CHAPTER 36
It turned out that Lee wasn't working on his own. When they saw each other on the street one day, he briefly mentioned that TenTen was also 'with them'. Sakura was slightly surprised, since TenTen didn't express as much of a passion for justice as Lee – or Naruto – did. However, she couldn't really push her out at this point and she also trusted that TenTen wouldn't betray Lee. She had known her well enough in her past life to know that she was loyal to her teammates and friends.
Having Lee and TenTen work with her when it came to finding intel against Danzo was partly a relief, mostly because Sakura felt like she could count on someone else. The psychological burden of it was less. However, it brought a different kind of anxiety in regards of Lee. Lee was a just and loyal person, he would never betray her and would probably never do anything unfair. But he was also quite impulsive and not the brightest person Sakura knew. She was a bit scared that he would be found out and investigated by the Yamanakas, and then her and TenTen's involvement in the matter would be discovered. Also, TenTen and Sakura herself were be at risk of being found out and interrogated.
So, Sakura had decided to develop a jutsu that allowed her to repress and seal specific memories. Sakura had learnt quite a bit about fuinjutsu throughout her career as a shinobi, but was not an expert. However, studying a specific area of fuinjutsu was not so hard. Especially since those archives were open to the public in Konoha and there were plenty of them, given how the Uzumaki clan had always aided their village when it came to seals. So, Sakura spent dozens of hours learning about them until she figured out how a memory sealing jutsu could be created.
Sakura was aware that in Konoha there were some shinobi that were better than she was when it came to seals. So, making a jutsu based on seals only would not be safe. However, ever since Tsunade's death, Sakura was probably the best when it came to understanding the chakra flow and the biological functions of the brain. So, she decided to make a jutsu that involved both specialties. She slept an average of three to four hours for almost three weeks, but she finally managed to develop a jutsu that was good enough. It mostly relied on the chakra and hormones within the brain, so she only struggled with the fuinjutsu part.
However, Sakura knew that since the Yamanaka's jutsu was truly outstanding, she needed to make sure that the memories would be properly sealed. And the only way to make that work was to concentrate its effect on particular memories, which would also make the seal less likely to be noticed. Also, she would have to make the person forget about those memories and not just block them from an outside intruder. Therefore, she decided that the memories to be blocked would be about who else was involved in the matter. If someone were to be arrested they would probably be done for anyways. Also, if the others were safe they would still have a chance to do something – against Danzo and whoever was working for him.
When Sakura finished the seal, she set up a 'training session' with Lee and TenTen on the same training ground where she used to meet with Kakashi; the one with almost no vegetation or places for root ANBU to hide. They met at mid-day and trained for a good hour or two to create a solid alibi, and then sat down on the floor forming a circle. Sakura checked her surroundings for any presence before they started.
"So, how are we going to do this?" TenTen asked. "We need to make sure that we're not found out… or else…"
"I thought about that too." Sakura answered. "It took some time, but I managed to develop a sealing technique that allows for certain memories to be blocked."
"Really?" Lee's eyebrows shot up in glee and TenTen beamed. "That would be good in case we're compromised. They wouldn't have any proof that we were involved in something bad."
"It's not that easy." Sakura shook her head and briefly explained how the jutsu worked and its limitations. Lee and TenTen's bright expressions became less ecstatic, but they still seemed to be more at ease with having the jutsu.
"I guess it's better for only one of us to be found." TenTen admitted. "Besides, if that were to happen we would still have a chance to bring Danzo down and save whoever gets captured… Not that I even want to think about that scenario."
"Yes! It will definitely help us feel more at ease. However, I don't think that bad things happen to good people. The power of youth will guide us!" Lee beamed.
"Lee! The world is not a bright place." TenTen frowned. "Bad things happen mostly to good people."
"I agree." Sakura nodded. "We need to keep our guard up."
"So, how does this jutsu work, Sakura-chan?"
"I will make a small seal on your left wrist, right under your forearm protector. It'll be hidden from view and, even if your hands are tied, you'll be able to unseal it." Sakura pointed as the mentioned spot on herself. "It will be linked to your blood, so you'll have to draw blood from a finger before unleashing it. The seal will also be linked to your chakra system so as time passes its effect will fade, since the amount of chakra in your body will change. I could've made a stronger and longer lasting seal, but it would've been bigger and easier to notice. However, it will last for at least six months, so it'll be enough."
"No problem." TenTen nodded in agreement.
"Yosh! Let's do it now." Lee beamed.
Sakura nodded and took out a small bottle of ink. She drew the seal on everyone's wrists, including her own. It was a fairly complex seal, but she managed to make it small enough; it was slightly bigger than a grape. After a good twenty minutes, she was finished with all three seals and they got down to business.
"So, how did you guys get into this whole thing?" Sakura asked.
"Well, as you know TenTen and I are orphans from civilian families." Lee explained. "We both live in a part of the village that has never been well off. However, ever since Danzo became Hokage, things started becoming more complicated."
"How so?" Sakura asked.
"Tch. That bastard decided that people who weren't part of the middle class were not model citizens. So he started cutting off many services. For example, since we almost pay no taxes – and can't afford more of them – we now have more limited access to health and retirement funds. We have to pay for what the funds don't cover/pay for and, as you can imagine, it's really hard to do it."
"What?" Sakura's eyes widened. "But, how come no one's said anything?"
"Well, some people are against it." Lee admitted. "But they are afraid of making trouble when the Akatsuki is such a theat. They believe that a stable situation in the village is more important."
"Not just that. But he has also given some of us access to better jobs. However, there's a bunch of requirements. For example, it's needed that people get an education – which I understand is necessary – but while people are getting specialized, they don't get an income. You understand that when you have barely enough to eat and pay for basic bills, there's no such thing as savings. Therefore, almost no one has gotten the chance to actually study."
"That's horrible…" Sakura frowned. "You guys are still living there when you have a better income since being chunin?"
"TenTen and I were allowed to have a loan that is given to shinobi. It allowed us to make it through while being genin, but now we have to pay a big part of our earnings."
"And it's not just about us. We're shinobi, so we were allowed to work from a young age. Plus, we're only one person per house… so it hasn't been that bad. But civilian families struggle every day." TenTen sighed. "I know that one day we'll both get outta there. But the rest of them will not. For example, my neighbors – people who have helped me for years – will probably never get the chance."
"Yeah. We were both really upset about the situation… Danzo simply disregarded our needs."
"So, Lee came to me one day and said we had to do something about it." TenTen smirked. "And, since we are some of the only shinobi living in that area, we decided to do it."
"What about you, Sakura-chan?"
"My family has always done well enough. We're not rich at all, but we're definitely middle class." Sakura said. "My reasons are mostly because I don't like his leadership. He stands out as an authoritarian and a despot to me. I don't like the way he treats us shinobi. Also, have you taken a good look at root ANBU? They're like machines."
"Yes! We noticed too. There's something off about them…" Lee frowned.
"So, I decided to do something on my own." Sakura finished.
"But what about Sasuke?" TenTen asked. "He's your teammate and Danzo's apprentice. Does he know about this?"
"No… he doesn't." Sakura sighed. "I don't want to put him in a difficult situation. He can't just decide to stop being trained by Danzo. It would raise suspicion and also, Danzo practically forced Sasuke to train with him so…"
"Ah. I understand." Lee nodded.
"What about Neji?" Sakura asked and saw Lee frown.
"He's not in on this either." He said in a lower voice than usual. "The Hyuugas are very strict and they would never allow someone from their clan to act on their own like that. Much less someone from the branch house."
"Not just that. We would also be putting Neji in a difficult situation." TenTen sighed. "Because the Clans are all mixed up in this issue."
"I had suspected that." Sakura bit her lip and wondered why they'd never been taught about any of that in the academy. From the frown in the other guys' faces they were probably wondering the same. "From what I've learned, the clans from our village have historically had a struggling relationship with the council."
"Yes, we also found intel about that. The clans have always struggled for more power within villages. Of course, no village wants to lose their clans – it would make them so much weaker – so there's always a conflict of interests between the council and them. It seems that, ever since Danzo became Hokage, the clans have gained a bigger influence for some reason."
"Why do you say that?" Sakura asked. "You have any proof?"
"Well… it's not exactly proof, but to us it's enough to know that something is up." Lee said.
"Neji has told us that Hirashi-sama has been having lots of meetings with Danzo and the rest of the leaders." Tenten explained. "Also, we've seen that a lot of infrastructure has been built around their districts. So, I don't think their meetings have anything to with problems amongst them. If anything, they're meeting to decide who's getting the bigger part out of Konoha's budget."
"Yeah. We don't know why they have a rise in influence now though." Lee crossed his arms in thought.
"At first we thought that Danzo was buying them off so that they wouldn't speak up against how he's handling Konoha." Tenten mentioned. "But I don't think that reason it good enough. Danzo hasn't openly done anything against our village; he just has a different political perspective than the Third did. He also hasn't done anything rash, so most people in the village agree with him. I don't think the clans would openly oppose him, so we don't know where this influence comes from. Danzo doesn't seem like a soft leader at all."
"Hm. I have a guess." Sakura tapped her chin as her mind work up the theory on the spot. "The head of the clans have always been notified – sometimes asked for advice – when it came to important issues that involve the village. So, I assume that they may know something about Danzo and the council. Now that Danzo is Hokage, there is no third party anymore since Danzo was part of the council just before stepping into office. Maybe when Hiruzen Sarutobi was still Hokage, he was capable of keeping a balance between the three groups. But now, Danzo could be assumed as part of the council – which the clans seem to know a lot about – so the struggle has become less balanced. The clans have gained the upper hand in this."
"But that doesn't make any sense." Lee asked. "The clans have always been a part of our village and they certainly would speak up if there was something corrupt going on."
"Ah… I think the answer to that is simple and we've already read about it in the history books we've come across." Sakura tightened her hands into fists, not wanting to believe the conclusion she'd come to.
"The clans will always put their own interests before the villages' interests." TenTen spoke slowly.
"In other words, the clans might be even more corrupt than the council. Which would make this whole thing so much harder."
The three of them decided on which subjects each of them would be investigating and then parted ways. Sakura left with a heavy feeling in her gut as she walked back to the village on her own – as to not be seen with TenTen or Lee by another person.
Sakura had always thought that only Konoha's council was corrupt. And that much was true. However, she'd never imagined that things went much deeper than that. Sakura wondered for a moment how deeply corrupt her village was. The village that she'd always been proud of and the one she'd relentlessly defended throughout her life.
However, when the notion of a corrupt village was clear in her head, things started making sense to her. Things that she'd never questioned. Things that had always seemed obvious and not ill-intended before. Now that she wasn't blinded by her trust in the leaders of her village, she began to understand and make connections.
The Uchiha Clan's coup, which was planned because their privileges as a clan had been taken away and they wanted them back no matter what. The massacre – which was now obviously the only way to truly end the problem – and how even Sarutobi had agreed to it in the end. How no other clan had spoken up about the subject, even when they must've at the very least known about the tension rising. How the Clans had always seemed to have a preferential treatment in the village. The way they had always managed to influence the public policies of the village.
Sakura had always thought that Konoha was different from other places. Different from other shinobi villages. She'd always imagined Konoha to be a model village, who cared about its people and cared about people in other nations as well. Sakura had fought with claws and teeth to protect her village and had flawlessly completed her missions. She'd always trusted that the orders and decisions that came from above were in the best interest of everyone and well-intended.
Sakura was afraid to think that she'd been wrong all along. That her loyalties might have been ill placed and that she'd been contradicting her code of ethics all this time. The memory of Kabuto's mocking words sent a chill down her spine.
"You think you know everything about Konoha?"
It appeared that she didn't. But she would find out. No matter what, Sakura would clear the questions about Konoha. And she would make sure to take Kabuto and Danzo out. However, she didn't even want to think about what course of action she would take afterwards. What could she even do if she found out that things were the way she feared? That the roots of corruption went much deeper than she'd initially thought?
-x-
After so much time of not believing that Sasuke could return her feelings, Sakura had opened a tiny window of hope. However, she soon decided to not act upon it on impulse. If what her father had said was true and Sasuke had some interest in her, then it wouldn't disappear overnight. Also, if Kizashi was only imagining things and Sasuke only saw her as a good friend, then she didn't want to ruin it by taking that first step. Sakura knew that it was a bit cowardly of herself, but Sasuke's presence in her life was important. With all that she was facing, she couldn't imagine how she'd feel if he were to step away from her. So, she took a safe course and decided to wait.
Ever since lunch at her place a couple weeks back, Sakura had met with Sasuke a dozen times. They would eat and train as usual. Small talk would take place and they would relax in each other's presence. Sakura had decided to act as she always had, but she was now more aware of how he acted around her. She felt the need to make sure that her hopes were based on a real thing.
Sasuke had become a person that had good control over himself – except when it came to certain matters like his family's death or Itachi's betrayal. He wouldn't usually let his feelings or thoughts show unless he wanted others to know. So, Sakura had to be extra observant in order to notice if there was something different about him. However, she also couldn't be too obvious, because Sasuke was an extremely observant person too. Fortunately, it appeared that her choice of balance between observing and acting nonchalant had been on point.
Despite being laid back and casual as always, Sakura had noticed a few things. Sasuke sometimes looked at her longer than she would've expected him to… but only for a second or two. Whenever Sasuke helped her up during training, his hand would linger on her skin for a fraction of a second longer. Sadly, this was not enough to prove anything, but at least it kept her suspicions intact.
On the other hand, Sakura decided to compare the way he behaved around her and around other people. Sasuke was definitely nicer to her than he was to anybody else. First of all, he seemed to respect her a great deal. It was a realization that made her almost cry, because she'd been so used to being looked down upon by him in her past life. When Sakura looked back at the day Sasuke confronted her about what she was hiding from him, she realized that Sasuke would've demanded to know what was going on if it had been anyone else. Secondly, he was more thoughtful with her than with others and he walked her home when he had the chance. But then again, all of that could also mean that she was his only female friend. Men were known for treating their male friends more rudely, and she had seen plenty of that in Naruto's and Sasuke's friendship. So, maybe those differences were in regards to her gender – alongside their friendship – and not something else.
After taking all of this into account, Sakura decided that she didn't really care at that point. Knowing that Sasuke cared for her that much – even if it was in a platonic way – was more than enough. Knowing that he treated her with so much respect and thoughtfulness was more than she had ever dreamed when she travelled back in time. If Sasuke never looked at her in a different way, she would be disappointed and would have a hard time getting over him, but she would never regret the friendship they'd built.
Nonetheless, Sakura wasn't going to back down and hide in a corner or anything. So, after a while, she'd decided to invite him over for dinner. When he agreed, she'd told him that she was going to cook something for the both of them and that he better not be late – trying to loosen up the tension that might arise. At the time, Sasuke had simply raised an eyebrow but ended up agreeing anyways.
So, when the day came, Sakura had everything thought out. She had decided to cook something different, a dish she had never prepared before. It was tempura-tomato covered chicken breasts. She'd made some dishes covered with tomatoes before. She'd also made tempura before. But she'd never tried to do something in between. When she saw the recipe, she immediately knew that Sasuke was going to love it and decided to go for it. It seemed pretty hard and above Sakura's usual cooing skills, but if she followed the recipe step-by-step she would definitely get it. Right?
Somehow, mixing tomatoes with tempura was so much harder than she'd thought. Actually, if Sakura had thought about it even a bit she would've realized that getting the texture right was incredibly hard. Tempura only worked when it stuck to the food and in order for that to happen it had to be quite stiff. However, tomatoes were pretty liquid-like and, on top of that, a bit acidic. So, the mixture was never right even after the fifth attempt.
"Damn it!" Sakura hissed and slammed her palms on the counter. Her temper was getting the better of her once again. "I should've gone with something traditional!"
Sakura tried once more, and this time she slowly – slowly – added the tomatoes to the tempura sauce until it seemed right. She carefully – carefully – dipped the chicken breasts on it once again and… another failure. It didn't look quite as bad as the previous ones, but it was far from what it needed to be. The moment she put it in the pan to fry it, it would all fall apart. Sakura mindlessly looked at the clock.
"What!?" she gasped when she realized that Sasuke was going to be there in just ten minutes. "Agh… ok let's just improvise."
Sakura added flour to the mixture in order for it to be less liquid and then some more eggs. When she realized that the texture seemed to hold up, she dipped the meat in it and the fried it. However, she didn't count on one tiny little problem. Now that the covering was ticker and more solid than it should've, it was taking longer to cook. And the outside was going to burn anytime. However, if she took it out now, there was a chance that the meat on the inside wouldn't finish cooking.
"Why did I even choose a dish like this one?!" Sakura groaned and passed a hand through her hair in dismay. "Fuck me for being too ambitious."
RRRIIIING
Sakura froze in her spot when she realized that Sasuke was already there. In theory, dinner was ready. The rice was cooked and so was the chicken. However, Sakura honestly doubted that it would be edible. It was slightly burnt on the outside and she feared that it would be raw in the middle. She shook her head, took her apron off and then rushed to the door.
"Hey!" she greeted when she saw Sasuke standing at the door with his regular laidback posture. "You're on time."
"Obviously." Sasuke rolled his eyes. He was never late.
"Oh. Come in."
Sakura allowed him to enter and noticed that, for once, he wasn't wearing his ninja attire. Ok, he was still wearing ninja sandals and pants, but he was wearing a plain dark blue sweater. She watched as Sasuke took off his shoes and neatly set them next to the wall. He followed her into the living room and, when he looked at her, Sakura shifted nervously.
"What?" he asked simply.
"I-um…" Sakura frowned. "I think I may not have anything cooked."
"You think?" Sasuke lifted an eyebrow and Sakura nodded. Sasuke walked closer to Sakura and moved a hand to the side of her head. Sakura felt a tingling sensation where his hand brushed her shoulder and scalp, but forced herself to remain in control. She noticed that Sasuke lifted a long strand of pink hair and looked at it pointedly. "If you didn't cook, what is this?"
"Damn." Sakura realized that there was a fairly large portion of tempura mix in her hair. She quickly walked into the kitchen and stole a look at herself in the magnetic mirror that was on the fridge. She realized that her hair was a mess – how many times had she even moved it aside while cooking? – and that there were many spots of mixture on it. Sasuke appeared behind her in the mirror and there was an amused look on his face. Sakura felt a blush appear on her cheeks and pointed at him. "Shut up. Just… help me get this out of my hair."
Sasuke chuckled but complied nonetheless. He turned on the tap and used water to get the mixture out of her pink locks. Sakura was once again surprised at how gentle and patient this Sasuke was when she compared him to the one she'd known in her past life. After a couple minutes, he was finished and Sakura was covered in goose bumps all over. She inwardly shook her head to dismiss the feelings his fingers on her hair had evoked and decided to think of what to say. Well, it appeared that saying she hadn't cooked anything was not going to work. So, she went with the truth.
"I might've tried to do something different… but it didn't turn out too well." Sakura admitted.
"Where?" Sasuke simply asked.
Sakura gestured towards where the food was placed and Sasuke walked towards it. "It was supposed to be rice with a serving of tempura-tomato covered chicken breasts. I also made a special rosemary-cream sauce and a dessert… but it's all gone to waste. Look at that. It's burnt and I could swear that it's raw on the inside, so there's no way we-"
"Let's try it."
"- could eat it – wait what?" Sakura raised her eyebrows at the raven haired man.
"We don't want to throw it away just because it might be bad." Sasuke said and started serving the food on his own, without even asking. Sakura was surprised to find that Sasuke already knew where everything was kept in her kitchen, but it did make sense considering that he'd been over many times and she would expect him to offer some help every time.
Sakura stood there in an almost dumb founded way while Sasuke served the hopefully edible meal on plates and set them on the table. He hadn't even waited for her answer. Sakura didn't know if she was supposed to feel grateful or taunted, but she ended up choosing to feel grateful that he was trusting in the horrible looking food she'd made. She decided to simply follow him and sit down on the other side of the table.
Despite knowing that the food wouldn't taste too good, Sakura was glad that Sasuke was being thoughtful of her. She smiled and she took a bite of her food at the same time as Sasuke did. She bit down on it a couple times and felt her stomach drop. The chicken was raw and the outside was burnt as she'd expected… spoiling the whole flavor. She didn't want either of them to be sick after eating, but she didn't want Sasuke to feel uncomfortable if she-
Sakura stopped thinking when she noticed Sasuke spiting the raw chicken he'd been chewing into a paper napkin. He took a big gulp of tea and then looked up at her with a poker face.
"We can't eat this."
…And so much for being respectful and thoughtful. She should've known that Sasuke would never lie for the sake of something as petty as making an impression. Then again, he could've said something worse like 'This is horrible' or 'It's disgusting'. But at the same time, Sakura was honestly glad that he'd been truthful because she needed to desperately get rid of the food in her mouth. She copied his actions and then gulped down her own tea.
"If you wanted me out of the way, food poisoning was probably not the best choice." Sasuke teased a small smirk on his face.
"Hey!" Sakura frowned. "I warned you it was bad."
"I know." Sasuke chuckled. "For once, you were right."
"For once? I always am." Sakura snorted, but she then sighed in defeat. "I'm sorry. I tried really hard."
"Don't be." Sasuke shrugged. "It's not your job or anything."
"I know… but still." Sakura sighed.
"Let's clean up and eat something at Ichiraku's." Sasuke motioned to the dirty dishes on the counter and they proceeded to wash them.
Ten minutes later, they were walking down the street and towards the classic ramen stand. They maintained light conversation as they did and, since Sakura's house was pretty centrically located, they got there in no time. They entered the small place and immediately noticed the presence of two other shinobi. Sasuke groaned next to Sakura and she had to stifle a laugh at his reaction.
"Sakura!" Anko's loud voice greeted as her hand waved dramatically, Kakashi sitting right next to her. "It's been forever since I last saw you!"
Sakura knew that Sasuke didn't want to greet the jounin, but she wasn't going to be rude. Apart from that, she hadn't seen Anko ever since she came back from her long-term mission to Suna.
"Hey. Anko, Kakashi." She nodded in greeting, with Sasuke following her with a slightly annoyed expression. "How are you doing?"
"Yo." Kakashi greeted, his voice laced with boredom as usual, as Sakura sat down next to his female companion.
"Yo, Sasuke. Don't be shy and take a seat, will ya?" Anko called with a smirk. The raven haired man sighed and reluctantly sat down next to Sakura.
"What's up, Anko?" Sakura smiled.
"Oh. Not much. We just decided to eat out this time, you know? Break the routine and all."
"Oh?" Sakura eyed Kakashi mischievously and smirked, wanting to tease him a bit. "Break the routine you say?"
"Well, yes." Anko smirked back. She obviously knew how shy Kakashi was when it came to personal matters. "You know, routine. Eating, fucking, eating, fucking. It was getting boring. So we switched up the setting a bit."
Sakura laughed openly at her older friend's joke – somehow she had seemed to only become more shameless in the two years that had past. "I can imagine. What about the other part though?"
"Oh, I don't know. Some bush on the way home might do the trick." Anko laughed loudly and slammed her hand on the counter. By then Kakashi was intently looking away from the two females and Sakura could practically hear his thoughts of god-please-kill-me-now. "So, Sakura. What about you?"
"Oh, well. We had a mishap with dinner so we had to eat out. Again." Sakura smiled sheepishly.
"A mishap?" Anko raised an eyebrow and looked at Sasuke, who had been ignoring her since he sat down. "Yo, Uchiha. What is this mishap about? Don't tell me you fucked dinner up."
"Not exactly." Sasuke smirked and looked at Sakura. "She did."
"What? Sakura?" Anko slapped her forehead. "How could you be so careless?"
"Huh?" Sakura frowned, knowing that Anko wasn't fond of cooking herself and thus not understanding what she meant.
"Well, the bedroom is too far now, of course!" she smirked. "Unless some bushes are good enough for you too."
"Well…" Sakura wanted to say something back but Anko interrupted her.
"I wonder is Sasuke has got any skills in that department though."
"He should." Kakashi spoke, clearly wanting to stop being the subject of the conversation. "I've been thoughtful enough to provide him with informative literature."
"Ah! Sasuke, I assume you've read those, huh?" Anko smirked. "You need to listen to your sensei's advice, you know?"
Sasuke continued to ignore the teasing and simply ate his ramen in a composed manner. Sakura wondered how on earth he could simply ignore those kinds of questions. She decided that things were getting a bit awkward and spoke up. "Ahh… it's not really like that." Sakura smiled and prayed that they would to drop the teasing.
"Whatever you say, sweet cheeks." Anko smirked and Sakura inwardly sighed in relief. She knew that Anko wouldn't say anything else in Sasuke's presence for now … but that didn't mean that she would be safe from teasing when alone with the older woman. "So, how have you been doing, Sakura?"
"As usual. Hospital work and training." Sakura shrugged. "Ever since I got back I've done a couple missions, but they have both been B-rank so it wasn't too thrilling. They were even inside the village so I didn't even get a change of scenery."
"Ah. Same old story of the over-qualified chunin." Anko shrugged. "Don't worry. You'll get to jonin when you hit the minimum required experience and will be able to polish your skills while on missions too."
"You two are definitely missing out on the good stuff." Kakashi pointed out as he finished his own meal. "It's a shame that you're both still chunin. You would be able to get much more interesting missions if you were jonin."
Sakura knew what Kakashi was talking about. Since she was still a chunin, most mission didn't allow her much freedom. Therefore, her chances of getting to Obito were truly slim. Sakura sighed and passed her hand through her hair before noticing that both jonin were done with their dinner.
"Well. We'll leave you now." Anko said. "We got stuff to-"
Kakashi promptly pulled the woman away from them with an exasperated expression. However, before he walked away, he looked back and locked eyes with Sakura. She knew exactly what he was silently asking. What is going on with Sasuke?
Sakura sharply turned her head around, knowing that she didn't have an excuse. She had promised that she would keep Sasuke at a distance. Kakashi was right when he said that Sasuke could find out about their intentions if allowed closer. That is if anything went wrong, things could turn out to be even more difficult if he was emotionally involved.
But Sakura honestly couldn't do it. She either pushed him away – which would probably be a bad choice – or she allowed things to happen. Sakura couldn't imagine how she could even keep him at a distance. She didn't know how to do that – she never was someone who could control how her emotions developed – and she also doubted she would be able to hide her intentions from him at this point. He had proven to know her better than she had expected.
"Kyaaaaaa!" a louch screech interrupted Sakura from her reverie and her almost finished dinner. She turned her head to look behind her and saw… fangirls. "Sasuke-kuuuun!"
Sakura was aware that those girls were no older than fourteen and that they were just that; girls. But still, Sakura winced. Had she really acted that way before? It was honestly… kind of sad. She hadn't seen this many fangirls together in a long time. Most of the time she would see one or two of them looking at Sasuke and almost drooling. But now there were almost ten girls and they didn't seem to plan on just looking this time.
Sakura stole a glance at Sasuke and noticed that he had clenched his jaw and tightened his fists in annoyance. A low growl emitted from his throat as the group of girls approached them – him – at a quick pace. Sasuke was instantly surrounded by them and they started asking him out repeatedly. Sasuke was clearly not happy about their presence, but they didn't seem to notice. Or care. Did they even care?
"Leave." Sasuke gritted his teeth.
"Sasuke-kun, you should give me a chance!"
"No, I'm better than all of them combined!"
"Sasuke-kun, drop that average-looking girl and choose me!"
"Sasuke-kun!"
"Sasuke-kun!"
"Enough!" Sakura yelled above all their voices and stood up rather harshly. "Don't you see that he doesn't even like what you're doing? You won't get anything out of this!"
"So that's how it is, huh?"
"You're part of the competition too, huh?"
"Oh my god, are you two on a date?"
"Sasuke-kun, tell me that's a lie!"
"That can't be true! Sasuke-kun!"
Sasuke violently stood up, with his hair shadowing his features. Teuchi looked at him sympathetically as the young Uchiha slammed some money on the counter. Sasuke took a hold of Sakura's wrist and pulled her away from the table. He looked back at the gaping fangirls with a scowl.
"Don't follow me." He barked before stomping away, pulling Sakura along with him.
Sakura looked back at the baffled fangirls with a bit of sympathy – she'd been there before – and then looked at the back of Sasuke's head. She could only imagine what kind of face he was making and wanted to stop him so she could see. But she knew better than to stop so close to the fangirls so she allowed him to pull her further away. So, distracted with her thoughts, Sakura never noticed when his grip slipped down to grab her hand. Neither said a word for a couple of minutes, until Sasuke stopped at a local park and let go of Sakura's hand. He leaned on a railing and didn't turn around for a few moments. Sakura supported herself beside him and then noticed that his posture seemed… defeated. She finally decided to move closer to him and put a hand on his shoulder.
"Hey." She spoke softly. "Are you all right?"
"… yeah." Sasuke turned his head away from her, but she managed to see his expression clearly.
"Really? You don't look just annoyed to me, Sasuke. You seem… pretty afflicted." She explained. "What's wrong?"
"Ah." Sasuke nodded. "I can't stand them."
"Fangirls?" she asked and he nodded again. "Why?"
"They're so… infuriating."
"It's not just that, is it?" Sakura asked, expertly reading Sasuke's face. He wasn't an open book by any standards, but she knew him well enough to be able to tell when something affected him.
"Aa." Sasuke stayed quiet for a moment and Sakura waited for him to continue. "… they sometimes remind me of my father."
"Your… father?" Sakura didn't expect that.
"He always saw his children as some sort of accomplishment." Sasuke snorted. "He never really saw… us. He only cared about our abilities, our grades, our manners, our behavior. It was so… frustrating. It was as if we were some sort of trophy instead of an actual family."
"Ah… I understand." Sakura connected the dots. "And fangirls only follow you around because of what you appear to be to them."
"Aa."
"And they keep on competing with each other to get your attention." Sakura thought aloud. "They just see you as a trophy… or…"
"A fucking piece of meat." Sasuke finished. "And on top of that, they're so annoying. It really makes me lose my cool."
"Ah… well." Sakura frowned and tried to suppress the guilt that crept into her mind. No wonder that Sasuke couldn't sand her when they first became a team in her past life. "They're just girls, right? They still have to mature, you know?"
"They're almost your age, Sakura." Sasuke raised an eyebrow.
"Ah… well." Sakura bit her lip. "I don't know. But I'm sure they'll come around."
"Hopefully. They're so… suffocating." Sasuke seemed in thought for a moment and then locked eyes with Sakura. He carefully inspected her and finally seemed to come to a conclusion. "I remember that the only girl in the academy who never was a fangirl was Hinata."
Oh god, not that.
"That means you were a fangirl once, Sakura." Sasuke finished with a mocking smirk.
"You must be imagining things."
"I don't think I am."
"I was eleven. I had no idea what I was doing!" Sakura defended herself, but a blush still appeared on her cheeks.
"Tell me, what was it that you adored the most?" Sasuke teased her, his previous irritation now completely gone.
"I just followed the other girls around!"
"Was it my looks?" Sasuke smirked. "Or maybe my name? My skills?"
"Oh, please." Sakura snorted, not wanting to admit that it was all true. "It was just what everybody did."
"Aa." Sasuke's smirk widened, realizing that she was lying. Sakura should've known that he would see through that.
"It was just a silly crush, I was a kid!" Sakura felt her cheeks hotter and hotter. She must've looked like a goddamn tomato at that point.
"A crush, huh?" Sasuke raised an eyebrow as he looked down at her – the difference of stature being more noticeable now that they were standing next to each other.
Sakura realized her mistake and bit her lip. She decided to change the course of the conversation before things became more difficult for her. "I… I used to be a fangirl, just like almost every girl in the class. I stopped afterwards, so I'm pretty sure that the other fangirls will come around too."
"Why?"
"What?"
"Why did you stop?" Sasuke asked, now with honest curiosity in his eyes. Sakura felt her heartbeat accelerate in her chest at the question. Was it simply curiosity, or something more?
"I… I realized it was stupid to follow around someone I didn't even know."
"It was." Sasuke agreed and his eyes bored into her own. Sakura didn't know what to think for a moment, but was praying that her blush had disappeared by then.
"Well, even if the fangirls were to get to know you, they would stop following you around." Sakura huffed. "They would get to see how much of an arrogant… person you really are."
"Couldn't think of anything more, could you?" Sasuke smirked, noticing that she had not come up with any other insults.
"Shut up." Sakura smiled and hit him on the arm. The two stayed there, leaning on the railing, for another moment of silence. As if there was some silent agreement between them, they quietly started walking back to the village.
Sakura realized now why Sasuke had disliked her so much when they first became a team. Before becoming a part of Sasuke's team, Sakura had been just like those fangirls. She had followed Sasuke around because he was handsome, skilled, smart, cool, and the heir of a clan. She hadn't known him at all. It was no wonder that Sasuke had constantly felt annoyed by her attempts to ask him out. Not only had Sasuke been twelve or thirteen and probably had had no interest in girls at all, but he had probably perceived her attraction as something vain and shallow. He wouldn't have been far from the truth if that was the case, to be honest.
"I'm sorry." Sakura said softly as she stared at her feed. "For being like that when I was younger. I never really noticed anything apart from myself."
Sasuke shrugged. "It wasn't that bad. At least you weren't like that while being my teammate."
"Yeah." Sakura felt like slapping herself. However…"I still would've stopped."
Sasuke raised an eyebrow, silently questioning her.
"Remember what I said. If any of those girls gets to know you, they will stop being fans."
Sasuke rolled his eyes quietly and Sakura felt her lips form a smile at that. He obviously didn't know what she meant. But she knew.
It was only now that she was older that Sakura realized how much of a brat she'd been. At first she had claimed to like Sasuke when it had been only a vain thing that she had done to compete with the rest of the girls in her class. Then she had claimed to like Sasuke when she developed a crush on him while being his teammate. She had claimed to love him the night he left, when she had simply liked him. She had claimed to love him when she met him years after, when it had honestly been more of an obsession at the time and the remnants of something of the past. Yes, she had felt something for him all along, but it had never really been love.
However, now that she knew the real Sasuke and had a deeper understanding of who he really was. Now that they had shared so many things and were so close to each other. Now that they relied on one another and had been good friends for years. Now that Sakura truly trusted him to be there for her. Now that Sakura could clearly see that this was truly love, she couldn't bring herself to openly say it. Not to Sasuke, not to anyone else. If was a bit ironic, actually.
All in all, now that Sakura had really gotten to know Sasuke, she had found that the love she'd previously claimed to feel had only been a cheap imitation. And she could honestly imagine that happening to other people as well.
If any of those fangirls were to get to know you like I do, they would undoubtedly fall in love with you too.
A/N: OK. This took a bit longer but it's already up! I was on vacation with my family this week and got to relax on the beach – as much as that can happen when looking after a toddler LOL.
Anyways, there were two parts in this chapter. The first one was about Lee, TenTen and the issues that involve the clans. Do you have any ideas on where I plan to take this? You might as well do. I have many things planned, but this particular issue is not set on stone, so I'm open to suggestions!
The second part was the Sasusaku moments. I've wanted to portray Sasuke's feelings on fangirls for some time. He's more emotional than he wants people to believe… and I always thought that having girls looking at him like that would've affected him at least a bit. There was also some fluff and funny moments between him and Sakura. Did you like it? I really enjoyed writing the fluff.
All in all, I'd love to hear what you have to say about this chapter!
Thank you all for reading and reviewing! You support really means a lot!
Also, thanks to my beta-reader Monochrome Ace.