DISCLAIMER: I do not own Naruto or any of Kishimoto's characters. I do not own the song.

I have no clue how long it has been since I updated this story. As the days ticked away I have become increasingly annoyed with the fact that I have left so many readers hanging in the wind. So, I have thought and thought and thought about this story and how to fix the part of it that has caused me SUCH writer's block. I think I have found something that I am happy with and I truly hope that you, my poor neglected readers, are happy with as well.

As always, enjoy! - laydee kai

A Traitor's Heart: Self Inflicted

Chapter Thirteen

"Until now." Itachi's voice echoed softly through Sakura's mind.

A sudden wave of clarity flooded her senses. Sakura sucked a deep breath in through her teeth to fill her lungs and forced her mind to rewind and play back what had occurred. Her cheeks burned red and her brow started to dampen with perspiration.

She quickly took stock of the situation. Her back was against the wall and her toes were just barely scrapping the dusty ground. Her small, work calloused hands flew to her neck and snaked around an arm. Her green eyes snapped open and she was starring into the crimson eyes of Itachi. She gasped for air as Itachi applied more pressure to her throat. She clawed and pulled at his fingers.

"Itachi!" She wheezed. " What the hell are you doing?"

"I thought my actions were quite clear. I am defending myself." His eyes spun threateningly. "Do you cease your actions?"

She coughed violently and he let go. Her body slid down the wall and landed with a slight thump as a small cloud of dust rose. She closed her eyes and pulled in one deep breath after the other to calm herself down. Her mind reeled as she tried franticly to make sense of what was going on. How had she gone from kissing and talking with Itachi to having him crush her wind pipe.

"What happened? Why were you defending yourself from me?" she questioned softly as the only thing that made sense clicked into place.

"Because you attacked me. I heard you scream, I came to check on you and then you…"

"Knocked you down and tried to choke you?" she finished weakly.

"Yes. I reacted accordingly." he stated justifiably.

"Oh. And I suppose out of habit, you used your sharingan on me?" Her eyes were locked on the floor.

He paused for a moment and watched her before answering, "Ah."

Her green eyes flashed. She rubbed her throat and glared up at the Uchiha standing in front of her. After a moment she lowered her gaze and her eyes swam with tears. Her cheeks flushed slightly as she rose from the ground.

"Did you control it?" she hissed.

"Excuse me?"

"Did you control what I saw? Do you even know what I saw?" she all but screamed.

His steady gaze faltered for a fraction before he regained himself. "Yes."

The tears spilled from her cheeks and at the moment her hatred of crying was overshadowed by her sudden and uncontrollable anger. Her eyes slid to the Uchiha's pale face and unflinchingly met his sharingan.

"Yes to what part?" she said in a dangerous hushed tone as she rose to her feet. Her whole body was taught and shaking.

His eyes narrowed as he took stock of her reaction. He knew that she would respond badly to this but he had clearly underestimated her. He could feel the anger building and swelling in her system. He could see the flare of her chakra as it fought to break down their barriers that he had placed on her. Itachi's sharingan began to spin as he watched her.

"To both parts."

She slid her feet apart slightly as she listened to him.

"I dug in your mind and played something that you wanted. Did you not like what I showed you?" He asked, knowing very well what he was doing. He was pushing her. He wanted to know if she could break down the seals now that she had shown him the resistance. "You wanted to save Sasuke, why not me? It seems to be your thing."

He felt a pulse and the seals cracked. Sakura launched herself at Itachi. Quickly, he slid from her path but she didn't falter. He reappeared behind her as she slammed against the small, cluttered counter. Her hand gripped the pan that was resting on the counter and spun around and aimed for Itachi's head. He brought and arm up to deflect the blow but was thrown off when Sakura brought her heal down with amazing strength on the top of his foot. His guard slipped and the pan made contact with a resounding clang. She pulled her arm bag again with the intent to bring the pan down on his head once more but it was plucked from her fingers. A large blue hand came down on her shoulder and she grunted.

Itachi watched as the seals began to crack even more.

Sakura pushed off and sent herself flying backward and at the last second dug her elbow into Kisame's large side. When she heard the air escape his lungs, she latched onto his arm and with surprising ease tossed him across the room.

"What the hell, Itachi?" Kisame yelled.

Sakura spun on the spot and raced for the door. She hit the force field sealing her in with savage rage. Itachi's eyes widened fractionally as he saw that the seals on her chakra were about to break. She pulled her arm back as was just about to pound on the force field when Itachi grabbed her arm and spun her away from the door. Kisame, already back on his feet, snatched her up as she came his way.

She struggled against the blue man's grip. "You bastard! Let me go." She bellowed.

Kisame tightened his grip. "What just happened?" he asked his partner.

Itachi closed the small distance between them. Hate was pouring from Sakura now. It was fueling her chakra, pushing it to the point where it wouldn't be contained. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath.

Without opening his eyes, he answered, "Her anger has weakened the seals that I put in place. I clearly underestimated her. I will not make that mistake again as I fix the seals this time."

He stepped forward and looked up at her small form encased in Kisame's arms. He noticed her legs tensing to strike out. Before she could make contact, his eyes flashed. "Sleep, Sakura." and she fell limp in his partner's arms.

"Lay her on the futon." He said quietly as he made his way to the chairs. "I'll fix her seals in a moment. She'll be asleep for a long while."

Kisame joined his partner after he place Sakura on the futon. He took a deep breath and watched his partner from the corner of his eye for a moment.

"I underestimated her. And you did too. That's not good Itachi."

"You're correct. I foolishly put to much stock in her being weak and pliable without the use of her chakra. She is stronger than either of us gave her credit for."

Itachi fell into a deep silence. The minutes turned to hours before Itachi rose from his seat. He stood over Sakura's limp body and watched her. Her breathing was steady and almost peaceful. That was what he had willed for her when he sent her to sleep this time. Silently he dropped to his knees, never taking his eyes from her face.

A thick section of her hair was tossed over her face. His hand twitched, aching to move it so he could have an unobstructed view. He paused and quickly checked to make sure his partner was lost in his own slumber before reaching out and sweeping it aside. His rough hands lingered over the smooth skin of her face before jerking his hand back.

He closed his eyes as he molded his chakra. Repairing the seals would be much easier than placing them there. He reached out and set his hand on her toned stomach and set about the mending process. When he was done he opened his eyes. His hand traced the puckered scar on her stomach. A reminder of Sasuke and his refusal to be saved.

He knew what the words he had spoken would do to her before they every came from his mouth. He knew that they would make her hate him. They left a bitter taste in his mouth as he replayed them.

He hated himself at the moment. He let himself be pulled back into another moment. Sakura in his arms. Her soft lips against his. A brief glimpse of happiness, of trust. But it had been a mistake. He had allowed himself to be pulled in too deep and now he was paying for it. Her hatred was his payment for taking the truth from her and leaving her with a lie.

He would bare the pain of this like he had with everything else. He had too even though at that moment when her lips touched his, everything had changed. He had changed.