A/N: Sorry again for the late update! I will only be updating on weekends now because that is the only time I'm not too tired to write. Oh, the hardships of a working life! If I ever become a jobless bum again, you'll know because I'll be updating pretty much everyday. But hopefully that won't happen.

Well, with this chapter we're getting back into the scheme of things, as troublesome as that is. I hate writing all that ultimate storyline crap. I just wanna focus on the romance! But alas, it must be done! So if you think the way I put stuff together is abominable, that's why. I just don't really care.

Enjoy!

It's All in the Head

Haunting in my dreams

I've tried running but I can't

Escape from you in my memories

"City In a Snow Globe", Before Their Eyes

"Some village."

She used the word 'village' loosely. So much for an insignificant travelling stop-over - this was a freaking mini-city!

Naruto snorted beside her. "I'll say." He then sneered at Sasuke, who was standing beside him. "Looks like there's a brothel. I guess you'll want to stop over and get some action, seeing as you can't get it anywhere else."

Sasuke didn't even bother humouring him with a reply. Sakura just rolled her eyes. Ever since Naruto had found out that Sasuke had kissed more people than him (which wasn't really hard to accomplish in the first place), he had been continuously barbing Sasuke with comments like that. He was probably trying to regain the male pride he'd lost…and failing miserably. Sasuke didn't care and neither did she…to some extent.

When Sasuke had casually talked about the women he'd kissed Sakura had procured a strange, splitting headache. It had probably been the result of scowling too much in the space of five minutes. She didn't know how Sasuke did it. But then again, he'd had a lot of practice over the years.

But the thought of her Sasuke kissing all those women - older women - just irked her to no end. And that fact that she now thought of him as her Sasuke again pissed her off even more.

So she was in love with him. Big deal.

Well…yeah. It was kind of a big deal. It freaking sucked! But she had lived without him for five years and she had been fine for most of it. She was strong now. She could live without him forever if she had to.

She just wouldn't be happy.

Well, she probably wouldn't have been happy even if he'd stayed because all he ever seemed to do was make her sad anyway. But there was always this lightness to her steps when he was around and it was easier to smile.

Stupid Sasuke.

"So, should we get going?" she asked no one in particular. The plan was just to look around first to become familiar with the layout of the town. They would also look out for Sally, but the proper recon was for later.

"Yeah, let's go find the guy and smash him!" Naruto yelled as he raised his fist in the air.

Sakura bonked him over the head. It was so great that Naruto understood the importance of subtlety and planning. It really was.

"We're just looking, dobe. Remain as inconspicuous as possible," Sasuke said.

Sakura snickered. She doubted they could remain inconspicuous with Sasuke walking around with them. Maybe she should buy a paper bag to put over his head or something - he'd probably blend in more that way. But then again, knowing Sasuke, he'd somehow manage to make even that look sexy.

Naruto scratched his head. "Inconspicuous?"

Sakura rolled her eyes again. "It means don't be an idiot and don't draw attention to yourself."

Naruto puffed his chest out and smiled proudly. "Nothing's impossible for Uzumaki Naruto, future Hokage! Believe it!"

For some strange reason she really couldn't believe it just right then.

"Whatever, let's just go," Sasuke said with a bored tone before he looked pointedly at Naruto. "And don't go around mentioning Hokage crap. You don't want people to know you and Sakura are from Konoha."

Sakura noted his very pointed exclusion of himself from that sentence. Only she and Naruto were from Konoha, huh?

"Right, Naruto! So don't stuff this up!" Sakura yelled in an attempt to cover up the stabbing feeling in her gut.

Naruto pouted. "Why does everyone think I'll stuff it up?"

Sakura scoffed. "Gee, I dunno."

"Yeah, well, why can't Sasuke stuff it up?" Naruto replied as he glared at the stoic Uchiha.

Sakura rolled her eyes, which was fast becoming a regular occurrence. "Because he's not an idiot." Sasuke raised an eyebrow before she continued with, "He's an asshole. There's a difference."

Naruto grinned. "So what does that make you? A bitch?"

Sakura's eyebrow twitched dangerously. "I'm sorry, Naruto. Did you say something?"

Naruto gulped. "Uh…uh, no! Nothing!"

Sakura flipped her hair out of her eyes. "Good. That's what I thought." She cleared her throat. "Let's go, shall we?"

"That's what I've been trying to do for the past five minutes," Sasuke intoned as they walked ahead.

Sakura glared at him. "Well, whoop-dee-doo!" That headache from last night was seriously coming back.

000

Sakura's took in Urage's various sights with wide eyes. Sure, she hadn't been to many bustling cities but this was like the biggest city in the Land of Fire packed into a village a quarter the size of Konoha. She was amazed at how they accomplished such a feat.

She assumed they hadn't expanded the village limits because they wanted to keep this place off the radar. So that resulted in streets packed with merchandise and smells that assaulted the nose like Naruto's dirty laundry.

It was all 'Buy, buy, buy! as in that was literally what sellers were yelling as they shoved their wares into her face. They left Sasuke alone because they could probably tell they'd be risking their life if they did the same with him and they stayed away from Naruto because…well, because Naruto already seemed incredibly interested in their wares.

So they picked on the innocent, nice-looking pink-haired girl, of course. It sort of went as follows…

"Buy!"

"No."

"Can I buy this, Sakura?"

"No."

"Buy!"

"No!"

"Aw, come on, Sakura! It's so cool!"

"No!"

"Buy!"

"Get lost."

"Pretty-please, Sakura-chan!"

"Shut up, Naruto."

"Buy!"

"Go away."

"You're so mean, Sakura!"

"I don't care. Shut up."

"Buy!"

"Piss off!"

"Sakura!"

"Naruto, move it or lose it and I know you know what I'm talking about!"

"Buy!"

"I SAID PISS OFF!"

It was only when everyone stopped and stared that she realized she'd punched the salesman into his stall.

Err…crap.

Naruto burst out laughing as Sasuke looked on impatiently.

He raised an eyebrow. "You know, when I said be as inconspicuous as possible, I actually meant it."

Sakura huffed. "Why thank you for pointing that out, Mr. Obvious!"

Sasuke shrugged. "I wasn't the one who punched an innocent bystander into a stall."

He's got you there, old girl.

Who are you calling old?

The salesman picked himself up from the ground and stared at his former stall in astonishment. Then he glared at her. It would have been sort of intimidating was it not for the blood pouring out of his broken nose.

Sakura laughed sheepishly. "Heh…my bad!"

The man glared harder and waved frantically at his unrecognizable stall. "You're paying for that!"

Like hell I am!

"Um…how about I just heal that instead?" she pointed to his broken nose.

The man scoffed. "Like you could."

Sakura narrowed her eyes. "Watch and stand in awe, buddy!" She marched up to him, placed a hand on his nose, summoned her chakra and healed his stupid nose in ten seconds flat.

He touched his repaired nose in amazement. "You did it!"

Sakura brushed imaginary dirt off her shoulder. "Of course I did!"

"You're still paying for it."

Time for the masterful escape plan!

"Quick, Naruto! Sasuke! Run!"

Without waiting for their reply, she grabbed one of their hands each and pulled them along, running furiously until she had cleared about four streets. It was a good thing this village/mini-city was so crowded. It was easy to hide.

"You can let go now."

Sakura blushed as she released Sasuke's hand. "Ha, ha! That was a close one!"

Naruto snickered. "And you thought I would stuff up!"

Sakura put her hands on her hips. "I couldn't help it! Didn't you see how they were shoving that crap in my face?"

Naruto's face blanked in confusion. "Nope."

"That's because you were too busy looking at that crap yourself!" She looked to Sasuke in desperation. "You saw it, didn't you?"

"No. I didn't have the same problem," he replied impatiently.

Sakura rolled her eyes. "That's because you're you." She pouted. "Why do you get special treatment just because you have an ominous presence?"

"Anyway, thanks you to, it would be impractical to continue scouting today," Sasuke continued, ignoring her rant. "You're far too easy to notice with that hair."

"Yeah, Sakura! You just lost us a whole day!" Naruto whined.

Sakura put on a contrite face, but Inner Sakura grinned evilly as she rubbed her hands together with glee.

You have gained another day with Sasuke! Good job, Sakura!

Don't care. Shut up.

"Yeah, yeah. Whatever. Let's just find a place to stay, okay?" She tried to brush it off casually, but in reality she was embarrassed that she had stuffed up so badly. She was one of Konoha's most respected jounin! She had been part of the elite ANBU! How could she have made such a stupid mistake?

But those salesmen were really annoying…

"Good idea. That way you can stay in the room and Naruto and I can continue looking around," Sasuke replied thoughtfully. "Let's go."

000

She knew she should've stayed in the hotel. She really did. But it had been so boring! It had been three hours since the boys had left her there and she had been so bored she had started counting the tiles in the bathroom.

So she had donned a head-scarf to cover her noticeably pink locks, changed her shirt and went for a walk. Now she just looked like the average kitchen-hand walking around the streets. It was ingenious, really.

She knew Sasuke would probably maim her alive if he caught her, but she had thought of a great plan to prevent that: if Sasuke is sighted, run like hell. Simple and effective.

God, she really had been spending too much time with Naruto!

But dressed as she was the residents didn't treat her as an outsider or tourist to whom they could sell their wares. She looked poor, after all. Some people even stopped to smile and wave. She relished the chance to appear normal, even if she was only pretending. She relished the thought that when people saw her, they saw an average-looking, meek kitchen-hand who was probably working to help out her parents in their average restaurant or café, possibly crushing on one of the regulars, maybe currently caught up in a whirlwind romance with another average guy. A girl who would one day become a woman and get married and have many children and live to see old age.

But she wasn't average. She didn't have that type of closure in her line of work. Sure, people died all the time because of sick coincidences, but not everyone purposely put their life on the line for their work. She wasn't a kitchen-hand. She wasn't crushing on a customer of a restaurant she didn't work in. She wasn't caught up in some sweet romance. She was in love with a guy who didn't want to have anything to do with her and who was going to leave to kill his own brother. She didn't know if she'd ever get married because the only man she'd ever considered marrying was Sasuke and if she didn't get married, she wouldn't have sex. If she didn't have sex, she wouldn't have children. And despite Naruto's insistence that she would live to grow old, they could never be sure.

And though she longed for a normal life at times, she wouldn't change her life for the world. If she had lived another life she wouldn't have met Sasuke and grown to love him as she did now. Though loving Sasuke meant her heart got broken again and again, she didn't really mind. Sasuke needed someone to love him, even if he didn't want it. Everyone needed someone to love them and he shouldn't be exempt from that just because he was hell-bent on revenge. And who better to love him than the girl he'd once (begrudgingly) protected? Sasuke was her moon - so beautiful, yet so distant and cold and hard-looking.

If she had lived another life, she wouldn't have met Naruto. Sure, she had hated him at first, but now she couldn't imagine her life without him around to brighten her day. He was a phenomenal person who defied every law of nature regardless of the consequences. Naruto was her sun. Naruto was everyone's sun. He warmed everyone's world and lit up their way, but especially hers and she felt privileged to be able to call him her best friend even if he was an idiot.

If she had lived another life, she wouldn't have met Kakashi or Tsunade, her two sensei's. There was no other person in the world like Kakashi. The man defined enigma. He was cloaked in mystery. But behind the mask, the constant lateness, and his perverted books was an incredibly decent man who taught her the importance of teamwork and placing others before herself.

Tsunade was also one in a million. At times she could be incredibly compassionate, but at any time for any given reason that could suddenly switch into a ferocious temper that could probably even scare Orochimaru (well, maybe if he wasn't so demented in the brain). Tsunade was the woman who had made her into the shinobi she was today. She was the one who had recognized her potential when no one else had and saved her. If she hadn't been training as she had, she would have had time to sulk over Sasuke but Tsunade had made it so she barely had time to breathe, much less sulk.

And if she had lived another life, she wouldn't have met remarkable people like Ino, Lee, Shikamaru, Gaara, Neji, Tenten, Hinata, Chouji, Kiba, and Shino. All were amazing shinobi in their own way and she couldn't imagine having better friends. Even if Ino was a bitch/slut/pig. Even if Lee wore green spandex. Even if Shikamaru was the laziest person she'd ever met. Even if Gaara was slightly psychotic. Even if Neji didn't seem to be able to blink. Even if Tenten was obsessed with pointy things. Even if Hinata had trouble compiling complete sentences. Even if Chouji wouldn't stop eating. Even if Kiba's best friend was a dog. Even if Shino…she wouldn't even start on the weirdness of Shino and his bugs.

And she was the pink-haired girl who could punch holes into the ground. Naruto was the guy who had the most powerful demon in existence residing inside him. And Sasuke was the insanely good-looking avenger whose eyes turned red at will.

Damn, they were a twisted bunch!

But she loved every single one of them. Especially Naruto.

And especially Sasuke…

A loud coughing interrupted her thoughts and Sakura, being the medic she was, immediately started to look around for the source. She hated seeing people in unnecessary distress and these sounded like those deep wracking coughs that came from a chest full of fluid that shouldn't be there.

Finally, she looked into a cramped alleyway and her heart clenched at the sight that met her eyes.

There was a small group of young children crouched down in the shadows of the cramped alleyway, dressed in rags and as dirty as hell. Tears sprung into her eyes as she looked at them. How could anyone just leave these children alone to die like this? It was obvious they were all sick from having to steal what was probably unclean food and sleep out in the cold every night.

What happened here?

She slowly approached the children. They eyed her warily and stank to high heaven, but she didn't care. She was used to funny smells, having worked in a hospital for years.

Undaunted by their obvious reproach, she knelt down in front of them. There were five of them in total. Three boys and two girls. None of them looked older than eight.

"Hey, I'm Sakura. What's your name?" she asked one of the little girls, smiling brightly.

The little girl smiled back shyly. "I'm Lola. Sakura is a pretty name."

Sakura grinned. "Thank you. I think Lola is really pretty as well."

"Don't talk to her, Lola!" the oldest-looking boy scolded harshly. Sakura could understand why he didn't trust her. No doubt other adults had abused them in the past.

Sakura smiled at him. "You must be in charge around here. I'm very impressed that you've kept your friends alive. You must be really strong." She spoke to him like he was an equal because she knew that's what he would respond to.

He eyed her suspiciously. "What do you want?"

Sakura shrugged. "I just wanted to know the names of the brave children I saw."

The boy, apparently seeing she was no threat, answered her. "My name is Uragi. Then there's Lola, Yura, Tiyayo, and Okuna." He coughed harshly at the end of his sentence.

"Thank you, Uragi. I'm happy you trusted me with your names."

Uragi shrugged and look down. "Whatever." He looked back up at her. "You look like you're from around here. Why haven't I seen you before?"

Sakura instinctively knew it was better not to lie to this boy. "Well, I'm actually a shinobi from Konoha on a top secret mission, but I'm sort of in disguise because I punched a salesman into his stall this morning."

The boy smirked as the others giggled.

"So why bother with us?" he asked.

Sakura shrugged again. "I'm a medic as well. I hate to see people sick and I see you have a bit of a cough there."

"And you're saying you could do something about it."

"Yeah, pretty much."

He seemed to think for a few moments before he answered. "Okay, fine."

Sakura smiled brightly. No doubt he was trying to do what was best for the children he was taking care of. He really was a remarkable boy.

"Okay, let's get started!"

000

This was pointless. It really was.

Okay, so maybe it wasn't entirely pointless. It was just that he could think of much better things to do with his time. Things like beat up Naruto, find Sally, beat up Naruto more, check on Sakura…

Wait…

Scratch the last one. Why would he want to check on Sakura? He didn't need to check on Sakura so therefore he did not want to check on her. And to what purpose would it prevail? It had no purpose. It was pointless and unnecessary.

So why was he walking in the direction of the motel?

Coincidence.

Hardly.

It was something else, something dangerous and what's more, he knew it. He was forming an attachment to her.

It had been bad enough that he had started to become comfortable with Naruto and Sakura again, just like back in their genin days. He didn't know what it was, but something about being with them was so natural that he sunk back into a sense of comradeship without even realizing it. Like when Naruto was being an idiot, which was often, he'd join in with the bantering. When he had first joined them, he had ignored them and remained distant at all times.

And now he was beginning to…care about what happened to Sakura. It had started with their conversation in the tree. He had wanted to console her. He shouldn't have cared about how she would feel when he left again, but he had. He did. And he had felt guilty when he had seen her crying because he knew it was because of him, just like it always was.

At first he had thought it was simply old protective feelings resurfacing. He had always tried to protect her back then because she had been so defenceless and he couldn't stand the thought that one of his team mates would die on his watch. It was unacceptable.

It was like that time he had reacted so strongly in the Forest of Death when he had seen her so bloodied and beaten. He had felt such uncontrollable anger at that time. That was because she had gotten into that state under his watch…and he had been unconscious. Failure.

So he had thought that it was simply those feelings resurfacing. But that didn't explain why he continually thought she was beautiful. That didn't explain why he continually seemed to let his guard down around her without even realizing it. That didn't explain why he had gotten so goddamn jealous when he had heard about all her…experiences of the sexual nature.

That didn't explain why the thought of it still made his blood boil even at that moment.

And that certainly didn't explain why the thought of her doing that kind of thing in the future after he left again made him want to lock her in a room and throw away the key.

So that meant he was possibly falling…

No!

No, he was not, definitely not. He had his promise of revenge and that was all he needed. Nothing else. He didn't need Naruto, he didn't need Sakura and he most certainly didn't need love. All love had done was bite him in the ass and that was why he was where he was today.

"Okay, let's get started!"

Sasuke almost walked into a tree. That sounded exactly like Sakura. But that wasn't possible. She was in the motel. Well, she was supposed to stay there anyway, whether she did or not was unknown.

I knew I should've checked on her.

It was Sakura, alright. There she was, looking like a poor maid, crouching down in an alleyway with a bunch of ratty-looking kids. Her hair was tied up in some cloth thing and her shirt was different, but it was her. He knew that smile anywhere…that, and the fact that wisps of her pink hair were escaping from her cloth thing.

What the hell is she doing?

She was supposed to be in the motel, not talking to random kids in alleyways.

Sasuke remained in the shadow of the tree and masked his presence so he could see what she was up to. He was curious. She had placed her hands on one of the kid's heads and had shut her eyes. A green glow emanated from her hands that he recognized as her chakra. So she was healing them.

The kids she was with looked homeless, judging by their clothes and the fact that they were wrapped up in blankets in an alleyway. But they were so young, far too young to be homeless. No doubt Sakura had gotten bored in the motel, gone out for a walk, found these kids and couldn't stop herself from helping them.

He smiled softly. It was such a Sakura thing to do.

After a few minutes of talking with the kids, they all stood up. Sakura took the hand of the smallest girl as they walked.

Sasuke furrowed his eyebrows in confusion. What were they doing now? He moved out of the shadows of the tree and followed them from a safe distance. He knew he should be scouting the area like they had planned, but finding out what Sakura was up to seemed far more interesting and an overall better use of his time, he thought.

He watched as Sakura went up to an orphanage.

Panic rose in his chest. She's not going to adopt them, is she? Surely even she wouldn't be so impulsive, not to mention downright idiotic.

Maybe she was just buying them food or something…but then wouldn't she be at some food shop?

When he saw her waving money around, he almost went up there and stopped her from doing whatever she was doing, but something compelled him to stay where he was. He didn't understand why, but he'd learned to trust his instincts.

If only he could hear what they were saying. He had very refined hearing, but her voice was lost in the incessant noises of the bustling street. Not even his refined senses could pick out her words from the cacophony of others.

He looked around for a place to eavesdrop…err, watch more closely. He spotted a tree just next to the front of the orphanage and transported himself onto one of the branches so he was practically directly overhead.

Another man had now joined the conversation Sakura was having with the lady.

"So Takayu-san is willing to take these children to Konoha?" Sakura was asking.

The man, presumably Takayu-san, replied for the lady. "Yes, for decent pay. These kids mean nothing to me and it is a long journey."

Sasuke raised an eyebrow in curiosity. She was trying to get someone to take the children to Konoha? For what purpose?

Then Sakura held out a large wad of bills. Sasuke gaped. That was their money. Well, technically it was the money the Hokage had given Sakura and Naruto to cover the expenses of their mission. He didn't have any money himself because he was used to threatening people into getting what he needed and they didn't exactly pay you at Oto.

"Is this enough?"

Mr. Takayu took the money from her and counted it carefully. "I want more."

"I don't have anymore. This is the last of my stock," Sakura replied.

The eldest looking of the children gaped up at Sakura. "But miss, you don't have to give away all your money for us!"

Sakura smiled down at him. "It's okay; I'll get it back eventually." She looked back at Mr. Takayu. "Tell the guards at the main gates that you need to see the Hokage. Tell them Haruno Sakura sent you. I'll write a letter for you to give to the Hokage. She will make sure these children find a place to live. If you need more money, tell her that I said to negotiate with you about it and I will pay her back when I return from my mission. Is that satisfactory?"

Mr. Takayu eyed her suspiciously. "How do I know you're not just bluffing and the Hokage won't actually do anything for me?"

Sakura sighed and slipped a ring off her finger. "Give this to the Hokage. It was what she gave me when I become a jounin. It is very precious to me, so don't lose it!"

The man looked at the ring closely. "The arrangement is satisfactory."

Sakura smiled brightly. "Good, now come over here for a second. I want to show you something." She walked over to the other tree (thank god) outlining the orphanage's entrance and promptly ripped it out of the ground and broke crushed it into pieces with her fist. The man looked on with an expression of mixed terror and amazement.

"Now, Takayu-san, if you leave these kids out in the middle of no where and run off with my ring and my money, I will personally hunt you down and this is what will happen." She casually waved at the splintered tree. "But put your body in the place of the tree."

The man paled and gulped heavily. "Y-yeah, s-s-sure thing. They'll get there."

Sakura smiled again. "Excellent!" She walked up to the man and shook his hand firmly. Sasuke thought he heard something crack as the man winced. "Nice doing business with you."

She turned back to the children and knelt down in front of the eldest child. "Now, Uragi, I need you to take care of the others. And don't be scared of the Hokage when you meet her. She may seem a little scary at first, but she's really just a big softy."

The boy, Uragi, bit his lip in uncertainty. "You sure she'll give us a home? All together?"

Sakura smiled and nodded. "Positive! So be brave for them, okay?"

He boy nodded before Sakura drew him into a hug. Sasuke watched as she hugged each of the children. He watched as she watched them retreat into the orphanage. He watched as she walked under his tree but then turned around to catch sight of them one last time. He watched as she wiped a tear from her cheek.

He silently dropped from the tree so he was right behind her. "Sakura."

"Wha-" She twirled around with wide eyes. "Sasuke!" she squeaked.

He smirked.

"What were you doing, Sakura?" he asked firmly.

Sakura bit her lip and looked down at the ground sheepishly. "Oh…oh, nothing really!"

Sasuke raised an eyebrow. "So what are you doing outside the motel room?"

Her eyes looked at anything but him. "I…I got bored. But I used a disguise, you see!"

Sasuke sneered. "A pathetic disguise. I knew who you were immediately."

Her eyes flashed as she glared up at him. "Hey! I did the best I could under the circumstances!"

Sasuke smirked again. He had gotten her angry, just like he'd wanted her to. "You wouldn't have even had to worry about it if you'd done what you were told, Sakura."

She looked down at the ground again and clasped her hands in front of her. "I…sorry."

His smirk grew. He loved making her squirm. "And what was that money you handed over to that man, Sakura?"

Sakura's eyes flew up to his. "You saw that?"

"So you admit you have something to hide."

Sakura's eyes averted from his face and he growled low in his throat, so she couldn't hear it. He didn't even know why he wanted to make her uncomfortable in the first place. Maybe it was because he enjoyed watching the affect he had on her. Maybe it was because lately she had been making him unsure of everything that used to be so crystal clear in his mind.

Without thinking, he took her chin with his hand and turned her head towards him. "Answer me, Sakura."

He could feel Sakura trembling and was amazed that she could switch roles so quickly. Less than a minute ago she had been threatening that man with certain dismemberment and now…now she was trembling before him. She never seemed to be like this in front of anyone else. Sure, she cried in front of Naruto, but he doubted Naruto had ever made her tremble. Perhaps he was the only one who had this power over her.

So he still had some affect on her after all. Maybe she wasn't as over him as he first thought. Maybe her heart was still his. The thought that she still belonged to him was elating. And part of him wanted to crush her so then maybe she wouldn't be so happy all the time and maybe then she'd leave him alone once and for all…

But at the same time he wanted to take her heart and keep it for his own so maybe some of her warmth would seep into him. And just because he wanted to know Sakura was his and his alone. That no other man would ever mean as much to her as he did.

But that was wrong. She deserved better. She deserved better than him and better than the life he could offer.

"I…I…"

And suddenly seeing her squirm wasn't as amusing as it was before. Why did she have to be scared of him?

He moved his thumb along her jaw line, relishing the feel of her soft skin. "Its okay, Sakura. I already know." He released her jaw, but didn't step back.

Her eyes widened. "You do? And you don't mind?"

Sasuke shrugged lightly. "Though I would prefer to have some money to back us up, it is of no consequence. I can survive without money just fine." He paused. "And it was for an admirable cause."

A tear slipped down her cheek and he scowled. "Why are you crying?"

Before he realized, his hand reached out and he brushed the tear away with his thumb, lightly cupping her face in the process.

He froze.

She froze.

What am I doing?

But before he could move his hand, Sakura pressed it to her face and shut her eyes.

Sasuke inhaled sharply as a myriad of emotions assaulted him. He briefly shut his eyes, basking in the feel of it, before opening them to look down at her.

"Sakura, I…"

He didn't know what to say. He didn't know what to do. Why, why did she always have this affect on him?

She opened her eyes and smiled up at him. It was one of her real smiles. "This is how I want it to be, Sasuke. This is how it should be. You shouldn't be alone."

Sasuke clenched his teeth and abruptly pulled his hand away. He did not want her pity. "You're wrong."

She smiled up at him. "No, I'm pretty sure I'm not."

He glared at her. "Go back to the motel and stay there this time."

And without another word, he disappeared.

000

"What did you do to her?"

Sasuke gritted his teeth at Naruto's unexpected question.

After he had…spoken with Sakura that afternoon, he had gone off to find Naruto and tell him they were done for the day. It had been late anyway. Tura had given them the address of her contact in the village before they'd left, but it was always good to become familiar with one's surroundings, just in case. He did not want to take any chances.

Part of him wondered what Orochimaru thought of all this. He'd been gone for over two weeks now. No doubt Orochimaru knew he wasn't coming back…at least for now. What had him worried was that Orochimaru would stop at nothing to have his body. Not that he was scared; he could probably take on Orochimaru. What had him worried was that Orochimaru hadn't yet tried to retrieve him. In any normal case, Orochimaru would have sent 'pawns' after Sasuke immediately but now he was just leaving him alone, which meant he wanted Sasuke to stay away. He didn't know why and that was…annoying. He did not like being played.

And at the moment Orochimaru could control him with the curse mark somewhat. He couldn't exactly control his thoughts or intentions, but he could inflict excruciating pain on him to the point that he would have no choice but to return. He was just waiting for the day Orochimaru decided he wanted him back. It was a race against time…and in that time he had to figure out what the hell some war or whatever having to do with Konoha had to do with him.

That would have been pretty simple and straightforward had not Naruto and Sakura come and complicated the situation. He liked working alone for various reasons, two of which being he was able to keep a clear head at all times and he worked more effectively alone. Now he wasn't keeping a clear head because all this…stuff having to do with Naruto and especially Sakura was distracting him and he wasn't working effectively because his mind wasn't clear and because Naruto had about as much finesse as a blind painter.

So right now he really did not want to deal with anything to do with his relationship concerning Sakura. There was no relationship to begin with. Why could Naruto not understand that? Why could Sakura not understand that there never will be, platonic or otherwise (definitely not otherwise)? He just wanted to get the job done and leave. He had been training for revenge for five years. He was ready. He knew it. All he had to do was obtain the Mangekou Sharingan. He didn't quite know how he was supposed to do that, seeing as he didn't really have any friends anymore, but if he had to kill Naruto, so be it. He would not let his emotions get in the way of what he had to do - not again.

Sasuke looked down at Sakura's sleeping form. In the single room they had rented, there were two single beds and a futon. When Sasuke and Naruto had arrived at the room, Sakura had been fast asleep. Sasuke had no idea why Naruto thought something would be wrong. She was sleeping, peacefully at that.

"I didn't do anything."

Naruto scoffed. "Yeah, and I can use the Sharingan."

He really didn't need this.

"Look, screw-up, get it through your thick head. You mean nothing to me and she means nothing to me, so just let me do what I need to do without pushing all this relationship shit on me," he stated with deliberate coldness.

Naruto glared. "Look at her, you bastard!"

Sasuke glared back. "She's sleeping. What could possibly be wrong with that?"

Naruto shook his head in disappointment. "You don't know Sakura like I do. If Sakura was left waiting someplace she wouldn't even blink until they got back, no matter how tired she was. Ever since you left, she's had this thing about people leaving her alone. Though she does a good job of hiding it, I can tell. Her biggest fear is that everyone will leave her and never come back, just like you did. That's why she was so happy when I came back from my three years of training. That's why she never moves from the spot she was left and just keeps waiting and waiting. But when we came back, she was sleeping. Something's seriously wrong with that. It means she just gave up."

A wave of jealousy washed over him before he could stop it. "You don't know Sakura like I do." Why should he care if Sakura's relationship with Naruto was stronger than theirs? They didn't even have a relationship of any sort because he didn't want one.

"Whatever. That's not my problem. I never asked her to care about me and I never asked her to miss me. I certainly never asked her to wait for me, so as far as I'm concerned, it doesn't matter at all."

Naruto clenched his fists by his side. "You'll never change, will you? But what I can't get is how you stand being alone all the time."

It was hollow. He felt empty, like there was nothing left anymore. Like nothing mattered but what he was going to do, what he had to do. No, he couldn't stand it at all. He just lived through it.

He knew that Naruto was the only person who knew the extent of loneliness he did. But Naruto's loneliness was opposite to his. Naruto grew up without anybody. Loneliness was all he had known until he had found Team 7.

But Sasuke had known what it was to belong, to have a clan, a mother, a father, and a big brother. Even if it wasn't perfect, even if he had to constantly live up to his brother's standards, even if he could never seem to impress his father enough, he had still fit in somewhere. And he knew what it was like to lose it all. For Naruto, it had been all he had ever known. For Sasuke, it was something he'd had to learn to live with.

But why should he let people in like Naruto had? To what purpose would that prevail? He had unwittingly let Sakura and Naruto in and look where that had gotten him. They were now just more problems to add onto the growing pile.

"Like I said, it doesn't matter."

Naruto clenched his fists tighter and Sasuke could tell he was barely maintaining control. "Why can't you see that she cares for you…that we care for you?"

"I can see that, though I don't know why you do, much less care. You're foolish if I still mean something to you. I left Sakura unconscious on a bench and I tried to kill you."

Suddenly Naruto relaxed his fists. "It doesn't matter what you did to us. You're Sasuke. You'll never stop meaning something to us."

Sasuke clenched his jaw. Naruto's words were amazingly similar to Sakura's previous words.

"It doesn't matter."

Maybe if he kept saying it enough, it would be true.

Naruto chuckled. "You know what I think, Sasuke?"

Sasuke raised an eyebrow expectantly. He didn't much care what Naruto thought, but he knew the blonde idiot would tell him anyway.

"I think you're scared."

Sasuke smirked smugly, but it didn't quite turn out right. "Scared?"

Naruto smiled knowingly. "Yeah, you're scared to not be alone. Because when you're alone, you remember what Itachi did and you feel the pain of it everyday and that's what keeps you going, but when you're not alone, you become happy and suddenly it doesn't matter so much anymore and then you feel bad because you're an Uchiha, you have to avenge your clan. I understand your need for that, but you're still scared; scared that if you don't hate Itachi with everything within you, it won't be enough to beat him. You're scared that you won't live up to your brother's standard. You're scared you won't impress your father, deceased or not. And most of all, you're scared to let us in because you do still care for us deep down inside and you're scared that if you let yourself care for us and you find your happiness again, that it will all be taken away from you just like it was back then. Then you will have lost your sense of belonging again, just like you did back then."

The smile disappeared from Naruto's face. "I don't know what it's like to lose someone you love. Not like you did. And I can see why you'd be reluctant to let yourself care for anyone after what happened, but what I can't really understand is how you can stand it. Why do you think we've never really given up on you, Sasuke? It's certainly not because you're a model character or anything. It's because we care about you. You were like my brother. You are like my brother. And then you left. It was like I had found a family, and then I had lost part of it again. And after that happened I would have done anything to get you back. Why else do you think I trained for so long to become stronger? It wasn't just because I want to become Hokage, it's because I wanted to be strong enough to get you back. And you will come back, after you've done what you have to."

Sasuke scowled. "I'm never coming back. There's no life left for me in Konoha." That plus the fact they'd probably try to lock him up for life.

A familiar glint appeared in Naruto's bright eyes. The glint of anticipation of a challenge. "Yes, you are, even if I have to chain you down with a hundred shackles!"

All of which he could break free from. "You promised you'd leave me alone."

Naruto grinned. "No, Sakura promised she'd leave you alone. I said no such thing. And besides, five years ago I made a promise to Sakura that I'd get you back no matter what. That promise still stands today and I always keep my word."

Sasuke narrowed his eyes. "I don't care what promise you made, I'm not coming back. There's nothing left for me."

"We're there."

"I repeat: there's nothing left for me."

Naruto smirked. "Oh, you'll come back, Sasuke. And perhaps it won't be by my doing."

000

"Orochimaru-sama, when are you planning to retrieve Sasuke?"

A smile. "Have patience, Kabuto. I'll let him run around with his friends a bit longer. It's so amusing to watch him try to balance his emotions. Itachi's plan is far more effective than I thought it would be."

"And when will the plans be coming into effect, my Lord?"

"Soon, Kabuto. Soon."

"And what about Sasuke's teammates?"

"You worry too much, Kabuto. They are nothing but little bees buzzing around honey, only workers in the beautiful grand scheme of nature. Sasuke will be returning to us soon and when he does, I guarantee he will be on our side once again. After all, isn't power all he wants? And if he helps destroy Konoha, he will receive the ultimate power."

A/N: Put your hand up if you hate Orochimaru! Oh well, I'm so killing him in this story anyway! What a creep!

As you might have noticed, a lot of this chapter is in dear old Sasuke's point of view. This is because he's the character who has to sort through all his crap at the moment. Naruto knows where he's going, Sakura knows what she feels and accepts it somewhat, but Sasuke is just a stubborn bastard and has a lot of emotional issues.

Also, Sakura is a bit aggressive in parts of this chapter and complacent in other parts. This is because of her nature. She is a walking contradiction. She has a fearsome temper some times, is extremely compassionate, and though she has a strong nature, she CAN get overwhelmed by things such as Sasuke's supreme sexiness. I mean, come on! She IS a female! How can you NOT? And she's in love with him. That makes her vulnerable.

So there you go.