#29 – Closure

In the dead of the night, a dark cloaked figure stood in the old Team Seven's training grounds. The moon was up in its full glory, kindly bathing the earth with its blue-silvery glow. The light was enough to illuminate the woods and allow a quasi-normal vision, but the person standing there needed no light to sense another cloaked figure approaching quickly.

"So, you came" a female voice was heard; she was the one waiting.

"Of course I came. Didn't I tell you that I would always come when you needed me?" a male voice answered; he was the one who came to her.

"Yes, you did. Thank you for making it in almost no time." He couldn't see, but from her voice he got that she was smiling.

"Now, tell me why you need me for. At first I got a bit worried, but from your message I got it wasn't anything disastrous. Am I right?"

She chuckled. "Ah. Sometimes I forget how well you know me."

He walked towards her and stopped merely a foot from her body. She was so small compared to him, and yet her presence was bigger than his own. It engulfed him and made him feel good, relaxed. He lifted a hand and tenderly caressed her cheek, making her hood slide down her hair, which looked grayish because of the moonlight. "Blame it on our clandestine situation, Sakura." In a smooth move, he claimed her mouth with his, and soon lips, tongues and bodies melted together in a slow and sensual kiss. Both of them knew very well what always happened after they kissed like that – but that night it wouldn't happen. Reluctantly, he ended the kiss and looked deep into her eyes. "Sorry. I know it wasn't what you called me for."

"It's ok" she said softly, stroking his dark tresses with her hand, while the other was wrapped around his neck. "I needed this kiss. I had to be sure of something…" she sighed, but her eyes never left his. She knew she could tell him anything. "I needed to be sure of how I feel about you, and how you feel about me."

"My feelings for you haven't changed. I would still die for you without a second thought, but you know I don't love you in a romantic way. Just like I know you don't love me in a romantic way, too."

"Yeah, I know that. But why do we always end up like that? Every time we meet in private, we can't get our hands out of each other. If there's no romantic love, how is it even possible?"

"What can I say? The chemistry between us is strong, and we always knew that. Why not surrender? It is always excruciatingly good, anyway…" he whispered in a sexy tone.

Her body was quickly heating up at the close contact with him; he had this effect on her, and she knew – and felt – that she had the same effect on him. "But… What if I said that this time must be the last?"

At first he flinched, but relaxed again. "Well, then we should make this time memorable." He pulled her for another heated kiss, his hands making her cloak go away while her hands did the same thing to him.

That time was memorable indeed. The best they ever had.

"Aren't you angry?" she quietly asked, as soon as her brain started working again.

He nuzzled her neck, pulling her naked body closer to his. "Angry? Of course not. I won't say I won't miss our encounters, but we both knew that this day would come sooner or later."

They stayed in a comfortable silence for a while, enjoying each other's presence. He was the one who spoke first. "So, you got the closure you needed?"

She looked at him with wide eyes, and then she smirked. "I can't keep anything from you, ne?"

"Not even if you wanted. Tell me, who is the lucky bastard?"

"Someone you wouldn't like, but would probably approve."

"Does he know about us?"

"Yes. And I told him that I needed to sort things out with you before we could get into an actual relationship."

"And he agreed?"

"He had no choice. I told him that, unless I had this closure, we couldn't be together." Said that, she sat up and started putting her clothes back. He did the same.

"Hn. The man must really love you, then. If I were in his place, I would kill me right away." They laughed lightly. "I should let you go now. And remember: whenever you need me, send me a message and I will do the impossible to be with you. Ok?" he got up and offered his hand to help her getting up.

"Ok. Thank you for always being there for me." She was ready to leave, when his strong arms trapped her in a tight hug.

"Sakura… I truly hope he will make you happy. I'm sorry I couldn't make you happy the way you wanted me to…" she silenced him with her finger.

"Baka. You made me happy the way you could, and it's all that matters." They shared one last passionate kiss before he let go of her.

"Well, I guess this is it, then. Good bye, Sakura."

"Farewell… Sasuke."


A/N: Lately I'm in an 'I don't hate Sasuke' mood. I hope you don't hate me for that! And, just in case you're wondering, the one waiting for her is Neji. One last thing: I think that this chapter makes it kinda implausible for all the stories to be from the same time line.