Chapter 24 – On The Move

It felt like such a relief when they finally returned to the village. How long had it been? Five months? For one of those months, they had been ordered to help Suna. Sakura helped in the hospital as well as Gaara, whereas the others helped protect the village and those with water jutsu produced water for them all. It was exhausting, but somebody had to do it and they never complained once. Then, they were back at the border.

This time, it had been more relaxed, which made them all extremely wary. Where were all the Iwa-nin? What were they plotting now?

It was safe to say that it was good to be home, where they could relax – even if it was for only five minutes. There definitely was no place like home.

"Camp four!"

Such a large group travelling together was unusual, so they showed no surprise when they glanced at the chunin stationed at the gates of Konoha. Izumo and Kotetsu. Sakura had been away for so long that it was actually a relief seeing their faces. But then she realised something about the pair who always seemed to be together. They were pale, visibly shaken. Something bad had happened.

"What happened?" Itachi asked in his ever-smooth, blank voice. The tone of authority in his voice was not missed.

Kotetsu opened his mouth, about to tell them, however, no words would form on his lips. They seemed to get stuck in his throat. Sakura's stomach curled with unease. What could have happened now? They'd only just got back!

Noticing that his partner wasn't capable of saying the words, Izumo did instead, murmuring, "It's good to have you all home. You made it just in time."

"Just in time?" Naruto questioned, his brows brows furrowing.

Shisui exchanged a glance with Itachi and Kakashi, all feeling confused yet showing nothing. "In time for what?" the oldest Uchiha asked.

"The funeral," Izumo sighed.

"What funeral?" Sakura demanded, her eyes widening and heart palpitating with pure fear. "Who–"

"Asuma-sensei."

The voice and name had her tensing, had Sakura growing just as pale as the two chunin, before her head was snapping to the side and she was looking at Ino. Truly seeing Ino for the first time in what felt like forever. All hair was off her face, not a single bit of make up being worn, and her eyes were bloodshot, tears stains down her cheeks. Even then, as blue eyes met with green, there were tears filling them, her bottom lip was trembling and dimples were forming in her chin.

"Asuma-sensei."

Sakura moved forward without a word, forgetting about the fight they had had and the fact that it hadn't yet been resolved. That no longer mattered. And when Ino was in her arms, it was heartbreaking the way she broke down in front of them all, allowing herself to be vulnerable in such an open area. She clung to Sakura desperately, her entire body trembling. Sakura bit down on her lip, tightening her hold on the blonde.

What she was experiencing… It had to be pure agony. Sakura wasn't even sure how she would react if she one day received the news that Kakashi had died. It would break her heart. The jonin were like second parents to them, even though they'd never outwardly admit it to them for fear of their lives.

"H-How?" Naruto asked.

Kakashi was in shock. Another one of his friends… They were gone. And he wasn't too sure on what to do with himself. Eyebrows knitting together, he glanced down at Ino. "Ino, where is Kurenai?"

Only Itachi noticed the way Shisui tensed, the way his eyes threatened to widen a fraction. It seemed that, even after all these years, even after saying that he had let the woman go, Shisui still harboured some feelings for her.

The blonde lifted her head from Sakura's neck, still refusing to let her go or be let go. "W-With Shikamaru… She… He didn't want to l-leave her alone." Her features suddenly fell once more. "Y-You know? About them, I mean."

Beneath his mask, Kakashi gave a saddened smile. "They thought they were being discreet, but not a lot gets by me. I could see it clearly in Asuma's eyes. He loved Kurenai."

That was when Ino began sobbing again. Sakura glanced over her shoulder at the teams, who were all simply too stunned to say anything. Even Rock Lee and Gai were unusually quiet. "Kakashi-sensei, is it okay if I'm excused from debriefing? It's not professional of me, I know, but Ino…"

Since she was in his team, Kakashi was the one who was in charge of her. If she had been in Itachi's or Shisui's team, then they would have been in charge of her. "Do what you must, Sakura. Just make sure you meet with Tsunade-sama after."

"Thank you, Sensei." She gave a small smile before once more looking at Ino, cupping her cheeks and forcing her to make eye contact. "Oi, we're going back to my place so you can get cleaned up. You look a mess, Ino-Pig."

She gave a weak glare. "Shut it, Forehead."

In return, Sakura gave a hopeful smile. "Does this mean I'm forgiven for our stupid fight?"

Instead of her usual cocky and arrogant retort, Ino deflated completed. "Life's too short for stupid fights like those, Forehead." There was a pause, one where she looked at Sakura with obvious exhaustion. "There's nothing to forgive you for."

"Come on," Sakura sighed, keeping one arm over Ino's shoulders as she guided her in the direction of her apartment. "I'll make you your favourite drink, too."

There was a tired and weak laugh.

"I held him… as he died," she whispered, her voice hoarse and scarily as blank as her features as Ino stared down at the coffee table. "We all did."

She had just explained to Sakura everything that had happened, had told her who had defeated Asuma. Akatsuki. They were closing in fast, weren't they? Apparently it had been rather personal to Asuma – why he wanted to take the two Akatsuki members out, she meant. They had murdered his friend, completely destroyed a place of peace and worship. It hadn't been out of revenge, however, Ino had whimpered. It was because they had stolen Asuma's friend's body in hopes of cashing in on the large bounty over his head.

"I tried to save him. I tried so hard. But… Asuma-sensei knew…"

That was the hardest part about being a medic. When not only yourself knew that you wouldn't be able to save your patient, but the patient also knew. It was the look that would enter their eyes, the defeat, yet the acceptance. Sadness, regret, hatred and anger. Oh Sakura had seen it all over the years and once or twice, when the patient had been angry with her for being unable to save them, it had brought her to tears. However, medics were not magicians. That was something Tsunade had told her over and over again for Sakura's sanity.

"You tried your best to save him, Ino. I know you and I know that you would have tried everything, even if it left you half dead."

Slowly, Ino gave her a single nod. "It's weird, you know? Even though I literally felt his life leaving him… I just… I can't believe he's really gone." She closed her blue eyes, taking a deep breath to try and stay calm. "You know how it feels. When you look at your sensei, I mean. You expect them to always be there, to have your back. Even though he doesn't seem like he does, Kakashi-sensei still has yours, Sasuke-kun's and Naruto's. I just…" Once more, tears were filling her eyes, "I keep expecting Asuma-sensei to be there. It feels like he's still here."

Just as Sakura was about to say something, Ino cut her off, "I don't mean some freaky, paranormal bullshit. I mean… It's hard to explain. It feels like part of him is still here." Another sigh. "I'm mentally connected to all of my team and sometimes, they don't know how strong that connection can be. That's how I found out about Asuma-sensei and Kurenai-sensei. He felt so strongly about her. I…" She shook her head. "I feel like part of him is here, and I don't know how that can be."

And then it struck Sakura.

Was Kurenai pregnant?

If they were lovers, and Ino could feel a part of Asuma lingering about the village, was it possible that it was lingering around Kurenai? It shouldn't even be possible – but a lot of things weren't supposed to be.

Instead of saying anything in fear of getting Ino's hopes up, Sakura nodded understandingly. "When Aiko-chan died…" Ino's eyes snapped to Sakura's quickly, widening with surprise since the topic of Aiko had always been forbidden. It had always made Sakura too sad to talk about. "It sounds crazy." Sakura smiled sheepishly, pushing a strand of hair behind her ear restlessly. "But I could still hear her. Around camp. When I was trying to sleep at night. Sometimes I still do. It's like she's haunting me."

"Do you mind if I look?" Ino asked (which surprised Sakura greatly as she would usually just do it), a frown settling on her features. "Hearing things… Are you sure it's not just your inner messing with your head?"

Those memories, though… Sakura pulled a face. Those memories were private. They belonged to her and Aiko. However, there was nobody who knew her better than Ino.

"I won't judge you, if that's what you're worried about," the blonde added softly. "I just want to make sure nothing more serious is going on up in that big ass forehead of yours."

"Always so caring and sweet." Sakura rolled her eyes, before eventually nodding. "Just… Try to stay out of the most private stuff, if you can."

"You know that's not how it works."

Seeing that Ino was looking unimpressed with her, she sighed. Of course she already knew that that was not how it worked. Since when was anything as simple as that? No, to access Sakura's thoughts, Ino had to delve deep. That meant there was a possibility of her seeing something she wasn't supposed to. Was that okay with her? No, not entirely, because there were a lot of private things that should never leave her head. However, Sakura knew that she could trust her best friend. Ino could be a total bitch at times and could be cunning and downright evil, but she wasn't a backstabber. She was loyal and looked out for her friends.

After a moment of silence, Sakura gave her a serious look. "If you see anything you're not supposed to, leave it immediately. There's some really personal stuff in here, Ino."

Itachi.

Despite wanting to know all the juicy details, Ino nodded in agreement. "If I even try to keep watching, we both know that your inner will just come to your defence."

True. Taking a deep breath to prepare herself, as it was always rather draining having somebody go through your mind, Sakura gave Ino the final nod and shut her eyes once a hand was pressed to her forehead. Thankfully, there was no snide remark about how Ino could almost fit her entire hand on Sakura's forehead this time.

"You ready?"

"Just get it over with, Ino-Pig."

Finally shutting her eyes, Ino breathed out the name of her jutsu and suddenly, it felt like she was floating. Her mind left her own body, leaving her to relax ever so slightly. This wasn't like the mind switch, however, so she didn't collapse completely and was not left totally vulnerable.

The feeling that hit her the moment she entered Sakura's mind was overwhelming.

Failure.

Sakura felt like a failure.

It was crushing seeing all of the memories flashing through her mind, seeing everything from Sakura's point of view. Watching how she looked at herself in the mirror, how she criticised her looks, was painful. Feeling how much her team meant to her, how much she depended on their love, was both heart warming and sad. Seeing how much she looked up to Tsunade, like the woman was a second mother to her, was amazing. Then, they moved onto the hospital work and how it affected Sakura. How she felt after saving somebody's life, or losing it. How she felt so drained after a long day, yet felt so rewarded for all of the good she had done, like she was making up for all the lives she had taken out on the battlefield.

But then that was when Ino reached the base camp. It held a much darker feeling to it than Ino had ever thought Sakura possible of feeling. Yes, she could be quite down sometimes, but never like this. This was… It was terrifying. The entire time she was there, it felt like Sakura could just about function. It felt like she was slowly drowning and once more, Ino could feel that Sakura felt like a failure. A failure because she had failed to keep her promise, failed at her ninja way.

And then Ino saw her. The small girl bouncing around base camp four with a bright smile that rivalled Naruto's. She looked so happy! Despite knowing the dangers, Aiko looked so very happy and that happiness and warmth in her brown eyes only increased as she turned to Sakura. They were speaking about something and as Ino caught onto the words, her heart melted. Flowers. Sakura was teaching her everything she had been taught by the blonde.

When somebody else entered her thoughts, Ino raised an eyebrow with a smirk on her lips. Itachi, huh? The thoughts Sakura was having of the Uchiha were scandalous to say the least, especially when she barged into his room without knocking and caught him getting changed.

"Ino…"

A cold chill ran through her body.

Inner-Sakura.

That meant it was time to move on! Focusing once more, Ino moved onto the next memory, but she almost wished that she hadn't.

Aiko was dying in Sakura's arms.

Unknowingly, tears slipped down Ino's cheeks on her physical body. It was beautifully painful. Seeing the peaceful smile on Aiko's face, hearing the gentle words being sung to her by Sakura, having a close presence radiating comfort… It was agonising, but in a beautiful way.

Realising that everything after that would be dark and very personal to Sakura, Ino once again moved on, skimming over the next few memories and reluctantly not stopping when she saw a certain one. Sakura and Itachi's first kiss, leading to their first time together. Damn! Ino hadn't thought that Sakura would have it in her to make a move first. Sure, Itachi had kissed her – rather heatedly – first, but it was Sakura who made the first move in making it more than that. Granted, she was in pain and wanted that pain to be numbed, but that wasn't why she had gone to Itachi. Ino could feel everything Sakura felt at that moment in time even though she was only skimming through that memory.

It wasn't only because Sakura was horny and wanted her pain to be numbed. She went to Itachi because he made her feel safe and special, because just being in his presence comforted her greatly. And the way he held her every single night, the way he chased away her bad dreams, was enough to make Ino jealous, although she would obviously never admit it to Sakura.

Anyway! Where was she?

Oh, right. Returning to base camp four…

And Sakura was right.

Aiko was there. She was everywhere! In the field with hundreds of flowers, in Team Seven's cabin (where her bed continued to remain untouched), by the campfire… But it wasn't in a scary way. Sure, it was painful and made Sakura feel great regret and hurt, but it wasn't scary. Aiko looked at peace and content. She was happy with merely sitting by them all – especially Sakura.

But it was still worrying that Sakura was seeing her.

It wasn't her inner's doing, as Inner-Sakura seemed just as unsure and concerned as Ino was (no doubt because she didn't want to go insane). So what was it? A mental disorder? Was it only temporary, or permanent? Could it possibly be post traumatic stress? With a much more noticeable frown, Ino delved deeper, her hand twitching ever so slightly on Sakura's forehead due to her limited chakra supply. She still hadn't fully recuperated from her battle.

A knock on the front door went unnoticed, as did the opening of it.

Apparently it was only when Sakura was feeling relaxed that she saw Aiko around camp, feeling the same. However, when there was an attack and she felt on edge, that was when it got scary. That was when she truly heard Aiko, instead of only the girl laughing. Bloodcurdling screams, terrified and pained whimpers, whispers of not wanting to die…

And Itachi held her and comforted her through it all, waiting with her until the worst of it had passed.

Just as she felt, through Sakura's point of view, Itachi brushing his lips to her ear and whispering something, somebody spoke up on the outside world, making both women jump before Ino was carefully leaving Sakura's mind.

"What are you doing?"

"Idiot!" Ino snapped, glaring viciously up at Naruto, but then her eyes widened as she noticed everyone else was there, too. "Don't you all know how fragile the mind is? Sneaking up on us like that–"

"Shinobi should always be aware of their surroundings." Sasuke's eyes narrowed on Sakura's. "You know that."

He was scolding her, Sakura thought with a sigh. Since she deserved it, however, for letting her guard down by so much, Sakura did not argue and instead nodded. "Ino just wanted to see something."

"See what?" Kakashi questioned, his single eye narrowing with hidden concern.

Of course, Kakashi already knew of Sakura's inner persona. Was it becoming more of an issue for his former-student? Was Ino trying to help with it? There was always that little nagging voice in the back of his mind, the one that was reminding him whenever Sakura lost her temper that something was wrong. No, no. Not wrong. It was more like a sign that her inner persona was merging more with her actual self. Kakashi sighed, resisting the urge to rub at his temple. Today was simply a difficult day for them all, an example of that would be the fact that his thoughts were a lot slower than usual. A few too many drinks and a long, uninterrupted sleep would help him slightly.

Glancing back to Sakura, Ino regarded her for a moment before shrugging her shoulders. "Nothing that's worth bringing up now."

Naruto glared. "Then why–"

"If it was important, Naruto-kun, then surely we would be informed," Shisui told him calmly.

As the blond growled with anger and replied, Sakura looked up at the set of eyes that were fixed on her the most intensely. It didn't surprise her, however, how his eyes only seemed intense to her. They always had. And seeing the question that was so very obvious to her in Itachi's eyes, seeing the demand, had her inwardly sighing. As Ino had already seen, Itachi knew all about her panic attacks and possible post traumatic stress (as it would explain so much to him), but he did not know about Sakura actually seeing Aiko. She hadn't wanted to worry him.

It made her seem like such a hypocrite, considering what she had told Itachi back in Suna, about not keeping things from her. Why? Well, it was basically what she was doing right now. Keeping things from him.

"Why have you all come back here, anyway?" Ino demanded as she changed the subject, standing up and placing her clenched fists onto her hips. "This was supposed to be private. Just me and Sakura!"

Sasuke simply raised a brow. "Why do you want to be alone with her so much?"

Naruto, catching onto his thoughts, smirked wickedly. "Wow, Ino, do you have a thing for Sakura-chan?"

Oh this was like something from a dream! Was it true? "A thing?" Kakashi asked with a slight lilt to his voice. "And just what would this thing be?"

Shisui looked to his friend, inwardly smirking at the look that flashed through Itachi's eyes. "Yamanaka-san, your teammates are looking for you."

It would probably be best to have her leave before Itachi got territorial or possessive. Scarily smart, yes. Good sense of humour and capable of taking a joke? Not really. One time the Uchiha had heard somebody joking around, saying how they would "love to take the Uchiha Matriarch over the Hokage's desk". That conversation hadn't progressed further due to the fact a fourteen year old Itachi had had the thirty-something year old man pinned against a wall in a secluded alleyway before the man had even blinked. Yes, it had been utterly disrespectful of the man to say such things and yes, in a way, Itachi had had every right to react the way he had (at the end of the day, the kid had only been fourteen years old). However, the other man was still a Konoha-nin and like all others, he must unfortunately be unharmed. It was safe to say that he never made his lust for Uchiha Mikoto known since, though. Just staring into the stone cold face of the prodigy to the Uchiha Clan had silenced all of those impure thoughts.

"Suppose I should go," Ino said rather reluctantly, the reminder of what was happening shortly very unwelcome as it brought back the pain in her heart. "Find me later, Sakura. I'm not done with you."

"Sakura already has plans."

All eyes immediately snapped to Itachi's face.

"Itachi–"

"Don't worry so much, Ino!" Sakura smiled at the blonde, standing up and smoothing out her standard-issue sweatshirt. "You need to rest tonight and stay with your teammates. Shikamaru and Choji need you."

It was true, though. She and Itachi did have plans. Ones that actually involved his parents, so it wasn't like Sakura could cancel on them. Yes, her best friend was grieving right now and she wanted nothing more than to be there for Ino, but the blonde had to be with her teammates. She was the one who held them all together, who was strong enough for them all. Not physically, of course. But emotionally and mentally.

"Of course they need me." Blue eyes rolled, a small and playful smirk on her lips as Ino brushed her hair from her shoulder. "Who doesn't?"

Sasuke bit his tongue and forced Naruto not to say anything. Unfortunately for them, Shisui noticed and sent them a knowing smirk to let them know that he knew.

Before Ino could leave, however, Sakura pulled her into another comforting hug, keeping her close. "I'll come and find you in the morning," she told her. "Unless you want to come by here? Say about eleven?"

A deep breath was taken before there was a reply. Clearly, with nothing left to focus on, emotions were taking over again. "Yeah. I'll come by here. You better be dressed though, Sakura. Seeing you and Itachi-san in the nude will probably scar me for life." Another pause. "Well, maybe not Itachi-san…"

"Time for you to go!"

Sakura gave her a forced smile, but Ino could see the laughter in her eyes as she was practically shoved out the door. She herself had a wide smirk on her lips until the door shut behind her and Ino leaned back against it, closing her eyes with a sigh.

Teammates.

Shikamaru and Choji.

They would need her to be strong for them and together, they would grieve. Perhaps Sakura was not the best person to go to, as she obviously didn't know Asuma the way Ino and her team had. That didn't mean Sakura would not be taking the brunt of her grief, because knowing that woman, she'd take it even if Ino wasn't trying to shove all her problems and hurt onto her. That was just who Sakura was.

Reopening her eyes, Ino pushed away from the door and began to make her way to Choji's, as it was closer.

"It was a joke, Itachi." Shisui smirked.

Silence.

"That was kind of rude how you–"

Sasuke cut Naruto off with a roll of his eyes. "Shut up, dobe. She's meeting our parents tonight as Itachi's official partner." Already knowing what was about to be said, he once again cut the Uzumaki off. "Previously, she was introduced as my teammate. Tonight she will be introduced as Itachi's chosen partner."

"Chosen partner," Kakashi said thoughtfully before his single eye languidly swept over to Itachi's. "Does Sakura know about this?"

"I plan on telling her tonight."

"You mean ask her," the Copy-Nin corrected. "She won't appreciate it if you tell her that you have chosen her to be your life partner."

"She doesn't appreciate being discussed like she's a pet cat."

All men tensed at the dangerous tone of Sakura's voice.

Itachi merely sighed. "Sakura, do you mind being introduced as my chosen partner tonight?"

"Not at all." Just as the others stared in shock of how short and simple their conversation was, Sakura gave Itachi an unimpressed look. "Just so you know, Uchiha Itachi, this isn't a marriage proposal and if you ever do ask me to marry you, it better not be as casual as that was. I want romance and I mean big romance. The sort that will make me weak at the knees and all other women jealous."

"Then you don't accept being his chosen partner?" Sasuke asked with a scowl.

"I accept to being courted."

"What–"

"Itachi, perhaps it would be best to have this conversation in private?" Shisui sighed, making a mental note to give Itachi more advice on relationships. It wasn't his fault, though, and Shisui knew it. He himself had had to go through the same things as Itachi, right down to the part where they were forced to ignore their emotions and eventually forgetting them. However, he'd had someone to make sure he never truly forgot about them and while Itachi had had Shisui, he'd also had to live with Fugaku, who had pushed him hard. He had been brought up to be confident, brutal and straight to the point. None of that beating around the bush nonsense that other males often did. However, that did not mean that Itachi wasn't cryptic, as he was one of the most cryptic bastards Shisui had ever met. That was just part of who he was. "This is something that should be discussed only by the two of you."

Nodding once, Itachi glanced at Sakura. "We will discuss this later."

Shisui resisted the urge to slap his forehead.

"Ask, Itachi." Naruto laughed hard, clutching his stomach. "You need to ask, Sakura-chan. Not tell her."

"Stop picking on him!" Sakura rolled her eyes, noticing a twitch in Itachi's eyebrow that indicated he was getting annoyed. "I like how Itachi is learning about relationships as we go, because I am, too."

That had him relaxing.

"Anyway, what do you all want?" she asked, the unimpressed look returning. "Like Ino said, that was supposed to be private. She needed comforting."

"It's about the situation with Iwa." Kakashi sighed and he almost wished that he could remove his mask, as all of a sudden he felt rather claustrophobic. "There's a possibility of an invasion."

Sakura was silent for a moment, absorbing the news before she was shaking her head with annoyance. "They won't win. Konoha is much more powerful than Iwa, so why are they taking the risk?"

It was Sasuke who answered, his features, eyes and voice equally blank. "Because that's how badly they want me dead."

Team Seven all exchanged glances with one another, their eyebrows furrowing as a heavy feeling weighed down on each one of them. It wasn't until Naruto patted Sakura's shoulder that she realised how emotional she was getting about it and it wasn't until he spoke up that she shifted those emotions into nothing but anger.

"Then they'll have to go through us first," Naruto exclaimed. "You can't kill one member of Team Seven without killing the rest of us! That's not how it works with us."

As Naruto continued with his speech, Shisui sighed and glanced at Itachi. "Is it confusing you as much as it is myself?"

The younger Uchiha nodded once, his features set into a hard, expressionless mask.

"It's like Naruto-kun said, though," Shisui added, following Itachi's eyes. He was watching Sasuke – more like staring at Sasuke's eyes, as though he was trying to work something out. Shisui didn't doubt that he was. His friend had filled him in on the block in Sasuke's eyes. That confused them just as much as Iwa's accusations. "The Tsuchikage will have to go through us to get to him and we have all heard of how weak he is."

Of course he was. The Tsuchikage had let himself go and was now nothing more than an old man with a constant, crippling backache. That was why he rarely ever left Iwa and instead sent people out to do his dirty work. Granted, not many Kage left their village, but the Tsuchikage hadn't left his in at least a decade. "It doesn't matter whether or not he is weak," Itachi murmured, continuing to watch his younger brother interact with the other members of Team Seven. "I will not allow Sasuke to die, no matter what the cost."

The funeral had been painful.

Walking through the rain around the village, he glanced up at the dark sky.

Everybody had been sad (obviously), though that wasn't what had bothered him the most. It had been the three shinobi standing right at the front. Shikamaru hadn't even been able to face the funeral, still utterly broken up about the loss of such an honourable man, of his sensei. Ino and Choji had still gone and the blonde had done her best to comfort the lover of Asuma. The woman had had none of it though. She had simply stared at the picture of Asuma with a heartbreaking expression.

Kurenai.

The feelings he had for her had been somewhat easy to ignore for a while. Not disappearing or fading away, but easy to put aside when Shisui saw how happy she was with Asuma. That man was the love of her life, and who was he to get in the way of that? Or, at least, try to? Shisui inwardly smiled sadly and shook his head. There had been no getting in the way of that relationship, or their love. Even if he was an Uchiha, even if he was a prodigy and had so many things going for him…

He was not Sarutobi Asuma.

As Shisui's eyes dropped from the sky, they fell onto the Hokage Monument. Naruto had been going on about becoming Hokage earlier, saying something along the lines of, "How can I become Hokage, if I can't even save my friend?" when the topic of Iwa wanting Sasuke dead had continued. Shisui had wanted to tell them all that they needn't worry, that he and Itachi wouldn't allow for Sasuke to die, but what right did he have to make such a promise?

The truth was, was that one day, Uchiha Sasuke was going to die. Whether that be while away on a mission, eating poison or drinking it (although Shisui should hope not, as Itachi had been the one to teach him how to detect poison, and Shisui had been the one to teach all of that to Itachi), from a disease or illness, or simply dying from old age. Sasuke would one day die. However, he and Itachi would not allow him to die over something he hadn't even done. In a way, Shisui thought of that kid as his own younger brother – he had watched Sasuke grow from a baby into who he was today.

Only vaguely realising his movements, Shisui walked towards the monument, his gut twisting as he did so.

If Iwa continued with their accusations, then the Uchiha Clan were going to strike back. That was what their previous clan meeting had been about. Fugaku as well as the elders were all outraged over the news, and demanded that it be 'sorted' at once. That could mean a number of things and Shisui was certain that not a single one of them were good. They were trying to prevent the war from actually starting, but if the Tsuchikage continued with his accusations, then there would be no stopping the Uchiha Clan from attacking Iwa and really giving him something to bitch about.

The Uchiha Clan were all about pride and honour. Having one of their members accused of something they hadn't even done, something as serious as this, was extremely offensive to them, especially to the patriarch. He knew his son. In fact, Fugaku's exact words had been, "If Sasuke really did what he has been accused of, it would have been much worse. It would have been something the entire five nations would have heard about. Not something so pathetic and minuscule that we only heard about it due to a mouthy amateur who doesn't know when to shut up."

And it was the truth. If Sasuke had really invaded Iwa and attacked them, it would have been so much bigger. Knowing that kid the way he did, Shisui was willing to bet anything that Sasuke would have invaded silently. He would have made his way to the heart of Iwa and assassinated the Tsuchikage, before then going on to causing chaos throughout the entire village. That was just who Sasuke was. Absolutely brutal and merciless when provoked.

But that was just the point.

Sasuke had not been provoked.

Adding that to the fact that it had been such a small attack… Shisui shook his head and picked up his pace as he made his way up the stairs, his stomach twisting much more fiercely. Sasuke had not been the one to attack Iwa. Something bigger, something much more deadly and serious, was going on. And now they also had Akatsuki to watch out for.

It was like Itachi had said.

No matter what the cost, Sasuke would not die by the hands of Iwa.

But also, Akatsuki would not get their hands on their jinchūriki.

Naruto had to be one of the most cheerful, most grateful people Shisui had ever met. Despite the pain of his past and everything that had been thrown his way, he remained positive. He kind of reminded Shisui of a certain face from his own past. So like Itachi would for Sasuke, Shisui would gladly give his own life to protect Naruto's. The kid had a pure heart and they needed somebody like Naruto to run and take care of Konoha. They may not know it just yet, but Konoha needed Naruto.

That was when Shisui saw what had been calling to him ever since his eyes caught sight of the Hokage Monument. He slowed considerably as his eyes recognised the figure standing right at the edge of the Godaime's head, as he realised exactly why he had been gravitating towards it. "Kurenai-san?"

There was no startled reaction. There wasn't a reaction at all. All Kurenai could do was hug herself even tighter, gritting her teeth together as she attempted to hold back her sobs.

Shisui's heart was in his throat as he carefully and slowly made his way over to her, wary as to not startle her. And eventually, he was standing right beside her, though kept his eyes on the village. What could he possibly say to the woman he had fallen in love with, yet never spoken a word to? She had just lost the man she loved. No words would ever make that better.

"He's gone…" she whispered brokenly. "He's gone."

It was silent for a few moments, but just as Shisui opened his mouth, she spoke again.

"I don't know what to do with myself now. It's like e-everything has been… It's like my entire world has been turned u-upside down…"

Seeing such a proud woman, such a powerful woman, breaking down the way Kurenai currently was, was destroying Shisui on the inside, making him bite the inside of his cheek and clench his fists tightly.

"He told me t-that he'd never leave me… alone in this."

Turning his head to the side, Shisui gave her a saddened look. "Had he been given the choice, I am certain Asuma-san would have chosen to stay with you."

She shook her head quickly, a sob tearing from her. "I-I'm pregnant."

And just like that, all breath left Shisui and his heart began to break. Not because he was jealous, or because he was in pain because of hearing such a thing. No, it was because of Kurenai's agony. He was hurting, because she was hurting.

Without another word, Shisui grabbed her arm and pulled her away from the edge, forcing her to sit down on the grass and once he had, all composure she had seemed to break and Kurenai clung to him tightly, shaking almost violently as she cried. It was hesitantly that Shisui wrapped his arms around her, but after realising that comfort was what the woman currently needed, he held her and allowed her to cry.

He didn't know what she had been planning on doing, whether she would have actually jumped, but Shisui was just so very glad that he had followed his gut instinct that led him to the Hokage monument. Had he not, would the next death he'd hear about, be Kurenai's? Oh Gods, just the thought made Shisui feel sick.

"Kurenai-san," he sighed, pulling back slightly and gazing down at her. "No matter how much pain you are in right now, you can no longer act selfishly. From what little I knew of Asuma-san, I know that he would want you to protect your child with everything you have." His eyes trailed down to her stomach before moving back to hers. "And you can never be alone now, not with the life that is growing inside you. When you are feeling this way, remember that. There is still somebody who needs you, even though they're not born yet. Asuma-san would want you to live for his child."

"Sorry," she whispered, voice cracking as she quickly wiped away her tears. "You probably have something better to do than sit here, listening to my whining and stopping me from…" Kurenai shook her head, unable to say the words they were both thinking. "I'm sorry."

There was silence as Shisui regarded her, his eyes saddening without her noticing when he saw Kurenai's pain, when he saw how deeply she was hurting. It didn't take him long to release her and instead sit beside her, giving the dark haired woman a small, comforting smile. "Not at all."

A/N – Drama, drama, drama...

Somebody asked for a little more angst if it was possible and when I got the review, I was smiling evilly to myself like "oooh just wait for the next chapter". And there's plenty more angst and drama to come!

Instead of posting later today, since I don't know what my plans are for New Year's Eve and I'm wide away now, I decided to update now instead of later. Oh God it's half five in the morning here, hahaha!

Anyways, I hope you all have a happy New Year! :-)