Lady Luck

by Arivahna

Non-massacre "Sakura, it should be more. I know what I did to you, and I did it for my own selfish needs." Itachi pleads with her after he tricked Sakura into marrying him. She reluctantly agreed though, but did not know just how deep the corruption in the Uchiha family actually goes.

13. Chapter 12: Discoveries

Story: Lady Luck

Chapter: 12

Author: Ari

Beta: Proclaimed Penguin Princess

Pairing: Uchiha Itachi & Haruno Sakura

Warnings: Drama, suspense, cliffhangers- not as much citrus in this chapter as one would expect.

Disclaimers: See first chapter for full disclaimer, but basically I do not own anything Naruto related.

Reminders: First, I recommend going back and rereading. I have been making revisions to previous chapters as well, so I would recommend rereading from the beginning.

Second, Gorrisama is translating Lady Luck into Spanish. You can link to her through my favorite stories or authors.

Enjoy ^-^

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-xXx-

Previously

"So that's just it?" Sakura asked, gestured exaggerated as she threw her arms out wide. "Barely recovered from almost dying from a poison that our labs don't have an antidote for yet, got your fucks in and back out you go? Like your life doesn't matter?"

"My life does not matter." Itachi deadpanned flatly.

Silence of shock stilled Sakura's tongue. What could he mean his life did not matter? Of course his life mattered!

Itachi had this irritating way of being able to read her very well. At times she loved it, but now, in these situations, she loathed his attention to detail. "I am a shinobi of Konoha, Sakura, I will protect this village."

Silence.

Cold crimson eyes stared at her. "What would you have me do Sakura?"

Pale pink lips parted, she wanted to say it but knew it would be fruitless. Don't go. Stay here with me. Stay safe. "Why does it always have to be you?" Sakura finally asked, her voice shaking with emotion in every word.

"Would you rather it be Sasuke? Or Naruto?" Itachi asked her, "Or do you mean another faceless ANBU whose name you don't know because it would make your life easier?" He spoke each word with a cutting harshness that stung. He did not desire to hurt her further. He was a shinobi as her. This was the way of their lives. As servants, they do not get to pick and choose.

Still she could not help as tears built into her eyes. "It doesn't give you the right to be reckless. You throw yourself in danger's path like you don't have people at home who care about you Itachi."

"Everyone has someone waiting. Someone who will mourn their loss as their name is carved into stone."

"Kami," she yelled, the tears falling down her face. "That's not the point!"

Her tears pained him. Especially when he knew he caused them. He had seen her cry before. Those tears had been followed by her running away. He had seen her fight before, throwing physical punches, damaging his liver. But this- this was a different type of fight in her.

She was pale, as if she was drained of almost all of her own chakra. Her hair unkempt, sleep tossed, skin paler than usual. There were large circles under her eyes. She had not been sleeping well recently. He did not know how he did not see it before.

He dared to hope that maybe she felt for him what he felt for her. "I am not special Sakura. I am servant the village just as you."

"You are more than that." Her voice was flat like she could not put any more energy into her voice.

"Why?" He questioned, eyes changing back to onyx,

"Because I-" the words caught in her throat.

Her hesitation was enough. She didn't say love, and he did not expect her too. She stared right into his darkest midnight eyes, daring him to challenge her when her heart was laid out before her.

"I care about you. I am scared for your life." She took a breath, forcing herself to continue. "Scared I might have to spend another night without you." The statement came from her lips so assuredly. She must've been thinking about this for a while.

"It is my duty to keep the village safe."

"At the river you said it is your duty to spend every day for the rest of your life making me happy. Or was that an empty promise?" Emerald eye widened at what she just said. But she meant every word. "How are you going to lead the clan if you cannot spend more than a few days around them? What do you think is going to happen to you clan then Itachi? Do you think they will always take orders from me? What about us?"

"A threat to the village is a threat to you, to the clan. I cannot sit idly by when I have the skills to protect the village." Cautiously he took a step forward, testing if it was okay to touch her now. She reluctantly welcomed his warm embrace, yet soon unraveled in it.

Self-righteous prick. How could she be angry at him for wanting to protect the village, and by extension her? Even so, she was not okay with this. His noble intentions do not excuse the fact he did not consider her, them, the future. But he was doing what he thought was best for the village, for her.

So she stood there, her fists resting against his chest as his taller form held her close. She told herself she would not cry. She would not let him think her more foolish than he already did.

"I thought you said you were going to try to make this work. How can you make this work if you are always running about being the hero?"

He gave no answer because he knew her question was rhetorical. There was nothing he could say to put her mind at ease.

Itachi could only hold her. This was the part he was not good at; the mixed emotions of anger and passion. He felt her desire to both push him away and never let him go again. There was no good or right thing to say to make her feel better. Still, she was a kunoichi, she knew the hardships of their lives. She should not be surprised.

"What are you not telling me?" Sakura asked into his chest.

"Sakura-"

"I know." She said anticipating what he was going to say. He needed to go. His team would be waiting for him. Slowly, she withdrew herself from his warm embrace. Taking a step back she collected herself before facing him; putting on the warm, friendly mask she wore to protect others from her own pain.

"You will come back," she stopped him cold. Her voice was firm, unwavering as her beautiful jewel eyes. "And you will tell me everything. Even the things you don't think I need to know."

Itachi stiffened in his shoes.

-xXx-

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-xXx-

Three Months before the Wedding

Uchiha Shisui was well aware of his reputations around Konoha and further into the shinobi nations.

He was known as Shisui of the Body Flicker. He developed his own ability to quickly shift himself around the battlefield. Born out of his own Mangekyou, his ability to quickly move around the battlefield, on top of his own proficiency with his kekkei genkai, earned him a fearsome reputation. He loved to hear his enemies gasp when they realized who they were actually fighting. 'It's Uchiha Shisui!' his enemies would gasp and he would grin. The battle was all but won. When ANBU Team Crow was on the job though, they were a flawless machine.

He was known as the 'different' Uchiha; the black sheep of the clan. So many of his clansmen regarded themselves as superior to the other villagers and shinobi. Shisui could see that their Sharingan gave them an advantage and if it were to be taken away, there were no more exceptional shinobi in their clan than any other. The strength of the clan was due to the village just as the village needed the Uchiha. His feelings caused many of his older cousins and relatives to distance themselves from him. That was fine, he had Itachi and between the two of them, even sometimes little Sasuke, they could easily wipe the floor with the entire clan. Together they would teach the younger generations of balance and the dangers of pride. In the meantime he would go to bars with his shinobi friends and participate in the joys of diversity.

Which brings us to Shisui's 3rd reputation. He was known as a ladies man, which he could not deny. Shisui very much enjoyed a woman's company. There was something about women that he was drawn to; their soothing voices, their coy smiles, and their soft feminine bodies. Kunoichi were oxymorons. Two opposites in a beautiful bundle. They were strong yet soft. They are aggressive but shy. Ah yes, Shisui loved his women. There was something about a strong, opinionated woman that he was attracted to biologically.

This particular kunoichi however; this one gave him such whiplash he was almost glad he never pursued her. Eight years was a little more of a distance than he was used to but it's not like he hadn't went after a girl that much younger than him previously.

Shisui wondered how the fuck his cousin kept up with her. Or just kept her in general. They seemed like two entirely different people. She was loud, energetic, witty, compassionate, and … angry.

Haruno Sakura's temper scared him and he was on ANBU Team Crow.

Yes he had watched her put craters in the ground with the flick of her finger. That was not the scariest part.

Haruno Sakura always framed her commands in forms of questions and challenges.

Are you sure you want to do that?

He hated when she said that. He hated when any woman did that. It was a challenge, a statement, sarcasm, and a question all in the same sentence.

Sakura, on the other hand, very much enjoyed Shisui's company. He was funny, in a way that Sasuke and Itachi weren't. And Naruto wished he could be but he was surprisingly also thoughtful.

Sakura could tell he was struggling. He basically had to relearn everything he had ever known about being a shinobi. He could tell she was trying to spend time with him; at least when she wasn't at the hospital, out on a quick mission, helping Ino and Mikoto plan her wedding, or training with Naruto and Sai.

Because Yamato called Sasuke up to ANBU.

She was proud of him. It was the one goal he had for the longest time. Naruto was happy for him too, but Sakura could tell that he was a little disappointed he did not get pulled up as well. Sakura suspected it was for a different reason.

ANBU was down one of their most talented Sharingan users.

Shisui knew it too. It was just another thing that weighed on his heart. Sakura suspected that Itachi learned his trick of concealment from Uchiha Shisui. She knew the two of them held secrets in their hearts they would never share.

The thought made her heart swell for both Shisui and Itachi. It also peaked her curiosity. The more time she spent at the Uchiha compound, the more she began to realize there was something off and it started with those two.

Itachi would not tell her. Shisui though, she might be able to get the info from him. She tried to reason with herself that it was not malicious. Because she was not healing him, she wanted the information. She wanted to work with him for all of the reasons she had already said. While she had studied Kakashi's Sharingan extensively, she had only gotten to truly examine Sasuke's once before his clan elders gave him and her Shishou an earful.

She was the first outsider in Konoha history to have a chance to study and understand the Sharingan.

Because of her schedule, Sakura could only meet with Shisui for two or three hours of the day. They would begin with basic visual tests. Short and long distance visuals, and balance exercises. Then Sakura and Shisui would part and return to her apartment so they could continue their work.

Shisui felt lucky in some ways. Since he was not a part of the main family, the elders did not put as much pressure on him as they did on Itachi. However, since his talent and doujutsu had developed quite extensively- the elders paid Shisui more attention than he would like. The elders were not happy when they learned he had lost an eye. Shisui and Itachi were among the most talented shinobi the clan has ever produced. Shisui did not care, he rather enjoyed the freedom now the clan did not care how he spent his time. Still, he did not want to let them know of the nature of his 'recovery sessions' with Sakura. He did not want that attention or wrath brought down on him. Nope, Shisui would just settle for the: We are still hearing this rumors of your extracurricular activities with multiple women; it's far time you settle down and find a nice woman.

Shisui did not want the elders to know what they were doing. While the elders gave less attention to what he did in comparison to Itachi and Sasuke, he did not want to give them any additional reason to watch him. Shisui rather enjoyed his freedom. He liked being a rebel.

After he dropped in via her back balcony Sakura began draw the curtains and secured the seals for her apartment.

"You know what people would think if they saw us right?" Shisui paced his way around her small apartment.

Sakura rolled her eyes as she finished placing the seals. "Nobody saw you Shisui." They had long past the formalities.

Shisui dropped his hefty form onto her couch. While Itachi was lean and feline, Shisui was bulk, built more like Sasuke but with broader shoulders. He let gravity do the work as her couch groaned under the sudden acquisition of weight. Placing his hands behind his head, he gave Sakura a wink and posed, "They are going to think you and I are having an affair."

Well, he would not be the first person people would think I had an affair with, Sakura thought. Ino had been keeping her bestie updated on the various rumors about her and Itachi. And there were quite more than she had ever anticipated. While the rosette tried not to put too much stalk in rumors; especially after her stupid teammates stole Itachi's clothes! Nevertheless, rumors were still exhausting. Currently, according to Ino, the hot gossip was that she and Itachi had a polyamorous relationship sex ring with various other shinobi.

"I am sure Itachi would understand my charming personality seduced you into betraying him by engaging in intercourse with his fiancee." the pink haired medic mocked.

"I hate it when you do that." Shisui groaned and made room for her on the couch. "You take the fun out of everything." Which she would not deny she did as of late. She just could not find it in herself to continuously humor Shisui's outrageous antics when she had to deal with it from so many others.

She shrugged as she joined him on her couch, preparing herself mentally to begin their session.

"You need a vacation." He shot playfully at her. "Something to get away from Konoha."

"I guess," She sighed softly, "Maybe you could convince Itachi to spend it with me."

Shisui had been around enough women to know what that look meant. Her mind and her heart were elsewhere. Specifically with his younger cousin/best friend. After that prank they tried to pull on Itachi, Sakura was not happy with her team. Going as far to refuse to heal them after their training sessions. "Sakura," Shisui stated softly, reaching out to touch her shoulder. "I wasn't kidding when I said he cared."

She met his eyes, giving him a nod and a half smile for his attempts in cheering her up. Of course she knew Shisui meant what he said. But that did not mean that Itachi was the best at showing it. "We are here to fix you, not me." She stated, voice void of emotion.

"I'm a perfectly functioning one eyed man Sakura." He flashed her a huge grin.

One perfectly manicured eyebrow raised above the other in question. "You are stalling."

Shisui sighed. She was right. So he twisted his body and settled his head in the rosette's lap. "Get the poking over with so we can get to the sweet stuff."

At this comment, Sakura did laugh and she pushed her chakra into her hands causing them to glow.

During their first couple of sessions Sakura had to focus on purely healing the damage previously caused to the eye. There was a lot more damage than Sakura had initially thought during his latest hospitalization. Once she heal the residual damage in his eye, Sakura could finally begin her examination of his Sharingan. The pink haired medic instructed Shisui to activating and deactivating his Sharingan so she could first assess the difference as chakra was introduced into the eye. Her first assumption seemed to be true. The Sharingan was activated by pushing a controlled amount of chakra into the eye. This was consistent with what she knew from Kakashi's Sharingan.

It had only been a couple of weeks since their sessions started but Sakura had already learned so much about the Sharingan. She remembered that Sasuke's activated the first time in fear and rage during their fight with Haku as genin. She watched him gain the three tome as it advanced. From Shisui, she learned there was an advanced stage of the Sharingan that Sasuke had yet to master called the Mangekyo. According to Shisui, there were several advanced jutsus that were only accessible to an Uchiha with the Mangekyo Sharingan.

But there was always one inconsistency she noticed between Shisui's and Kakashi's Sharingan. Everytime Shisui activated his Sharingan, the optic nerve began to react negatively to the amount of chakra not matter how small. The nerve began to deteriorate and almost burn. It was similar to the damage she healed at the beginning of their sessions. It was no wonder he had so much damage to his eyes. This caused her to develop a theory: the consistent use of the Sharingan would cause the user to go blind with constant use. The one part that threatened her theory was that Kakashi's Sharingan eye did not cause the same problem. Sakura suspected it had to so something with Kakashi's eye was not his own. But because she only had two patients she could not determine if this was a normal occurrence or not. She would have to find some way to work with Sasuke and Itachi like this to get more data.

In today's session she asked Shisui to maintain his Mangekyou to determine chakra levels and montiter the deterioration of the nerve. The data was consistent as previous sessions. The more advanced stages of the Sharingan caused more damage to the optic nerve. Prolonged maintenance of higher levels of Sharingan use also caused a faster deterioration.

Their sessions were usually quiet. Shisui did not mind. Her chakra was relaxing once he got over over the fact she was poking around in his only good eye.

"Finding anything good?" He would always ask her at some point.

"Absolutely." Sakura stated simply.

Sakura said that every time. "You going to tell me what you have found yet?"

"You know my price Shisui." Sakura responded. He could tell by the pitch in her voice that she was deep in concentration.

He rolled his eye. She was such a con-woman. "Your prices are too high."

Since the majority of their sessions was exploratory and Sakura did not have any concrete evidence yet, she did not want to burden Shisui with her theories that are not based in anything other than observation. Of course, she also would not tell him that. Not when she knew she could poke at some weak spots to continuously attempt to get information about the Uchiha clan out of him.

"I could be saving your life and this is how I am repaid?!" Sakura feigned a hurtful sarcastic tone.

Shisui laughed, careful not to disturb her too much. She had saved his life before. Brought him back from death. "How am I supposed to know that if you don't tell me."

"You could trust me." She stated bluntly.

"You are working on my only eye and you think I don't trust you?" He could almost laugh. He could count on one hand how many people he would trust to do what she was doing.

"You don't." She stated simply. She knew he did not. "Neither you or Itachi trust me completely." The second hurt her to admit. Their relationship was blossoming in so many ways, but he was still shutting her out. She had told him, before he left for his latest ANBU mission, that when he returned he was going to tell her everything. Truth was, Sakura did not know if she could trust him to actually do that.

So while the shinobi was away, the kunoichi would play detective.

Shisui was quiet for a long while, not knowing what to really say in response to her. Because she was right. Shisui only trusted Itachi fully and completely. That was not to say he did not trust her to some extent. She was one of the most extraordinary women he had ever met. Instead of putting his foot in his mouth Shisui decided to ask, "What makes you say that?"

"Neither of you will tell Sasuke what the clan is really like and I've been engaged to Itachi for a handful of months. I already know he shields me from the worst of it. Additionally neither of you will you tell me what my future holds."

"That's for your own good."

"Shisui," Sakura said softly.

"Yes Sakura-sama?" He smiled along with the joke.

"I spent the majority of my genin years watching to amazing men fight and grow then protect me because they thought I could not handle myself in the shinobi world. When I started to train with Tsunade-shishou, it was some of the most grueling work. She beat my body, mind, and soul into the ground. She did not coddle me. It was the hardest training I have ever done, I know I am stronger for it."

"And to what reason do I owe this tidbit of information about my future Lady Uchiha?"

"A flower cannot bloom when it is being shielded from the light Shisui." Her words were cryptic as she finished with their session. The warmth of her chakra faded away and Shisui felt her move off the couch.

Shisui's lone eye admired the woman before him. She was right. He knew she was right. She deserves the truth. But as much as Shisui disagreed with his cousin's decisions to leave her out of the oppressive details and histories of the clan, he understood why Itachi felt he needed to do so.

"Listen," Shisui sat up, rearranging himself on her couch. "The clan is…" he struggled to find the words as Sakura stood up and made her way across the living room. How do you explain to your best friend's future wife that the clan she is marrying into are full of elitist assholes but her future husband doesn't want to be like that?

You can't. At the end of the day, this conversation was between Itachi and Sakura.

"The clan has always been. I've seen it with Sasuke, Shisui." Sakura stopped him. She was in the kitchen and put a pot of tea on her small stove. "I'm no fool."

"I did not say you were." Shisui's eye connected with hers.

Emerald eyes regarded him, "I'll tell you what is going on with your eye, if you tell me what I want to know."

"So there is something going on with it?"

The corner of her mouth curved up as her shoulders shrugged.

He knew she would have to disclose her findings eventually. He also knew she did not want to tell him much right now because most of her examinations were exploratory. "It's not my place to tell you."

Emerald orbs hardened, flicking over his form. He had become familiar enough with this particular kunoichi to know her temper was flaring. "Then tell me where I need to go to find out?"

A challenge? Shisui's heart raced. This was an interpersonal game with the pink haired medic he could get behind.

"Okay," He said as he stretched his body like a cat. "I'll make you a deal."

The teapot went off at that point. Sakura turned her back to make them both a cup but confirmed she was still listening.

"If you can tell me what triggers the activation of the Sharingan. I will tell you a place you need to go."

Sakura, who had poured the water in the tea cup regarded his figure over her shoulder. He could see her brain working through her subtle facial expressions.

"Tea is ready," She said simply. Shisui took the invitation to go grab the cup.

"How long do I have?" Her voice steady.

"To tell me?"

She nodded her head as she took a tentative sip of her tea.

Shisui made a show of rubbing his chin in contemplation. Sakura patiently waited. "How about a week?"

Sakura laughed, almost spitting her tea out. "That's it?"

"Oh the mighty Haruno Sakura thinks she is too proud to figure out the great-"

"The Sharingan is activated and advanced when the owner feels intense emotions. Typically negative emotions such as fear, or hatred. This is especially true when the emotions are caused by or in reaction to someone close to them. Someone they care about."

Shisui's jaw dropped. Literally dropped open.

"Now tell me where?"

"The shrine."

"The one in the back of the main house?"

"Yes," Shisui said slowly. He felt defeated.

"Pleasure doing business with you." She smirked and walked away. "Now, you are always welcome to stay as long as you want but I have something to do."

"Sakura," Shisui's gentle voice stopped her.

"Yes Shisui?"

"How did you know?"

"Team 7 had a really bad mission a few months after Naruto returned. Things were bad. I almost died myself. Sasuke held me as I tried to support Naruto when we got caught in an exploding tag and a kunai pierced my lung. I could not breath, I could not heal Naruto. Kakashi had to split off from us. Then, it was like something popped inside of him. His Sharingan began to spin faster and I could feel the hate from his chakra pouring off from him. It was the day he activated his third tomoe. The only day he has ever let me look at his Sharingan."

"I wasn't completely sure until Itachi came back. Itachi risked life and limb to get you back home. And I saw something I've never seen before in his Sharingan. I thought Kakashi was the only one to have it. He said he awkwaned it when Rin died. Itachi awakened his when he thought you almost died. From there it does not take a genius to put two and two together."

Shisui stared at the pink haired kunoichi. "If you were not engaged to my best friend I'd totally-"

A kunai suddenly appeared next to his head. "Please do not finish that sentence."

Dark eye wide, Shisui swallowed the rest of his tea.

-xXx-

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-xXx-

Konoha.

Sasuke sat in the middle of the lake. This was one of his spots he enjoyed coming to when he had a problem to solve. Not only did he get to practice his chakra control but he could sit there undisturbed for hours. Which is what he needed to break this code on Itachi's bingo book.

The young Uchiha was both surprised that his Nii-san had not discovered the book was taken, and suspicious. The code had no cipher so he was almost working blind. He had tried various letter shifts, and even some hieroglyphs but he had no luck at the moment. Sasuke was convinced there was some clue or some letter, or word that would click all of the other letters into place.

At one point he got so upset at the code he considered going to ask Nara to help.

More and more though he had been considering asking another to help. Because whether he wanted to admit it or not, Sakura's book smarts exceeded his own. She always retained information easily. And while Sasuke considered himself an intellectual person, he considered his intelligence to be on the battlefield.

Codebreaking - that was more in Sakura's corner.

He knew she was still mad at him though.

Well more like she just seemed mad in general. Sai said that Ino had told him that Sakura was mad at Itachi too.

Not that Sasuke was one for gossip but when their pink haired kunoichi refused to talk with anything other than her fists, he and Naruto had to resort to other measures.

Pale fingers paged through the book one more time. There were names he was familiar with, high ranking shinobi in other villages. Gaara the Kazekage, Killer Bee from Cloud, various members of the Seven Swordsmen of Mist. One of them, a Hoshigaki Kisame had a few coded notes next to his name. Some of the codes were similar to others. There was a Deidara from Iwa, and a Sasori of the Red Sand, from Suna. Orochimaru had the same symbols but then the symbols were crossed out in addition to his entire picture being crossed out. There was also the same symbol scribbled in the back of the book along with some other annotations but not next to any picture. This intrigued Sasuke the most.

Sasuke knew Itachi was connecting these people together but he did not know how or why. And he felt, in his gut, that if he broke this code then he would understand. Understand why his brother has been 'protecting' or 'shielding' him from something concerning the clan for all these years. The arrogant prick. Itachi always treated him like a child.

For the umpteenth time Sasuke began at the beginning of the book. If he did not figure it out by this point, he needed to go to Sakura. He was not looking forward to that beating. His body flinched, causing his concentration to break ever slightly causing him to sink an inch into the water, which effectively soaked his ass. With a sigh he stood up, quickly moving across the surface of the water to land.

He racked his brain, where would Sakura be at this time? He could not remember if she had a morning or afternoon shift today. He could always start there, but there were several other places she could be before that point. Well, since he was on Uchiha land he could rule out if she was here.

Once he reached land he channeled a small amount of heat out of his body, effectively drying his pants before he made his way back up to his own house. His mother was in the tea room, enjoying her own cup of tea before she returned to doing… whatever it was that she did during the day.

"Sasuke-kun," Mikoto smiled softly at her younger son.

"Have you seen Sakura?"

Mikoto shook her head simply. "Would you like to join me?"

"Do you know where she could be?"

"By my ancestors, my youngest son only talks to me when he wants to know where his teammate and future sister in law is." Mikoto made exaggerated 'woe is me' movements in her seat. "Kami forbid either of my sons actually sit down and ask me how my day is going?"

"Tch," bile rose in the back of his mouth at the mention of Sakura becoming his brother's wife. Sasuke doubted if he could ever see Sakura in that light, as someone like his mother. But, as a dutiful son, he sat down across from his mother and asked, "How is your day Kaa-chan?"

"Thank you for asking Sasuke-kun. That is very kind of you. Sakura actually was here earlier. She was looking for you. We talked for a bit then I went down to the market to acquire the fresh produce for our meal tonight. It was quite a bit bringing it back. I miss the days when my sons would come home only to talk my ear off for hours before going to train."

Sasuke left eyebrow ascended above the other. "She was looking for me?"

"Yes, but then she left for training I believe. She is working with Shisui-chan as he works with Hatake-san. I am so thankful she was placed on your team. She has been such a support system for you and our family."

"I am aware, you have said this many times." This circular conversation was getting annoying. He had better things to do than to listen to how much his mother loved his kunoichi teammate for the tenth time this week.

Her voice dropped from the usual chimes of a happy Mikoto to the serious clan matriarch. "Sasuke, have you thought about your living arrangements once Sakura and Itachi wed?"

Sasuke, who had been thinking about where he could find his kunoichi teammate was shocked at this turn of events. This is obviously what his mother wanted to talk about but what did his mother mean his housing arrangements? He was going to live in the same place he has, in the same bed. Why would his brother's marriage change that?

Mikoto took a sip of her tea. "Sasuke, your father and I will be moving out of the main house." His face twisted in shock. Their father gave no indication that he was going to hand the clan over to Itachi that quickly.

"Why? Father is still head of the clan."

"We are planning to downsize. Even though Itachi has not officially taken over, it is just a matter of time." Mikoto explained, easily reading her son's discomfort. "The two of them will need their own space as a young married couple. It would be better for us to relinquish the main house for them to make their own than to linger about in a limbo."

Sasuke understood his mother's words individually. It was just simply too difficult for him to comprehend. Despite his rocky relationship with the clan he always called this house 'home'. At the same time he knew this was always the reality of being 'the second son'. He knew at one point or another Itachi would have his own family, and his own heir, leaving Sasuke to be pushed aside. It still was unfathomable to Sasuke that his own brother was marrying his best friend. His Sakura, the woman who has literally saved his life.

It left a bitter taste in his mouth.

"I don't mean to shock you," Mikoto's gentleness returned to her voice. "But as we renovate the new house we wanted to know if you would be remaining with us or not."

Sasuke rose without another word, "Good Day Mother." His sharp voice cut her, she did not mean to upset him but she knew it was the fate of the younger sibling.

"Sasuke," Mikoto's sharp parental voice called with the intent to halt her youngest son from storming out of the house.

Sasuke did not stop and quickly made his way out of the compound.

-xXx-

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-xXx-

Hokage Tower.

Sakura knew she was abusing her position as the Hokage's apprentice to have access to the restricted section of the Hokage's tower, which included the collective library of all the past Hokages. Not many knew this room existed, but years of knowledge existed here, passed down from one Hokage to the next.

There had to be something deeper about the Uchiha here, Sakura felt it in her bones. There was no other reason for both Itachi and Shisui to be so elusive with her.

But what could it be? The Uchiha clan was one of the founding clans of Konoha. So since Sakura did not know exactly what she was looking for, she figured she would start at the beginning.

A sense of pride rolled over her as she held scrolls in her hand written by the first Hokage, Hiroshima Senju. Emerald eyes poured over elegant script of faded parchment paper.

She had a fleeting thought that Naruto's handwriting would have to improve if he wanted to be Hokage.

Going through scroll after scroll she picked up how admirably Hiroshima spoke of an Uchiha Madara. It seemed the like the two were good friends. Or at least the first held him in high regards. They were actually in competition to become the first Hokage. Things seemed to fall apart slowly. Further scrolls, while still written with the same admiration, also expressed frustration as the founding Uchiha who continuously opposed the first's decisions. These things and others lead to their battle at the the Valley of the End.

Madara's body was never found. He was presumed dead.

Sakura could feel the lamentations in the First's word as she read through the report. She also figured there was much that was left out, he was just giving the bare minimum. Her heart hurt just thinking about how difficult it must have been for Hiroshima to fight one of his most precious people.

But why did Madara do it? Just because of disagreements on how to run the village? Tsunade made judgement calls that Sakura did not always understand but she accepted this was for the best.

Continuing with the history Sakura could see a trend of devoted Uchiha shinobi and still the Uchiha clan becoming secluded and marginalized in the leadership of Konoha. Several Uchihas had been considered, briefly, for high ranking positions, and once even for the title of Hokage but were more often than not, passed over.

And then she came across a scroll from the Third. The scroll was not detailed but alluded to a situation with the Uchiha clan were two unnamed Uchiha were identified who could take care of the issue in two complete different ways. One through the use of a powerful, yet rare, jutsu. The other through more brutal means. Still this was satiated when Uchiha Fugaku was invited to take Danzo's position on the counsel. He was the first Uchiha in Konoha's modern history to have it.

This report did not sit well with Sakura. There were too many, non-descriptives to even give another Hokage any idea of what had happened.

Conceding that she had learned just about as much as she could from the Hokage's library. She also knew she was only scratching the surface. There was much left unsaid between various reports. Sakura knew where she needed to go. She just did not want to go to the person she knew she needed to go to. She did not have any theories to confront Itachi about to get him to let her into the family shrine. She did not know if Shisui would let her, she was quickly running out of leverage anyways. Which only left Sasuke.

She had been avoiding her Uchiha teammate. It was not difficult since he was called up to ANBU. He had been going on short one or two day missions with his team. However she knew he had returned three days ago from ANBU Team 4. She was in the Hokage's office when they returned and escorted one teammate for medical treatment. Sasuke had been given a snake mask. Very fitting, she remembered thinking.

"Damnit." Sakura swore. She had to go find him.

But she also needed proof she wasn't crazy. Hardening her resolve, Sakura chose a handful of scrolls detailing various reports, including the Sandime's scroll, and pushed them into her carrying pouches. With a prayer asking Tsunade to not go looking for those particular scrolls until the next day, Sakura exited the library, and then the Hokage's office.

After immediately exiting the Hokage's office she placed the scrolls in her pack as she performed the series of seals needed to seal the door. It had a flesh memory so only four people in the entire village were able to open it, herself included. This also meant that whoever showed up first tomorrow would know when she left the office the night prior. Sakura prayed it would be Shizune.

Explaining all of this to Tsunade would be difficult if she did not find anything.

Taking a breath, her body made its way down the darkened corridors she walked everyday and knew by heart.

So when she reached the next floor, exiting through the set of double doors she did not expect to see someone there. Let alone that particular someone with a stupid haircut. And she was not in the mood to deal with him right now. "You choose right now to be done avoiding me?"

"It's annoying trying to find you." He groaned as she stood opposite from him.

"That doesn't sound like an apology to me," Sakura quipped back. "Try again." Unconsciously, she touched her side pouch, where the scrolls were secured. Sakura figured there was not point in hiding them. Sasuke already saw her and saw the scrolls but Sasuke also had something in his hand. A beaten up bingo book.

"Tsk," Sasuke growled out. He had already apologized to her. She held grudges for longer periods of times and had selective hearing. Sasuke's eyes flicked over her form. She was definitely defense but he had no idea why. Unless she had something to hide from him specifically. He deliberately did not answer her, electing to ask, "Where is Hokage-sama?"

"Is there something in particular you need?" Sakura sneered at him.

By her dodging the question Sasuke deduced that the Hokage was indeed not in the building. "What are you doing here alone?"

Seeing this line of questioning was going, Sakura decided to use a more confrontational approach. Stepping up towards her teammate she said, "If you are complaining that I am a hard person to find, I highly doubt that you want to waste time on chatter. You need something. Something you could not do yourself, or anyone else could help with. You look fine, so it's not a health issue."

It was then she saw the small twitch in Sasuke's normally stoic facial features. "What's with the bingo book Sasuke?" Sakura challenged as she finally walked passed him glaring at him as she did.

"What's with the scrolls Sakura?" Sasuke countered. His dark eyes flicking to the end of a scroll sticking out of her pouch.

He moved. She expected it. Still he was entirely too quick for her, damn his speed! Even though she knew he would do it, she was not able to pivet quick enough to stop Sasuke from appearing behind her and grabbing her hand covering the pouch. With a twist of his own, her hand was removed and pinned behind her back. Furious he would attack her in the Hokage's tower of all places Sakura shifted her feat, bending her arm to break Sasuke's hold, thus moving herself out of arms reach yet again.

It was too late. He already had a scroll.

"I'm not going to fight with you inside the Hokage tower." Sakura's exclaimed. "Give me back the scroll."

"Then tell me why you're being weird." Sasuke demanded, holding the scroll hostage.

"I will when you're not being an asshole." Sakura snapped leaning in towards him a little more. "You obviously want me for something and if you would bother talking to me like an actual person then I might be more willing to help you. But no, you choose to show your face now and try to pick a fight with me."

"I've apologized Sakura," Sasuke reminded her. "I won't stand to be consistently reprimanded for the same thing. I'm not Naruto. Either accept it and move on, or don't and move on."

Fiery emerald met cool onyx. She knew apologizes were difficult for Sasuke, a family trait she realized. And he did not offer them without reason, nor did he offer them in excess. Sakura was hurting yes, but she also knew Sasuke was right. She could not ignore him forever. She needed him and he needed her.

"I'm researching your clan. And we both know they will not like it." Sakura confessed softly. "I have a suspicion that Itachi has been keeping some things from me about the clan. The same things he's been shielding you from your entire life. He won't tell me no matter how many times I've asked so I am researching your clan. I'm also working with Shisui and Kakashi to learn more about the Sharingan."

Sasuke's eyes widened. Sakura was being a very naughty appreience. Because those scrolls, without a doubt, were from the Hokage's personal library.

Mustering up her pride Sakura also added, "And I need your help Sasuke."

Sasuke knew his pink haired teammate well enough to know how much it took for her to push her own pride and hurt aside to admit that she needed his help. She did not like revealing her own weaknesses or shortcomings.

So as a gesture of kindness Sasuke not only handed her back the scroll he took, but the book as well. Sakura looked at the bingo book with a strange sense of curiosity. She knew instantly that it did not belong to Sasuke. This book was too entirely beat up.

Coming to her own conclusions quickly she asserted, "This is Itachi's book. It's coded. And you need my help codebreaking."

Sasuke nodded once. "I'd rather not discuss anymore here."

"Care to walk a girl home?" Sakura asked with a hint of playfulness. "After all I did just get off of a shift and I am so tired."

Sasuke rolled his eyes and turned to walk out of the building. A laughing rosette kunoichi behind him.

Their walk was a relatively short. Sakura smiled inwardly for specifically choosing to live where she did, perfectly in the middle of the Hokage's tower and the hospital. It was already well into the night and Sakura had been up for quite a while. She knew that sleep would be far to come if they were in the middle of a mystery as they were.

"How are you doing?" She asked shortly after their departure. "How is ANBU?"

Sasuke could not help but smirk. "It's challenging, but rewarding." Sakura could tell her teammate was proud of himself as he practically purred. Still, she understood what he meant. While Team 7 has gone on some dangerous missions it was not the same as ANBU. Sasuke was always looking to be pushed outside his comfort zone.

"I'm sure it is difficult getting used to a new team." Sakura prodded carefully. Sasuke's experiences with his clan have jaded him to working with several other teams. He just trusted Team 7 more than anyone else. He had a reputation of being broody and generally uncooperative but efficient. Really their Uchiha teammate was just socially awkward and preferred to focus on the mission. She was nervous for him, working with a new team but she knew Sasuke wanted to be ANBU more than anything else right now. She had her heart set on this to going well for him.

"Hn," said raven haired man grunted his ascension. Then quietly added, "They value me."

Sakura's heart jumped for him and could not contain her smile. That was Sasuke-speak for that his team, like they did, appreciated Sasuke's efforts on the team. He was meshing well with his ANBU team. The heaviness in her chest lifted. While she knew her stoic teammate would not want her to make a scene she did slip her arm around his and placed her head awkwardly on his shoulder as they walked.

"I am proud of you Sasuke."

"You're annoying." Sasuke groaned.

"You need another term of affection."

"I will leave that to my brother."

Sakura laughed lightly. "Has your mother been leaving you alone mostly?"

Sasuke froze, his most recent conversation with his mother still in his head. Sakura also caught the hesitation in his answer which meant there was something.

"What is it now?"

"Mother is relinquishing the main house." Sasuke mumbled after a long silence.

The shock showed on his teammates exhausted features. "She had not told you?" Sasuke venture a guess.

"No," Sakura admitted, withdrawing from her teammate. "I mean, Itachi and I discussed that it would have to happen, but I did not think it would happen so quickly." Kami bless any person who stood between Mikoto and her grandchildren, Sakura figured silently to herself. A thought that made her heart heavy. Sakura had to remember that she is currently older than Mikoto was when she had Itachi. Yet, Sakura and Itachi were definitely not in a place to even consider children. Much to what would be the clan's displeasure. Not that she personally cared. She dared those old men to tell her what to do with her body.

Hell with all of this secrecy and disappearing for months on ANBU missions Sakura was beginning to doubt if she would actually want to stay married to Itachi after these two years.

"I would never kick you out of your house." Sakura muttered, looking down at the floor. Sasuke nodded in appreciation. However, the thought of living in the same house as his brother and his new wife did not sit well with him. He did not want to hear various activities.

"I think I'd rather not."

It was at that moment the two rounded the last street corner to spy her apartment building. As they approached the door, there was a small note stuck in the doorway. After unsealing her door and producing the key to unlock the door Sakura pulled out the note.

It was from her landlord. Just a monthly reminder that rent was due. For a brief moment she wondered who would pay her rent when she was at the Uchiha compound. She would have to ask Itachi about that. Still at this moment she was not sure if she even wanted to relinquish her apartment. What if her and Itachi did not work out? They still had a lot of communication issues to work out. Sure there was physical attraction. There was a heat and a spark that Sakura had never felt with anyone else. And the things that he could do with his mou-Back on target Sakura, she caught herself and her dirty mind wandering.

She had to figure out what to do with her apartment.

It was that moment she had a realization, "Wait a minute!" Sakura stopped mind entry into her apartment causing Sasuke to run into her back. With a new found energy Sakura pulled her teammate into her home. "How about you take my apartment?"

"What are you going on about?" Sasuke demanded as he recentered himself.

"I'll sublet the apartment to you until the lease runs out." Sakura's green eyes sparkled with excitement.

"I would be leaving off of the compound." Sasuke highlighted the obvious.

"You would have your own space though," Sakura said. "I could even give you some of the furniture from your house. At least, she would just go ahead and do it without asking permission. From what she gathered from Sasuke, and now Itachi. It was better to ask forgiveness than permission from the clan.

Like working with Shisui to gather more information about the Sharingan. That was something the elders did not need to know about.

"You don't have to give me an answer now Sasuke. The lease doesn't end for another 9 months though and then you can resign it if you would like, but this way you have a place of your own away from the clan."

"Also away from you." Sasuke noted.

Emerald eyes caught the concern in his eyes. What if she needed his support on the compound? What if she needed backup like the day at her engagement party? "What if I need a place to get away?" Sakura raised the question. "This apartment was always a safe haven for our whole team."

Brilliant emerald met deep onyx. "That means I would have to keep it clean."

Sakura burst out laughing.

-xXx-

---

-xXx-

Ame.

Damn his little brother.

As Itachi kept watch over his group he once again he reached for his trusted Bingo book only to find it was not there. He assumed that Sasuke found it and took it when he and his blonde best friend raided his room and took his dirty clothes.

Karma got them back but this would be corrected when Itachi returned.

Among other things.

He closed his eyes and his memories brought him back to a beautiful pale face, framed by tousled pink hair, her mouth, still kiss swollen, pulled into a thin line as her piercing eyes cut through him.

He really did hate to leave Sakura the way they did. Everytime Itachi was with her, it was like he was living in a dream. To be parted from her felt like a vicious thrust into reality. He never had expected to fall so hard for her so quickly. Her heart truly was more beautiful than anything he had ever imagined. When she first caught Itachi's eye, he had no idea how quickly they would find comfort in one another, to be able to understand each other. She was more than he could have ever asked for in a partner. It felt selfish to want her.

He would not deny it any longer, he was in love with Haruno Sakura. He could only hope that she felt the same.

Not that he deserved it.

Their last fight weighted on him. It represented the greater argument he felt inside himself. Itachi was unsure if he could do more good in the village, or outside protecting it.

In addition, she seemed to be catching on to the things he purposefully kept from her. Shisui had told him she was clever and would figure out. Then after him pulling the engagement stunt, she deserves nothing less than absolutely honesty from him. It wasn't he was outright lying. He was just not telling her things. He was attempting to spare her the harsh realities but he knew that was almost worse. He was undermining her.

How do you tell the woman you love that your family suppressed their emotions because they considered love to be too dangerous? Too strongly connected to hate; hatred an Uchiha feels is one that they feel within their souls and can turn them into a bloodthirsty killer? Furthermore that their dojutsu is a curse of powerful negative emotions? Oh and that the elders will not stop about their desire to see her produce his heir which means retiring from her career to raise said children.

Itachi knew Sakura would not like any of it. But that was exactly what drew Itachi to her. She was a light in the darkness of the clan. She is good and pure and full of love, hope, and positivity. She was not one to sit by and bend to the will of someone else because of tradition.

He could see what her influence had done to Sasuke. Sasuke's Sharingan evolved out of a need and desire to protect his friends, not when someone died. His younger brother was surrounded by an unconditional love from his team that was constantly changing him, making him evolve as a person. Sasuke was the evidence Itachi needed to prove the entire clan wrong. The elders believed that rigorous, isolated training was the only way forward.

No. He would never agree to do that. He would not subject anyone else to it. Not when he became clan leader.

Still, he knew Sakura was right. His beautiful rosette angel. He did not want to tell her. He feared he might lose her if he did. His fear of her rejection fueled the choices he had made. It was the reason he chose to start their courtship the way he did. Because there was not enough time for her to warm up to him, and the idea of becoming the matriarch of a clan would have taken years.

Fugaku would have arranged a marriage for him by that point. To some beautiful but mindless cousin of his that could not stand beside him. Only behind him.

Itachi sighed. He still thought their relationship was too new, too raw still to handle this conversation. But he knew he could not keep these secrets from her any longer. He had spent the last few months with her, trying to grow their relationship together, for her to trust him, to lean on him.

Damn if he did not fall for her even harder every time he saw her. Yes, very few could doubt Haruno Sakura was a beautiful woman but it was not her looks that thawed his heart. It was her warmth, her pride, her strength, her dedication. If what he felt in his heart was even a fraction of the love she gave her friends, Itachi understood why Team 7 protected her so fiercely.

Because once Sakura connected herself with someone, it was her goal to make that person happy. Itachi never experienced that with someone before her.

He was not lying that day when he said he wanted to spend the rest of his days making her the happiest woman alive. He wanted to return those feelings. He did not want to live in the Uchiha world of hatred. He couldn't, not after tasting her.

Itachi could not wait any longer though. He would have to tell her the truth.

And at the end. He would tell her what's in his heart, and just hope that was enough for her to stay.

At that moment, there was a unnatural breeze causing the rain to move in all different directions. Activating his Sharingan, Itachi quickly moved to check the perimeter of the camp. He ran the route twice checking the traps, constantly searching for any threats to his teammates.

As he returned to the camp, he sensed the intruder too late.

The sound rumbled the ground, the wind blew too harshly. Itachi's instinct was telling him something was off. There were too many inconsistencies in the environment. That's when it dawned on him: he was trapped in a genjutsu. He, Uchiha Itachi, was trapped in a genjutsu.

"Have you given any more consideration to my offer?" The deep bass echoed out around him.

Itachi knew that voice. It was the same man who appeared to him the night before the Kyuubi attack on Konoha, it was the same voice of the man who came to him when Itachi was 13 and had awakened his third tomoe. A man thought to be dead since the founding of Konoha.

A man he hoped to never see again.

Itachi spoke cautiously as he eyed his ancestor. "You did not have to place me in a genjutsu to talk to me."

Dark laughter echoed around the imagined space. "I wanted a little privacy Itachi-kun."

"Show yourself." The younger Uchiha demanded.

"So impatient." The same chilling laughter filled the illusionary space around them. The figure emerged from the illusionary forest. Black spikey hair, pale skin, and a smirk that would make any demon squirm. Even in the illusion Madara, the original founder of not just Konoha, but the Uchiha clan. That is what the history books say, well that's about all they say.

The history books do not tell them how Madara went mad with rage against Hiroshima when they had conflicting ideals on how to run the village. The history books tell of a fight that ended in Madara's death, but not of how Madara built in a failsafe to rewrite his own history and bring him back to life.

Yes, Uchiha Madara was very much alive. And he had a plan to bring the entire world under a genjutsu.

"Your time under that Senju Hokage has made you weak."

"Why are you here?" Itachi pressed his ancestor.

"You have awoken the next stage of your Sharingan. The Mangekyo is a powerful tool. Not even your father could awaken it."

"Why are you here?" Itachi tried again. He knew why the founder was here. And he wanted this encounter to end.

"I can teach you to use your new power." Madara cooed.

"N-" Itachi tried before he was interrupted.

"Don't be so boring Itachi-kun." Madara's powerful form was taller than Itachi, not by much. Although he was much broader. The illusionary form began to circle the younger man. "I could teach you to wield a power greater than anything you could imagine. You would barely even half to lift a finger against your enemies. Your eyes, the power of your eyes would be enough."

That was the thing about power and greed, those who were driven by their desire to gain more power were never satisfied.

"If you have this power, why do you need me?" The younger Uchiha challenged his elder.

Madara's thin lips pulled up into a cruel smile. "Itachi-kun, you hurt me."

Somehow, Itachi doubted that.

"You are the pride of the clan. I cannot achieve this peace I desire alone. I need a student, a pupil to impart my wisdom for when I pass on." Itachi could tell by the lilt in Madara's voice that the elder was choosing his words carefully. The type of careful sentence composition one does when they intend to deceive the other party.

This was not the first time Madara had asked Itachi to join him. Itachi knew Madara only wanted to use Itachi as a tool to achieve his own desires. The younger raven haired shinobi believed if he was going to be used as a tool, then he would do it for the good of Konoha, not this man's selfish goals.

Yet Itachi knew he was the only one, other than the now deceased Orochimaru, in Konoha that Madara had approached. He also knew he did not yet have mastery of enough skills to defeat Madara once and for all. So, on behalf of the village and of his loved ones, he would at least listen to the enemy. "And what would I get in return?"

The figure continued to circle Itachi, breathing close to his ear, "You would assist me, consider it part of your training." Madara stopped and squared himself with Itachi, two red eyes spinning into a something Itachi had never seen previously.

"Your eyes are imperfect still." Itachi's eyes narrowed. What did he mean imperfect? He just said this form of the Sharingan was powerful.

"Chose either your cousin or your brother." Madara purred, a devilish sound which bounced around the area. "Kill them, and take their eyes." Itachi's stomach turned. Never would he hurt either of them in such a way. Why did he need to kill them? Why would he take their eyes for his own? What was the purpose? Is that how Madara obtained his advancement? To what end though?

Itachi could not help but feel this was just another manifestation of the Uchiha's Curse of Hatred.

The younger Uchiha already knew he did not agree with Madara's methods, nor his goal. Madara's peace was through force, not by choice. He would bring the world together under fear of one organization and one illusion. He knew that was not peace. There could be no peace without free will. Therefore, there was no way Madara's plan would achieve true peace.

"You better think long and hard about this Itachi-kun. My men have already moved against one of your precious people. I would hate for something to happen to your darling village, or-"

Itachi was raging. His fists balled in anger as this man was the root cause of Shisui losing his eye. Then he said the words that made Itachi snap, "that pretty little medic of yours."

Sakura.

"Yes Itachi-kun," Madara laughed and backed away. "I've been watching you. You are quite smitten with her." Then he added in a whisper, "She makes you weak."

"Enough." Itachi growled.

He moved to strike the elder with his fist. The image simply disapperated. A fine mist of particles swirled around him to again congregate on the other side of the field. Madara laughed, the bellowing sound echoed around them as he reformed.

With a wave of his hand an illusion of Sakura appeared beside the elder man. "I am honestly disappointed in you Itachi. She is nothing compared to you." Itachi stared at the illusion. It had been a month since he had seen Sakura. He knew this illusion was fake, and it was not really her, but his heart ached. Her hands were linked behind her back as her bright eyes and endless smile bent forward to grin just for him.

Madara only laughed at Itachi's pause. "Trained by a Senju and you want her to be the mother of the future generations? Such a silly, weak dream. I should just kill her to get her out of the way." Madara sliced his weapon through the image.

Fiery anger burned through Itachi.

Madara turned back to the younger Uchiha, weapon still drawn. "Your love for her makes you weak."

"If you lay a single hand on her," Itachi hissed closing the distance between them. "I will hunt you down and end your pathetic existence." He pushed chakra into his eyes identifying the weak points in the genjutsu. "Your existence is unnatural and you will never achieve what you want Madara."

He wanted nothing more than to end the elder now. This was why Madara brought him into the genjutsu. To manipulate him.

"Join me."

Itachi pulled up his chest to look the elder in the eye as he muttered, "Release."

The illusion melted away, and he was back in camp. His teammates were still on the ground sleeping. But the soft echo of evil's laughter faded into the distance.

-xXx-

---

-xXx-

Later That Night - Uchiha Compound.

For the past 2 hours Sakura had been pouring over Itachi's bingo book in attempts to break the code. She would have made more progress faster if Sasuke did not throw the very old scrolls around her apartment as he discovered various truths about his clan. Yes he knew the basics but reading about his ascenstor from Hiroshima's point of view was something different than the history Sasuke was taught as a child. Not that he was foolish enough to think that the clan would not put their own spin on their history.

Then there was this mysterious mission with the Third. Sasuke speculated that the advanced jutsu would have to a high level ANBU shinobi. The same with the second order mentioned in the scroll, the eliminationation of the Uchiha clan. The clansman identified for the elimination of the clan must have extreme talent. However, the best shinobi in their clan at this current time are Itachi, Shisui, and himself, naturally. Itachi would have only been barely a teenager if the dates were correct. Sasuke doubted Itachi's Sharingan was as advanced at his age but that also meant that Shisui was hiding a much deeper power than it appeared.

"Are Shisui's eyes different than mine?" Sasuke asked at one point. "Our Sharingans, I mean."

Sakura twisted her face in thought. On one hand she did not want to betray Shisui's confidence. On another hand. Sasuke was offering information about his Sharingan. "You have not let me look at yours in a while." Sakura finally said. "Show me your strongest stage."

Sasuke did as instructed. Sakura asked, "And this is the most advanced Sharingan you have?"

Sasuke nodded.

Sakura too dipped her head. "Both Shisui and Itachi have different Sharingans than yours." Sakura did a quick sketch of what Shisui's Mangekyou looked like. "This is Shisui's and I've only seen Itachi's one time. But he said his eyes have…" she searched for the right word, "evolved only recently. After he came back from his last mission."

"That is the Mangekyou," Sasuke breathed astonished. "Shisui has mastered the Mangekyou. That's the jutsu the Third was talking about, he was going to put a high level jutsu over the entire clan."

"He can do that? It would have been one that the Uchha would not notice."

Sasuke shrugged. Ultimately any speculations they had at this point were just that. "I heard the elders say they want Shisui to produce offspring because of how powerful his eyes are. According to them, Shisui's eyes are some of the most powerful the Uchiha has ever seen."

"More powerful than Itachi?" Sakura questioned. She had a hard time believing anyone more powerful than Itachi.

"Nii-san is quick, and analytical. Shisui is not. But Shisui is the one who trained Itachi and myself. He is not Shisui of the Body Flicker for any reason. I am sure it is him."

"Then who is the second Uchiha?"

The question left a coldness in the air. They both had his name on the tips of their tongue, but neither wanted to think that Itachi could do it. Yet, he was the only Uchiha with the skill set to do it. But Itachi, peace keeping Itachi, killing helpless members of the clan? Neither could wrap their head around it.

"Let's not worry about that now." Sakura finally resolved turning back to her work.

In the wee hours of the morning a loud feminine squeal pierced the steady silence of the night. The sound startled a dozing raven haired Uchiha from his own readings.

"I think I got it!" Sakura squealed again standing up and launching herself onto the couch with her Uchiha teammate. She had gathered her notes, cross referencing three different books with the bingo book before her! "He used two different codes as something that was layered!"

Sasuke just nodded, not really caring how she solved it in the moment, more of what the book said. Neither would be prepared as Sakura went through and translated the code in the bingo book. Sasuke and Sakura were baffled.

Fact 1: Uchiha Madara was the founding patriarch of the Uchiha clan. He fought the first Hokage, Hiroshima at the Valley of the End because they had conflicting views on how the village should be run. After the fight, his body was never found.

Fact 2: There is an organization made up of powerful, high profile missing ninja founded by Uchiha Madara, called the Akatsuki.

Fact 3: Madara was still alive. According to Itachi's bingo book, Itachi has made contact with Uchiha Madara. Inviting Itachi to join an organization called Akatsuki.

"My entire life-" Sasuke began muttering through his teeth, fist clenching beside him. "My clan, Itachi, Shisui- It's all lies!" The raven haired man stood up suddenly hurling a cup of tea he had made earlier against the wall, shattering it. His breaths came deeply from his chest as he began to move, pacing quickly around the apartment. All the proud history he was told. All the pride he was taught to have in his clan. It was all a lie. The Uchiha clan had a tumultuous relationship with their beloved village. One that stemmed the whole way back to the founding member of the Uchiha family. It was so entirely overwhelming. Every conversation he had with his older brother. Every word of encouragement from his father. Every directive from the clan elders was all to push some secret agenda or use him as as damn pawn.

"This isn't everything." Sasuke snarled, throwing his arms out to the scrolls and the bingo book. While the scrolls and the bingo book told one story. He knew there was another piece of this revelation hiding away at the compound. "There is something we're missing. Madara is coming back for a reason. There is a reason the clan has been so secretive even about this."

Sakura looked at the twisted look on her teammates face, knowing the pain he must hold in his heart. But could not find the words to comfort him. She did not have the words to comfort someone when they found out their clan was built on misconceptions and when those whom he respected, refused to tell him. Her heart when out to him. And while she tried not to make this moment about herself. She know understood when Itachi told her that there were some things he could not tell her, that she was better off not know. Well now she knew. And she did not know what to do with this information. She did not know what type of danger she could be in now.

Then Sasuke opened his eyes as crimson blazed with fiery anger at empathetic emerald. The pink haired beauty sank back into the couch as she saw the transformation that happened in his own eyes. "We're going to the shrine."

His pink haired teammate could only nod. "Do you want to invite Naruto?" She asked.

"No," Sasuke growled gathering what stuff he felt he needed. "Stealth is not really Naruto's forte Sakura."

Well he could be; when he tried really really hard. Either way, they both knew Sasuke was right. Naruto would only cause a distraction at this moment. He would ultimately ask too many questions that neither Sasuke nor Sakura truly knew of the answers. Any other connections they have made together were mere speculation.

Accepting that he would not rest until the rest of this mystery was uncovered she too gathered her things, preparing for… whatever they were going to find.

They left her apartment from the back balcony then silently traversed the treetops and rooftops of Konoha to get to their Uchiha compound via the woods up against the back of the compound. It was not the most direct path but it was the one Sasuke was leading her on. She would follow his lead on this particular mission.

"Father is still up." Sasuke's gaze drifted in the direction of the main house. A pink head nodded once, raising her hands to perform a series of hand seals. In her head she pictured the field outside of the main house clearly in her mind. She had looked longingly out the tearoom window at the scene enough to paint the picture. The genjutsu was thus woven around the area providing the cover needed for both to sneak up to the shrine.

"I've only been in here once. Father brought me when my Sharingan first awakened. The shrine is a cover. It's a door that leads to a vault underneath." With another thought he said. "You will probably be the first non-Uchiha in the vault."

"I understand Sasuke." Sakura acknowledged quietly as Sasuke stepped forward. Putting his hand on the sleek structure before he performed a series of hand signs. His hands glowed with a energy Sakura had not witnessed before, but felt similar to Sasuke's fire jutsus. After there was a pregnant pause before the rush of wind and sound of heavy doors releasing filled the air. She knew her genjutsu was too simple to block that sound.

Nevertheless the doors to the Uchiha vaults under the shrine stood open before them both.

It was only in that moment the pink haired kunoichi had doubts of their plan. She understood Sasuke's desire to learn more. To see this mission of thiers through to the end. At the same time she felt like she was betraying Itachi's wishes. He promised he would let her know in time and here she was not trusting that promise. She was not trusting him but he did not trust her enough with this information in the first place.

All of those thoughts were a little too late as they entered the shrine.

The Uchiha Shrine was dark say for a few candles which did not do enough to light the room.

"Who lights the candles?" Sakura wondered aloud.

Sasuke only shrugged. "The elders or possibly my father. They seem like the only ones who would care."

Even in the dim light, they could see how little the dust shifted from its long since resting place. Obviously nobody had been in there for a long time. Relics, pictures, candles, and other odds she did not recognized adorned various surfaces. All placed in the shrine as remembrance of past ancestors.

Sakura was not one to believe in ghosts, but she did not doubt there were the presence of something else in that room as a shiver ran up her spine. It was the same feeling one felt when their intuition says someone is watching you. Except this time it was the ghosts of past Lords and Lady Uchihas.

Sakura had never felt more judged.

"I avoid coming here if I can." Sasuke muttered, bringing her out of her daze.

Looking around again, she nodded. "I can understand why."

With a wave of his hand Sasuke moved towards one of the sets of stairs. He paused briefly, waiting for her to follow the small path behind him. Together, step by step, they descend the stairs into the catacombs.

They descended for a while, the air around them dropped noticeably in temperature. They moving deep underground. Every so often Sasuke would blow a small katon down the stars lighting a few candles.

After what felt like hours, the duo reached the bottom of the stairs. What lay before them was a long hallway, on either side wooden fixtures had been carved into the side dirt wall. Each compartment contained boxes, scrolls, more pictures and various books. Her heart pounded hard in her chest as she walked down the hallway. All of the answers they sought together could be in this space right now. The answers she thought she wanted. Now she wasn't entirely sure.

"Each compartment is supposed to be represent a different clan leader," Sasuke explained, standing before the hallway.

"Is there any centralized or collective pieces of information?" Sakura's initial awe of the wealth of knowledge stored in this underground facility subsided enough for her to focus on their mission. They were there for information.

Without verbalizing his answer he gestured to his side where an impressive collection of books and scrolls that were arranged against the far wall.

The pink haired kunoichi looked to her raven haired teammate. While she was engaged to an Uchiha, she felt it only right that she wait for Sasuke's approval to begin.

Said Uchiha's chest sagged as he exhaled air he did not know he was holding. "What are you waiting for?" One eyebrow rose above the other.

That was as good of a go ahead as she could expect. Her feet moved before she realized, she was drawn to a few elaborately decorated books. After grabbing a few books, she found a dry spot on the dirt floor and began to read. They were old, leather bound and almost falling apart. The time it took for Sakura to decode the chicken scratch was nothing compared to the time it took for her to properly handle. She carefully unrolled and rerolled the scrolls, turned each page with expert care; dissecting the information slowly.

After he skimmed through the first book, Sasuke nonchalantly tossed it to the side which earned him a bruised shoulder for his efforts. His pink haired teammate furious that he could be so careless with such delicate documents.

He did not make the same mistake twice.

Sasuke was getting fed up with the time it was taking to find any information. Anything meaningful anyway.

That was, until Sakura unrolled a scroll and gasped.

"Hn?"

"This is from Madara's son," Sakura breathed. "The one who took over the clan after he died." Interest peaked, Sasuke shifted his larger frame closer to hers to peer over her shoulder. The script was at least moderately legible.

"This is just detailing some jutsu he invented-"

"-for his wife." Sakura finished. Her hand drifted over a sketch in the book. One of a hand, a wrist, with a small scar that looked like a flame. Her fingers lightly danced across the drawing.

Onyx eyes drifted to watch his kunoichi teammate. Her eyes scanned the page with such wonder. It was not difficult to deduce that she was familiar with this marking, the thought made his throat tight, "Did he give you one?"

Without taking her eyes off the page, Sakura raised her arm to show him the small white flame shaped scar on her wrist.

"There wasn't anythi-?" He reached out one finger to touch the scar hesitantly.

"-in the Hokage's vaults?" Sakura finished for him again. "No. Nor was the information in the library or hospital."

"And it doesn't hurt?"

"He bit me."

"WHAT?" The immediately he cringed at the image of his elder brother biting into his best friend.

"It was just a nick, but it felt like he transferred chakra… I think." Sakura lifted her head to address him then continued looking over the monologue- like writings. This man was complaining about all of his insecurities in his relationship with the woman his family had arranged for him to marry. The language he used was dark and almost disturbingly possessive. He thought that this woman was sneaking out at night to see other men. He put guards outside her home and female escorts took her everywhere, watching her every move.

And then the day they were married he performed this jutsu. Her previous assumption was partially correct. It was some sort of chakra infusion but just in that particular spot. The jutsu created a connection between those who shared in it. A connection that would link the two empathically. He could feel where she was and her state whenever he channeled chakra into the mark.

From what she understood from the reading the connection was not entirely complete. Both parties needed a transfer of blood, chakra, and a joining ritual- which Sakura took to mean sex. This was definitely more intense. Itachi only poured a bit of his chakra into one spot.

"Without the other pieces it would just be an enhanced chakra sensor." Sakura finished her thoughts allowed putting the book down on her lap. Her gaze shifted towards her teammate but

"Meaning?"

"If, for example, I had a large amount of chakra pouring into my wrist, as if I activated my seal, or my body was reacting out of trauma, Itachi might be able to sense it." She explained. "But why would he do it in the first place?"

"Hn," Sasuke grunted as he scooted back away from her. It disturbed him deeply that Itachi would want to place such a mark on his teammate. Sakura was more than capable of taking care of herself, but if for some reason she wasn't, that is what he and the rest of Team 7 were there for backup. They protected what was their own.

Absentmindedly she ran her finger over the flame-like scar. She made a mental note to test it out later. Why would Itachi want to know if she used a large amount of chakra? Did he figure she would be in trouble? Was he trying to be some knight to come and fucking rescue her? Silently she swallowed her anger. She knew Itachi had an explanation for doing what he did. He always does. Her life was not going to be that kind of story.

Still, she wanted to test this connection out. Let him know she figured out how this worked. Maybe she could punch something. Preferably Itachi- if he ever decided to come back long enough to have more than a few rounds of "miss you" sex. Just keeping his face and … certain pieces of his beautiful anatomy intact. She might need them at a later point.

Still, the more time she spent with Uchiha Itachi, the more she discovered about the secrets he had been hiding from her, the less she felt she knew who he truly was underneath his facade. Because she was convinced without a shadow of a doubt now that this perfect shinobi, perfect heir was nothing more than an act. Itachi did have a completely separate motivation for his actions, for wearing this mask, for even marrying her! Yet this realization left the pink haired beauty more confused than ever. He told her his feelings, his pursuit of her were more than a game, but how could she trust him when he played this game with everyone else?

The exhaustion of the day began to wear on her.

"You said Madara had a brother right?" Sasuke interrupted her thoughts.

Emerald eyes flicked to her teammate quick then gently went back through the book in front of her. "This mentions a funeral for an uncle. I don't know if it was Madara's brother though."

"Hn," With one single fluid movement the taller man stood and began rooting around. His body tense as he shuffled the pieces around. She could feel the anger in his chakra rising.

"Sasuke?" Sakura asked cautiously as she gently closed the journal and placed it next to her.

"There's a book missing."

Angrily he began to move around various boxes and other seemingly locked items. "The younger brother should have something here. He would have at least sat on the counsel." He mumbled.

"Why would the book be missing?

"Someone who doesn't want it found." Sasuke stated bluntly like she asked the most stupid question in the world.

Except it wasn't a stupid question. She had asked him leading question. Because the next logical question would be who would not want it read. The person who had the most to lose. Itachi.

"He took it. Whatever it was, he took it." Sasuke seethed, his chakra levels rising.

Sakura however, had a different thought. "Each of these represent a different Uchiha leader right?" Sakura confirmed. Sasuke just grunted. Quickly she made her way down the hallway. Until she came to the last occupied section. This would be Fugaku, she thought to herself then moved one more down. To the section that would be Itachi's when he took over.

"It's empty." Sasuke chided and rolled his eyes. "Like I did not look before."

Sakura stared at the empty section. Every part of her was tingling, her intuition telling her there was something here. It just wasn't visible. "Did you use your Sharingan?"

The glare that followed would put most people on edge. His sharp black eyes pierced into her as if to strike her with a kunai. He would have drilled fear into most people, but luckily, most people were not his equally fiesty pink haired teammate.

Not taking too kindly to his glaring daggers at her she shifted weight to one leg, popping her hip out, crossing her arms in front of her chest and raising her chin slightly. Sasuke knew this pose all too well. And he knew what the next words out of her mouth would be. "I believe you mean to say you didn't and that you will come look here now."

Both were tired, they had been up for nearly 18+ hours and their patience was wearing thin. Moments passed as the standoff ensued. Sakura, after these moments passed just jerked her head towards the empty compartment.

Flaring his nostrils and grinding his teeth, Sasuke slowly stalked towards the area. "This is stupid."

"Stop complaining." Sakura sighed. "Just do it."

You do it, he wanted to say to her. But he knew that would not get her off his back as him proving her wrong. Heavy footed, he trudged over to the empty spot Sakura wanted him to investigate. Reluctantly he activated his Sharingan while looking right at her. Unfazed, the medic-nin rolled her eyes and waited for Sasuke's now crimson eyes to look anywhere but at her. The moment Sasuke began to look around he froze.

She knew it! She saw the bewildered look on his face and knew he had seen something. "What is it!"

"Writing- its code. Itachi's code." Sasuke inhaled in disbelief. "Get me something to write with."

Because that is what it was. On the dirt wall opposite of the documents, was Itachi's code written in some sort of burn marks. One only detectable to the Sharingan.

Sakura quickly scrambled around, bringing out the notebook. "Here's the code." She handed it to him. Sasuke looked down, quickly refreshing himself with the major characters, committing them to memory with the help of his doujutsu. His eyes returned to the script on the wall and the message began to jump clearly out from him.

Sasuke, little brother, I hope you find this one day. And you will understand why I did what did. It was all for you.

He read the words aloud, just a whisper rolling off of his tongue, but she heard all of the words loud and clear.

A message for his brother, Sakura thought. She had never felt more intrusive onto her teammate's life than this moment right now. Questions flooded her mind, When did Itachi leave this? Why? What are these actions he keeps feeling guilty about?

Tears began to gather in his eyes as he finished and quickly turned back to his brother's shelves. Sure enough, his name was written on the back of one of the wooden shelves in the same burnt scaring.

"Sakura," Sasuke said, voice barely above a whisper. "I need you to punch the back panel." He pointed so it was clear to what he was referring.

His teammate only nodded. She aligned her fist with the back panel as Sasuke said. It took her two punches to break through the back, she did not want to overload her chakra. They did not want to risk destroying what Itachi had hidden there. After it shattered, Sakura pulled away the debris and withdrew a small, black box.

Sasuke recognized it immediately and held out his hand. Balancing the box with his hand he once again lit a small katon in his mouth and burned away the wood to reveal the contents.

Two scrolls and a single book.

Sakura again waited for Sasuke to make the first move. Unraveling the scroll slowly, Sasuke scanned over the documents.

"This is the scroll from the medical examiner on the day Madara's brother died." He explained, handing it over to Sakura. She would know how to decode the medical jargon better.

"His body seems to have suffered some sever wounds but his eyes-" She had to stop and reread the sentence again. "His eyes had been completely removed!"

"The medical examiner-" Sasuke began to question.

"No," She clarified in astonishment. "They were removed prior to his death."

Their eyes met, Sasuke quickly grabbed the second scroll and began to read it. "It's a minority opinion of a counsel decision on if Madara was still fit to lead the Uchiha clan. It seems that they thought his brother would be better to lead the clan and did not think Madara stable. "

She felt Sasuke's chakra once again begin to flare in rage. "I'll read the rest if you want." She offered. While she too, was overwhelmed with these discoveries, she resolved to keep it together for Sasuke and read the scroll aloud.

"Our eyes are not a gift, or a privilege. They do not entitle us, they hinder us. The Sharingan is a curse upon the Uchiha." She continued. "They bring a curse of alienation and rage. A curse that consumes both the mind and the soul. My brother, Madara, has succumb to this curse, the Curse of Hatred. His jealousy knows no bounds, his pugnacious spirit is no longer practiced in good faith. He is constantly pushing himself to achieve greater limits. And he will stop at nothing to do it. The healers say his overuse of his Sharingan is causing him to lose his sight. Now he looks at me with hunger in his eyes and it sends a chill-"

Sakura had stopped reading.

"What is it?"

With a breath she answered, "There is no more. Blood stains the page. Then his name is written in another's handwriting with his death date- the same as this entry."

There was an eerie silence that filled the air between them. "Sasuke."

"Madara killed him."

Sakura opened her mouth to say something, anything, but could not find the words. Instead she opted to close her mouth and look at the floor.

"Madara killed his brother and took his eyes." Sasuke growled now pacing back and forth.

She asked the question they both needed to ask, "But why? What does he have to gain?"

Emerald eyes drifted to the book. Another leather bound book, blood red in color with the three black tomes of the Sharingan on the front. Itachi had left Sasuke the answer to that.

Sasuke gave the command. "Read it."

This time Sakura shook her head. "He intended you to find this Sasuke. You need to read that." Itachi's message indicated that he wanted Sasuke to find this information out on his own. She strongly believed that Itachi wrote that message, and left those clues for Sasuke to find with his own Sharingan. Sakura just happened to be with him. Talk about being a third wheel.

Over the next few minutes Sakura stood before her teammate, muscles tense as she waited for him to finish reading. There were several times when Sasuke had to close the book he was reading, seeming to stop and collect himself.

"You are not marrying into this clan." Sasuke stated placing the book back. With his next move he mustered all of his strength and forced his fist into the wall. The wall gave way to his strength, pieces falling down and out. Not enough to cause the structure to become unstable however. His fist remained in the indentation, as he panted out deep breaths. He didn't know what to think, he did not know what to feel. All of this, was so suddenly too overwhelming.

Sakura gently placed her hand on the center of his back, letting a small amount of soothing chakra flow through her to him. She wanted to envelop him in a protective bubble. She wanted to punch something as well but she knew her punch would mostly likely cause a cave in. Instead she chose to remain silent and just let Sasuke feel and express however he needed at this moment.

Unfortunately, not going through with the marriage was not a possibility at this point. Unless the entire clan did not want her, which was very unlikely. At this moment she was thankful Itachi did give her an out, and now understood why he did. While both she and Sasuke's emotions were running high, she knew one of them had to remain level headed. There was a lot of emotions wrapped up in what they had discovered here tonight. The only part left was Itachi's side of the story.

"Why haven't you said anything?"

"I'm more concerned about your hand at the moment." She nodded to the bruising developing on his knuckles. She could see them even in the dim light with his back to her. Gently she moved her hand on Sasuke's shoulder, giving a slight pressure to move him away from the wall. Slowly, she took his hand in her own, steadying it, the raised her second hand, chakra activated, to begin healing. "I'm here to listen to my best friend right now."

Her words put him at ease. While he knew the information affected them both, he was glad she was giving him the space and comfort needed. Sasuke had been, and always would be at least associated with the Uchiha clan. Sakura had always been a source of hope. It felt good to know that she still put him first no matter how she felt.

He could never be as good of a person as she is and if all of this was true… Itachi is an equally unselfish as she was, and deserved his best friend.

"This is a book, Itachi wrote himself, and left for me." Sasuke picked up the leather-bound book and tossed it back down. "It was written prior to my father taking a seat at the council. When Itachi thought he was going to have to kill the clan. He was going to leave me alive."

Sasuke paused and looked away from his friend. She knew he was forcing the emotions down. "He explains why he had to do it. That our father was in danger of succumbing to the curse of hatred. That Danzo even went after Shisui, who is lucky to be alive at this moment. That all the Uchiha clan wants is more power. He wanted none of that for me. That's why he shielded me, kept his distance. Him and Shisui both."

It took him a while to continue as his breaths came hard now.

"He disclosed his talks with Madara. Madara killed his brother and took his brothers eyes to stop the deterioration that comes with this next level of the Sharingan. How Madara is a threat, how he unleashed the 9-Tails demon on Konoha out of rage. Madara is nothing more than a shell of hatred consumed by this Curse of Hatred that haunts our clan." By the end of the speech Sasuke was yelling down the expanse of the empty hallway.

Sakura did the only thing she knew how to do. She approached her teammate from behind and wrapped her arms around his torso. "Sasuke," She whispered into his back. "Let it out."

He did, in vicious, guttural, heart wrenching screams he let out his hate, his anger, and his frustrations. She could feel his lungs gasping for breath as his chest contracted. His shoulders, arms, and hands tightening out of the stress. Still, she held on. She would always hang on to her precious few.

Silently she cried too. The tears did not fall but her heart was breaking. She empathized with Sasuke, she wanted to run to Itachi too and hug him, to tell him that he did not have to keep the world on his shoulders. That they could change things together…

And her mind froze. She still wanted to help him, after all this time. She understood now, why Itachi was so interested in her. Because she could hold her own, because she would not lay down and accept this standard. Mikoto even told her to do this as well; to not to be like her, not to sit back and accept what's given.

Hours seemed to have passed in these moments before Sasuke's weight began to collapse onto the rosette. She easily supported him. "Where do you want to go?"

"Anywhere but here." His voice came as almost a whisper.

Sakura nodded and began to lead them back up the stairs, through the internal structure of the Uchiha family shrine, and back out into their yard. The early morning air was warmer than the catacombs, but still rather cool all around. They were just moving out of the winter months and into spring.

Sasuke stepped away at her to observe his surroundings. His chakra felt defensive, and he looked as if he was seeing everything for the first time.

In a way he was.

She stood there, watching him, waiting for the other coin to drop. Waiting for him to ask to go to the Hokage's tower for a long mission. He did not have to wait long. The foreign chakra made itself known shortly before a figure dressed in ANBU gear landed in front of Sasuke. Sasuke knew he looked horrible, drained, tired, and Sakura was not sure exactly how he would respond.

They both waited for the stranger to speak. "Team 4 has a mission Uchiha-san." The ANBU stated with no room for questions and handed Sasuke a mission scroll. "Report to the front gates in 1 hour time."

Sasuke's dark eyes drifted to Sakura, silently communicating his frustration. They just make this big discovery and he gets called away. With one glance he communicated everything he wanted to say, but couldn't, not without privacy.

Duty called.

"Is there a problem Uchiha-san?"

Sasuke's head snapped back to his ANBU teammate. "No. I will be there," he said bending at the waist.

"Haruno-san." The ANBU nodded in her direction. "Hokage-sama summons you to her office as well," he said before heading off quickly.

Silence met between the two of them as Sasuke stared down at the mission scroll. "You better get moving." Sakura jested with a smile.

As she turned to leave she felt a pressure around her wrist. "Sakura," his deep raspy voice strained. "Did you know?"

Silence as heavy before the, "No." How could she?

"I'll make him pay for this." Sasuke growled. "He knew this and he tricked you into this without what the price."

"Sasuke, don't. Please." Sakura's voice quavered.

"And why shouldn't I?"

"I love him." The tears clouding her eyes fell, landing where his hand lightly gripped her wrist. "And he deserves the chance to explain himself."

She couldn't help herself. It was true. Despite everything they learned tonight, everything Itachi had been keeping from them. She understood why he did it. She understood why he did not want to take the chance, why he did not want to burden his younger brother or her. And her heart called out even more for that. It called out in rage because she deserved to know and in fear of the feature. It called out to him for comfort.

Sasuke nodded.

"Then I'll decide if I need your help kicking his ass." Sakura smirked, giving him encouragement to keep moving.

After he left she felt the tension leave her body, she felt a warm sensation on her wrist. Looking down she noticed that the small mark Itachi had given her was aglow with red chakra.

Miles away in Ame Itachi awoke from his sleep, his own heart aching for her.

-xXx-

---

A/N

Insert apology here for taking so long. We have gone back over previous chapters to clean them up recently but as you can see, this chapter is beast. I am not particularly happy with this chapter, but there is a lot of set up here. I hope you believe it is worth it.

Additionally, I have been dabbling writing a SasuSaku post-war fic. It is currently still a work in progress, and obviously very different than this fic. You all know how I love my ItaSaku. Still, would you guys be interested in reading the first chapter?

Please let me know what you think about the chapter- let me know what you think is going to happen in the future.

-Ari