Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto

Author's Note: Thank you for the quick responses to the last chapter. I am glad you liked it. I am so sorry for the delay in getting this chapter out. I had hoped to finish this story before the end of the actual manga but it was not to be. Although having recently read the epilogue of the manga I was utterly disappointed and know there are many that felt it was just, well, weird and didn't fit right. But hey it is out there now and no going back. All I can do is let my own imagination fly and continue to show how I would have finished it.

From the Heart

Chapter 11

As Naruto's form smashed through the window Sakura realised she may have used a little too much force than was necessary. She crawled onto her hands and knees and knelt on the bed, poking her head out of the now gaping hole. She cringed at her handy work. He may have deserved a slap for touching her in the way he did without her permission, but it was no reason to almost kill him. That thought suddenly made her panic a little, having never had to channel chakra through her mouth before she suddenly was not sure if she went over board and did some damage to him. She desperately tried to scan the area to see where he landed, but in the dark it was too difficult to tell.

She bit her bottom lip and sat back, staring out into the darkness as the cold wind broke into the room and helped cool down her over heated body. He will be alright, she told herself. After everything they had been through and the enemies he had been up against she believed he would be okay. Yet she couldn't shrug off an aching feeling in her chest, a gut instinct that something was amiss.

She thought back to events over the past few days and in particular the past 24 hours. She recalled her nightmare, her worries and fears and the feeling she had the moment she chose to kiss Naruto. She touched her lips with a shaking hand and felt her whole body tingle with goose bumps. The realisation that she had been the one to make the first move and that she had her first ever kiss with a guy had stunned her completely. Her 12 year old self would never have thought in a million years that Naruto would have been the one she gave such a precious thing too.

She thought back to what Naruto had told her about him disguising himself as Sasuke. She had been moved beyond belief. To think that if he had not run off at that moment then she would have had her first kiss with him back then. She smiled to herself. Back then she would have gone crazy at the thought that she had been fooled, but now, now she was relieved. Thinking about his reaction and his surprised look made her smile. To think she could have such an influence over a guy gave her a bit of an ego boost. Naruto was easy to tease and she was surprised at how fun it was to do so. Yet as the memory of his touch burned into her mind she felt her body heat up and her face felt like a furnace. She may have hit him but it dawned on her that deep down she had actually liked it and regretted forcing him to let her go.

I need to find him she realised, determination slowly sinking in. Looking around the room for her clothes she recalled that Hinata had been the one to undress her and so most likely her clothes were still in the wash. She shuffled to the edge of the bed and placed her feet on the floor. Pushing herself into a standing position and being careful of the glass surrounding her bare feet, she started to rummage around Naruto's wardrobe and finally chose a pair of trousers, bandages and tank top. Using the bandages she wrapped them around her torso and tied a knot in one end. It wasn't a bra but it did provide her with some support at least. The trousers were ankle high on Naruto but on her they were surprisingly long, although she had to admit they fit pretty well. She left the room to find her shoes when she heard a sound coming from the room behind her.

Sakura immediately froze on the spot. For a second she thought that it might have been Naruto returning from her outburst but as she quietly stepped closer to the doorway she could hear voices and her stomach turned.

"Woooow someone did a number on this" the first voice stated. Sakura knew it was familiar but not someone she was close to. If she had to guess, this was Suigetsu.

"Do you think it has started?" a deeper voice asked with a hint of concern in his voice. Sakura instinctively leant closer to the door, a frown appeared on her face as she realised it was Juugo.

"Who knows…man, where the hell did that woman go?" the water user moaned. The sound of shoes standing on glass told Sakura that he had entered the bedroom and was standing near the doorway, where she smashed the photo frame. It sounded like he picked something up as there was a momentary pause, "hah, is that Sasuke?" he asked out loud, laughing at something. "Man you gotta see this"

Sakura could only assume that the man had found the picture of the three of them when they were younger and was now sharing it with his friend and team mate. It was pretty hard to believe the hot head back then would grow into the man he was now.

"Do you think he is doing the right thing?" Juugo suddenly asked, indicating a little doubt in his voice. Sakura wondered what he meant by this and found her self unable to move away.

"Who knows" Suigetsu shrugged. At that moment he turned and opened the bedroom door. Sakura barely had time to move and had been so absorbed in trying to interpret the hidden meaning behind their conversation that she hadn't thought of a plan either. It was clear they were drawn to the damage but their talk had made her concerned about Sasuke's intentions and she suddenly wondered what was taking the blond hero so long to return.

"Oh what do we have here?" the swordsman announced with a wry grin as he identified the pink haired woman who was backing away from him. Sakura gritted her teeth and glared at him.

"What are you doing here?" she accused, sharp green orbs assessing them carefully as her feet shift on the ground.

The water like ninja tilted his head to one side and crossed his arms, shrugging. He looked her up and down and she instantly felt shivers run through her, "nice outfit" he teased.

At that moment the larger animal loving man appeared from behind his friend and followed his gaze. Sakura did not seem as disturbed by him as she had his comrade. Juugo might have had a dangerous side to him but she couldn't help but recall all the times she had seen him trying to help out at the hospital and take care of children and the elderly as well as animals that were injured in the war. He was a gentle giant in many ways.

"Sakura-san" he spoke her name in a tone that indicated surprise but respect at the same time, "what are you doing here?" he asked.

"Naruto invited me" she scoffed, "unlike you two, what the hell do you think you are doing entering someone else's home without permission?!" she tried to maintain that anger so as not to show her own concerns and fears.

"We heard an explosion and came to investigate" the fish like man replied. Sakura turned her gaze back to his. "Is the pipsqueak around?" he asked, clearly referring to Naruto.

"No" she replied, immediately regretting her honesty.

"Have you seen Sasuke?" Juugo asked. She shook her head once more. Sasuke wouldn't give her the time of day and they knew it.

"So who did that then?" Suigetsu asked as he pointed through the door behind him and towards the hole.

Sakura crossed her arms and avoided their gaze, "that was me" she replied defiantly. Suigetsu couldn't help but feel the pink haired girl reminded him a little of Karin and he grinned.

"Did Naruto do something wrong again?" Juugo asked as if it was common practice.

When Sakura's face blushed red it was the water ninja that saw the subtle change and put two and two together, "Oh" his smile widened, "so that's how it is" and suddenly laughed out loud. Juugo stood watching his friend's hysteria with a raised eyebrow and frown, clearly not getting the deeper meaning.

Sakura's vein throbbed, "I think you best leave" she demanded, "before I make you leave" she added, hitting a fist into her open hand to emphasise the fact she was not happy with their presence.

Suigetsu stopped laughing and raised his hands up in the air in defence. Juugo just stood to the side watching the pair. For some reason it reminded him of how Karin could be with them. Perhaps it was just a woman's way of expressing herself, but he had learnt quickly that when a woman was angry you didn't want to be around her. He reached out and placed a hand on his comrade's shoulder.

"It looks like he is not here. We should leave"

Suigetsu shrugged his friends hand off his shoulder and adjusted his clothing, "yeah yeah" he replied, turning around and heading back in the direction they had come in.

"Use the door!" Sakura snapped.

Suigestu stopped in his tracks and his shoulders shrugged forward as he hit his head with his hand and sighed, "Women" he muttered. He turned around and resisting the temptation to pull his weapon out. He barely looked her way as he walked past her and towards the exit she was now pointing at. Juugo merely walked by in silence and nodded to her in gratification.

As the door closed behind them Sakura finally let out the breathe she was holding and practically fell forward. She leant on the table to support her body weight. She was stupid for not leaving the building when she had the chance and for confronting them on her own, yet she couldn't not do that either. "Naruto, where are you?" she wondered out loud as concern about what Sasuke was now up to started to consume her.

…..

The atmosphere in Ichiraku's Ramen Restaurant was pretty intense. Lee and Tenten sat at one end of the stall, slowly eating in silence and passing concerned expressions between them. Sasuke sat at the opposite end, eating his meal in silence and Naruto sat in the middle, staring at the dark haired Uchiha whilst ramming food into his mouth and dripping sauce over himself.

Naruto was not stupid though, he knew something was amiss as it was unlike Sasuke to show his head in this sort of place or be anywhere near him at the moment. Ever since the war Sasuke seemed to enter a depressive phase. He may have helped them beat Kaguya but Naruto couldn't shake of the feeling that Sasuke was up to something. He had said he wanted to be hokage and the village had allowed him back. It wasn't that they forgave him, more that they were greatful he helped them win the war. At first Naruto had been pleased to have his friend back but things just weren't the same.

Nothing but the gentle slurping of their food rang through their ears.

"Did you hear the news?" Sasuke asked, breaking the silence but not looking their way.

Naruto paused in eating his meal, "What news?" he asked a little cautiously.

"Kakashi is the 6th Hokage" Sasuke replied.

There was more silence and a small smile appeared on Naruto's face. It surprised the dark haired man as the old Naruto would have probably protested and gotten jealous but the knucklehead seemed to have matured a little, appreciating others success before his own. It was a little disappointing as he had hoped for some light entertainment.

"Oooh damn that Kakashi for beating Gui-sensei to the top!" Lee exaggerated his thoughts, trying to break the mood. Tenten looked at him and sighed.

"Hey how is older bushy brow anyway?" Naruto asked a little curious.

Lee and Tenten seemed a little disheartened. "Gui-sensei won't be able to be a ninja anymore" Tenten finally spoke up.

Naruto stopped eating and looked down at his bowl. It had been a stupid question. He had known when he healed Gui that his body would never be the same. It was not like Lee's condition years ago…this time there was no cure.

"I am pretty sure that he wouldn't want his precious pupils to have faces like that" Ichiraku spoke up taking the bowls from Naruto and putting down a fresh one.

"Hmph, that's the price you pay for using such a dangerous jutsu" Sasuke spoke up with a bitter tone in his voice, although what he said was relatively truthful.

"Hey!" Naruto protested, catching the mood of the people around them, a skill Sasuke seemed to neglect a while ago.

"It's alright Naruto, Sasuke is right" Lee reassured his blond friend that he did not take offence to the statement. He pushed his bowl away from him and rose from his seat. He couldn't bear to be near this guy any longer, it made his usual jovial mood dissipate miserably.

"Lee?" Tenten spoke his name softly, concern in her tone as she watched him.

He did not reply and turned his back to them all. He lifted an arm up to move the flags of the shop away from him as he went to duck under them. Pausing in his tracks he said, "I swear I will never give up and I will be stronger than Gui-sensei ever was!" and with that he walked away. Tenten hesitated, knowing he needed space to himself and at the same time not wanting to be left alone with these two.

"Huh, moron" Sasuke muttered, finishing his own bowl and heading out in the opposite direction, clearly disbelieving in Lee's statement.

"HEY!" Naruto shouted, running out after his rival. The Uchiha stopped in his tracks.

"What?" Sasuke asked, cold as usual without turning to look at him. "If you don't mind I have places to be" he forced himself to sound bored.

"You shouldn't laugh at other people's misfortune like that!" Naruto scolded.

Sasuke grinned and almost laughed manically to himself, "what do you know of misfortune?" he asked, his expression changing to anger. He clenched his fists and ground his teeth in the memory of his lost family and the brother he killed.

Naruto couldn't help but think back to all the people he had lost in his life. Saying goodbye to his parents, his teacher, and his friend. It had all been almost too much to bear and if not for his friends and teachers to whom he saw as family he doubted he would have been able to pull himself away from the path of hate and sorrow. A path that his best friend and brother in arms was clearly following.

"Why are you like this?" Naruto asked, exasperated.

"Weren't you the one who said there was no point in talking?" Sasuke reiterated their encounter back when he had tried to kill Sakura for trying to kill him.

Naruto gritted his teeth, "Fine, fight me!" he announced, determination running through him. He was fed up of waiting and watching Sasuke fall. I'm sorry Sakura-chan, he thought to himself.

The uchiha slowly turned to face him and cocked his head to one side slightly, "Huh, I was beginning to wonder when you would ask" he said smiling.

"Naruto are you sure about this?" Tenten suddenly spoke up having witnessed the whole conversation. She didn't like the look on Sasuke's face and felt her body go cold.

Naruto raised an arm in the air with his back still to her, "Tenten, leave and don't look back" he warned.

"But…" she protested.

"This is between Sasuke and me" Naruto spoke up. He had warned them all to leave Sasuke to him. Yet when Tenten recalled the concern evident on Sakura's face and the fact she couldn't go through with ending Sasuke herself she began to wonder. Naruto was always doing things on his own and sometimes it just ticked her off. She knew she wasn't the only one, Neji definitely felt the same way. Yet there was not much more she could do. They had promised to not intervene. But when she thought of her pink haired friend she couldn't help but worry for her. She knew what it was like to be surrounded by two bone headed stubborn men that fought all the time. She couldn't begin to imagine the pain Sakura was feeling as the two men she loved were so willing to fight to the death.

"Don't go telling anyone about this" Sasuke warned, turning his gaze from Naruto momentarily and towards Tenten, his sharingan and rinnegan glistened and she felt herself instinctively lowering her gaze and stepping backwards. "We don't want any disruptions" he finished. With that there was a gust of wind that flew around her and as she lifted her gaze both the blond and dark haired men were gone.

…..

Sakura ran as fast as her feet could carry her. Her heart pounded in her ears and her chest felt cold from the air rushing through her lungs. She just could not shake the feeling that something terrible was going to happen. She headed in the direction she thought the others had gone and hoped Naruto would be but no one was in sight and she was left panting and panicking slightly.

"Where the hell are you?!" she muttered to herself, scanning the area around her.

"Sakura-san?"

She spun around upon hearing Lee's familiar voice, "Lee have you seen Naruto?!" she asked a little more forceful than usual. She had gripped the sleeves of his top and shaken him slightly. He placed his hands on hers and lowered them. His expression seemed sad. Something wasn't right.

"Lee?" she stepped back from him and looked behind him in the direction he had come from. Tenten was slowly catching up and tightly gripping one arm with her hand. She seemed shaken.

"What is going on?" Sakura asked her female friend. Tenten looked up at her unexpectedly and seemed surprised and upset to see her. She immediately lowered her gaze and continued to walk past Sakura.

"Come on Lee" the weapons master coaxed him.

"Where is Naruto?" Sakura asked more firmly.

"He is at Ichiraku's with Sasuke" Lee finally answered; Tenten stopped in her tracks and shook her head.

"No, they are both gone now" she replied. Sakura's heart sunk into her stomach.

"Gone where?" she demanded to know.

"I see" Lee seemed to understand something she didn't.

"See what?!" she demanded.

"They have gone to fight it out…geez, have you always been this dense?" a voice spoke up from the shadows. The glimmer of light reflecting on glasses shone brightly as the familiar red headed friend of Sasuke's joined them.

"Where?" Sakura demanded to know. Karin studied her momentarily before sighing and muttering about how rude the pink haired girl could be.

"From my chakra senses my guess is they have left the village and headed further out, probably so as not to get distracted" she stated clearly, casually waving a hand in the direction she felt them.

Sakura immediately raced towards the red head and grabbed her by the scruff of the neck dragging her in the direction to the exit of the village.

"HEY!" Karin protested, struggling.

"Sakura!" Tenten shouted, "They don't want you to go!"

"That's right Sakura, as hard as it may be it is a man's fight and you shouldn't get involved" Lee warned.

The medic ninja stopped her tracks and a relieved Karin adjusted her clothing, "geez where is your gratitude, so rough!" the latter complained.

The three ninja stood in silence and watched as the 5th Hokage's star pupil slowly clenched her fists and started to express a demonic aura. "That's it, I have had it!" she shouted, forcing herself to get angry. "I am part of team 7 too! When will they learn to stop pushing me away! Just because I am a woman I can't fight too? I will show them both!"

Tenten being a feminist and highly motivated by women with power found her heart being lifted by Sakura's statement. Damn right, she thought to herself. For that very reason she didn't stop Sakura from heading in the direction of her team mates, show them what you can do and who you are, she thought, filling with pride.

"You are coming with me!" Sakura ordered, grabbing Karin by her arm and dragging her behind her once more.

"Hey! Let go of me!" Karin protested. After all she had been planning on going herself and didn't need to be told.

….

Author's Note: This is a short chapter and the next I plan on having a fight scene. It is about time Sakura kicks both boys into gear.

If anyone feels like they need to rant or get things of their chest like I do then feel free to message me. I am always up for a discussion, debate or something.

Again let me know your thoughts and anything in particular you wish me to include.

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