded him when he saw her car was parked in its normal spot, but he only glanced at it long enough to confirm it was hers before he brushed past in and hurried up the steps to her building.

When he reached her door, he didn't even bother knocking. He tried the handle only to find it was locked. Hurriedly, he pulled out his key and slid the deadbolt out of place before he pushed the door open and walked inside, searching for any sign of Sakura. He easily brushed through her living room and dining area as he made his way through her modest living space when he didn't see any sign of her, and continued on to her bedroom.

The moment Itachi pushed the door open, he froze.

The entire room was almost completely bare. There were a couple articles of clothing strewn over the sheets on her bed, but other than that there was nothing in the room. All her jewelry and miscellaneous items that had once been atop her dresser and desk were gone and packed into boxes in the far corner of her room. The only thing taking up the surface of her dresser now was all the pictures she had once had hanging on the walls. The entire room had practically been wiped clean.

Quickly, Itachi turned toward the wall closest to him where her closet was. He threw it open and stared in alarm when he saw there was nothing inside except for a couple of empty hangers. Slowly he dropped his arms back to his sides and glanced around the room for any clue as to where she had gone. His eyes stopped on a medium sized box on the floor next to her bed away from the others. Slightly hesitant, Itachi picked it up and placed in onto of the bed before he opened it. A hard lump formed in the pit of his stomach when he saw what was inside.

It was everything he had ever left there. There was a pair of sweats and a couple of other articles of clothing. The sweatshirt she had stolen from him nearly a year ago was folded and piled atop of the other pieces of clothing. But there was one item sitting on top that made his heart jumped into his throat and his eyes widened when he realized that Sakura wasn't just trying to push him out of her life; she already had.

Lying on top of all his clothing and other personal items was a small, white box. The box itself was rather nondescript but he would recognize it anywhere. It was the box he had handed to her for Christmas nearly two years ago. Inside was the emerald necklace he had given her; the one she wore every day.

For a long moment, he just stared at it, but then something else caught his attention. Slowly, Itachi glanced back down at the box and reached inside to pull out a familiar looking card. The front was fairly nondescript, but the words "Lots of people are thinking of you on your birthday; I just wanted to let you know I'm one of them" were written on the inside with his signature right below it.

He recognized it immediately.

It was the birthday card he had given Sakura the day she had saved him from being killed by Neji. It was the same day he had kissed her and the same day they had started their relationship. He supposed it was just a card, but with how worn it looked, Itachi guessed it was more than that to Sakura. It represented them and their commitment to one another. And it made his heart lurch painfully that it was in the box with all the rest of his things. It hurt more than the fact the house key he had given her was there.

Without another thought, Itachi dropped the birthday card onto her empty bed, snatched up the jewelry box and raced back to his car before he took off to the department. There were only a couple of people that would know where Sakura went and one of them was his brother. He didn't care what it took to get it out of Sasuke; he was going to find out where she went.

When Itachi finally reached the department again, he hurried through the lobby towards the elevator without a word to anyone. Forcefully he pressed the button to go up and waited with crossed arms until the metal doors slid open. The moment they were open wide enough for him to fit, he stepped inside, passing Temari as she stepped out. Though, when she saw it was him, she quickly turned around and followed him back in. "Superintendent General-sama," she said as she closed her phone and stopped next to him in the elevator. "I was about to call you."

Itachi barely spared her a glance as he pressed the button for the top floor. "It is important?"

Out of the corner of his eyes, he saw her frown. "I'm not sure," she said slowly. "I was going through the computer in the lab to print out all the paper the Kanazawa police department would need and I came across an unauthorized test. I think Sakura had run it. She had been the only one running tests on that computer the past week."

He glanced at her as she spoke before he turned his attention back to the floor numbers flashing across the screen above the doors. "What was the test?"

Temari frowned again. "I don't know. It was untitled and was surrounded by security codes. When I hacked them" – she stopped abruptly and cleared her throat slightly as the elevator doors opened and they walked out– "I mean, got passed them I found there were high amounts of uric acid, urea and traces of ions."

Itachi glanced at her as they headed towards Sasuke's office. "A urine test?"

The blonde woman nodded as Itachi stopped a couple of steps away from Sasuke's office to give her his somewhat divided attention. "Yes, but the test was on the progesterone levels."

His eyebrows drew together in confusion. "Progesterone? In urine? That sounds like a-."

"It's a pregnancy test," a voice cut in.

Immediately Itachi looked at the speaker to see Ino was standing a couple steps away. Her arms were crossed and there was a guarded look on her face as she glanced at Temari. The blonde Kanazawa officer merely nodded at Ino and bowed slightly to him before she walked away, understanding that the conversation had turned private.

The moment Temari was gone, Itachi's focus was set solely on Ino. "Sakura thought she was pregnant." It was a statement, not a question.

Ino nodded slightly but her expression didn't change. "Back when she was sick," she said monotonously. "She took a home pregnancy test and it came out positive. So when she could come back to work, she tested it again. Turns out it was a false positive."

Itachi could feel himself becoming frustrated. "Why did she not tell me?"

She just stared at him. "Why would she? I sure as hell wouldn't. It's not like you were ever there for her." Her voice took on an undertone of resentment. "I was the one who stayed with her as she cried her eyes out every night, wondering how she was going to tell you and if she even wanted to keep it. Not you."

He stared at her, taken aback. Had he really hurt her that badly that she didn't even want to keep his child? He could only imagine how she felt when he hadn't gone to see her while she was sick. No wonder she had snapped at him so harshly. He had only gone to see her when he knew something had happened to her because he felt somewhat obligated to as her boyfriend.

Suddenly, Itachi looked at Ino. "Where is she?"

Her eyebrow rose. "Do you really think I'm going to tell you?"

His frustration returned full force. "I could fire you."

Her guarded expression turned challenging. "I think you're forgetting that my friendship with Sakura is stronger than my loyalty to you as my boss."

For a moment, Itachi seriously considered suspending Ino for insubordination, but he knew that if Sakura found out, she would never forgive him. Instead, he glared at her in annoyance as a deep frown pulled the corners of his mouth down. "I need to speak with her."

Ino laughed hollowly in her throat. "You should have done that before she went home." Then she walked away.

He watched the blonde woman walk away before his gaze averted elsewhere as his thoughts raced. Home? The only home he knew of that Sakura had was the one in Tokyo and the house she lived in before her parents died when she was seven.

Unless she went back to the people who had taken care of her while she grew up, he realized.

Thinking back now, he realized he had never asked her who she had lived with during her childhood. Every time they talked about her past it was either about her parents or what Ino and his brother had been like in college. She never once spoke about her teenage years and he had never asked. He had no idea who had taken care of her after her parents' deaths, but going off of what Ino had said, she was probably there now.

With a last glance back at Ino, Itachi turned away from Sasuke's office and quickly headed to his own, where he knew Kisame would no longer be. He was determined to find Sakura, even if it took him through the night and well into the next couple of days. He knew that Sakura could hide if she wanted to, but he was going to find her no matter what it cost.

But there was something he had to do first.

Pulling out his cell phone, Itachi found the contact he was looking for before he pressed the call button. The phone rang twice before the person on the other end answered. Itachi waited until he closed his office door behind him before he spoke. "I need to have a word with you. Please report to my office, Officer Inuzuka."