[AN: Again, apologies for the delay on this next chapter! I was hoping to get it out last week before heading off on a late-summer vacation, but unfortunately it didn't quite happen for me. This was one of the more interesting chapters to write, so I'm hoping it also makes for satisfactory reading (and that I haven't upset anyone with the course of how this is playing out too much...). I've really appreciated all of the feedback on the last couple of chapters - thank you for the input and support! As usual, this content is rated M, and I do not own Naruto.

Finally, I'm going to leave you with a question... I still have a ways to go with Secrets, but I'd be interested in hearing what sort of story you'd like to see from me next. I've got quite a bit on the back burner, mostly SasuSaku and ItaSaku, with one MinaSaku I'm not quite sure about yet. SasuSaku: (1) a non-mass mission-based tale that's a mix of action and humor, (2) a real-world Crazy Rich Asians-inspired romp that's quite light and fluffy, (3) a darker AU where Danzo became Godaime after Minato's death, and (4) a sequel to a rather silly, somewhat angsty little story I wrote this past spring, "Good Vibrations." ItaSaku: (1) a non-mass shinobi mentorship story that's a mixture of humor and angst and (2) a real-world corporate world AU. If you have any thoughts, I welcome the input!]

Chapter 35: The Aftermath

For a time, Sakura was struck by the distinct impression that she was floating, or perhaps flying, through a silent, pitch-black world, the darkness around her so all-encompassing that she was unable to see her own hand when held inches from her face. Her mind was a jumble of memories - a sun-baked battlefield, searing pain, a red-haired man with violet eyes, the sound of a familiar voice crying out to her in agony - but making sense of each of those individual moments and fitting them into a larger picture was proving to be a tall order. What had happened to her?

Focusing hard, a narrative gradually began to form out of the darkness. Naruto had been captured by Sasuke and Itachi. Team Kakashi had been deployed on a recovery mission. Konoha had fallen victim to a surprise attack before they'd had a chance to set out. She and Kakashi had been up against a member of the Akatsuki. A Rinnegan wielder.

Hm… perhaps she'd been placed under some sort of genjutsu? Or transferred away into some alternate dimension? Kakashi's Sharingan allowed him to transport targets into another plane via a technique known as Kamui. Perhaps the Rinnegan could also grant one such an ability? The Uchiha clan tome had an extremely limited discussion of the Rinnegan, and, as a medic with a developing expertise in dojutsu, Sakura was certainly interested to learn more about their new adversary's eyes. For now, however, the question of how she'd gotten wherever she was and what that might reveal about the Rinnegan's powers came second to another, far more pressing concern: How would she escape? Was she destined to float through this seemingly unending darkness forever?

The thought was troubling, to borrow a phrase from Shikamaru. Fortunately for her fraying nerves, a pinprick of light at the farthest reaches of the horizon suddenly caught her attention, cutting through the inky blackness. Eyes fixating on the mark, Sakura immediately charted a course towards the flame, her relief at having something to guide her, some sort of direction, growing with every footstep forward.

That was, until she realized what exactly the light was coming from. A campfire. It appeared that she was less alone than she'd thought. The kuniochi squinted towards the light in a futile effort to discern more of the scene up ahead. Would whomever had lit the fire be friend or foe? Given that she believed herself locked in a dimension associated with a member of the Akatsuki, it seemed likely that the answer might very well be the latter.

But there was no reason to be nervous, Sakura reminded herself, trying to will away the growing nerves through one of the stress-reducing breathing exercises she'd learned during her Academy days. She was Senju Tsunade's apprentice, a fully trained kunoichi. For Kami's sake, she could defend herself. Even if it was dark… and she hadn't a clue of where she was… and her chakra levels were depleted… and her weapons pouch and emergency kunai had both mysteriously vanished. Fuck!

Adrenaline coursing through her veins, Sakura silenced her footsteps and completely suppressed what remained of her chakra signature. Unarmed and exhausted, one-on-one combat could prove a tall order, but a strange compulsion drew her onward nonetheless, towards the flickering light. After all, she did still had her fists. She was no Rock Lee, but her taijutsu wasn't half bad these days, even unenhanced. And she couldn't deny that she had a lot of other options of where to go. For, now that she was closer to the blaze, she could make out her surroundings, and they didn't offer a lot of possibilities. Gnarled, old trees; long grasses; cold, damp mist that clung to her skin… lovely.

Far more importantly than her surroundings, however, Sakura now had a sightline on what (or rather who) she would be up against. He or she was seated on the ground and appeared to be alone. That was definitely a good sign, although it was always possible that other assailants could be lurking somewhere in the darkness. The individual's back was to her, so she couldn't get a glimpse of his or her face, but the height of the torso and the broadness of the frame both suggested that her companion was a man. A physically powerful man who would be a formidable foe if he were in fact a shinobi. His chakra signature was indistinct - probably suppressed like her own - but there was a certain familiarity to his barrel-chested shape and the outline of his spiky hair that she couldn't quite place.

Creeping closer, Sakura focused hard on keeping all trace of herself silent and suppressed. Stealth had never been her best attribute, and she was too low on chakra to attempt any sort of genjutsu to mask her presence, but she seemed to be managing well enough. That was, until an unexpected pop! of one of the logs on the fire caused her to let out a tiny exhalation of surprise. She suppressed the reaction as quickly as she could, utterly furious with herself, but, to a well-trained shinobi, even the tiniest exhalation was a dead giveaway, and it appeared that this individual fully fit that description. The man's shaggy head sharply tilted to his left, immediately seeking the source of the disturbance, and Sakura froze in her tracks, heart racing in her chest as she contemplated the age-old fight-or-flight dichotomy. She was within a hundred feet… there was no way she could escape. Given the size discrepancy, her lack of projectiles, and how weak she currently was, she was probably boned...

Wide green eyes rapidly ran over her would-be opponent's body, desperately seeking a chip in his armor, something, anything that she could use to get an edge. As she took in his squared jawline; dark, intelligent eyes; and white, shoulder-length bangs; however, her jaw dropped in a mixture of shock and disbelief. It was Jiraiya! But… how was that even possible? Was it a trap? Some sort of henge? Or perhaps… had her Shishou been mistaken about her dear teammate's fate?

For his part, Jiraiya looked just about as taken aback to see her as she felt about him. He scanned her face in frank surprise, the corners of his mouth turning slightly downward, as if her presence troubled him. "Ah, Sakura-chan," he murmured, that famous grin of his nowhere in sight, "How strange to see you here. Most unexpected..."

He trailed off, gesturing with his right hand at a bench-like tree trunk across the fire in a vague invitation to join him. Despite her doubts, Sakura found herself hesitatingly moving close enough that she could feel the warmth of the blaze on her somewhat cool and clammy skin. He definitely looked and sounded like Jiraiya. Animated like him too, although his current expression was untypically serious. If it was a henge or genjutsu, it was an excellent one.

She pursed her lips, wondering how to best proceed. After all, thanks to Kakashi's rather scarring demonstration long ago during the bell test, Sakura knew well that appearances could be deceiving. She needed a test of her own… some way of confirming his identity. The old shinobi standby was to ask a question to which only the true Jiraiya would know the answer. It wasn't a one-hundred percent fail-safe measure: Given the frequency of espionage, torture, and mind-penetrating jutsus of one flavor or another, secrets could be difficult to keep in the ninja world. But it would be a start.

That was… if she could actually think of something that only she and Jiraiya would know. While Konoha's Toad Sannin was obviously her Shishou's former teammate and Naruto's mentor, Sakura's own interactions with him over the years had been relatively few and far between. As such, she didn't exactly have a wealth of personal knowledge or common experiences on which she could draw. She could ask something about Tsunade, of course, but Orochimaru was liable to know that as well, and the fact that Jiraiya was seemingly still alive had her questioning whether the Snake Sannin could be too. Naruto was another possibility, but she had a very limited sense of the relationship that her teammate had with the man seated before her, which made quickly figuring out what Jiraiya may or may not know about him a somewhat tricky endeavor.

Then, with a somewhat painful pang, Sakura thought of Itachi. Much as the memories of how earnestly she'd defended him troubled her, she couldn't deny that he represented a seemingly perfect test for her companion. "Jiraiya-sama, if you would, could you please summarize our last conversation?" she asked somewhat tightly, keeping the question intentionally vague.

At that, Jiraiya's lips quirked slightly upwards, the small smile spreading across his lips a shadow of his usual joviality. "Giving me the old identity verification test, eh, Sakura-chan? Very wise... I'll humor you. Last we spoke, you, that magnificent Shishou of yours, and I discussed my invaluable Akatsuki spy, the rogue nin otherwise known as Uchiha Itachi. We reviewed his history, his motives, and my admittedly less-than-ethical decision to assist him with your kidnapping, amongst other highly classified matters." A dark eyebrow shot upwards towards his hairline. "Is that enough, or would you like me to continue?"

"Mm.. no… that definitely suffices," Sakura confirmed, brow furrowing in thought. So, Jiraiya was alive then. And seemingly stuck in the same Rinnegan-controlled plane that she was. A million questions were suddenly dancing on the tip of her tongue, but she figured that she might as well start simply. Settling onto the proffered log now that she was more-or-less certain that her companion was no fake, she met his gaze, trying and failing to read the emotion etched there. "Jiraiya-sama, where exactly are we?"

"Ah. An interesting question. We sit... at a place in between, as it were," the Toad Sannin replied somewhat distantly, rubbing the back of his neck in the same way Naruto often did when vaguely uncomfortable.

Sakura stared across the fire for several heartbeats, waiting for more but receiving no reply. A place in between. What did that mean? "And how did you get here?"

"Well… the same way you did."

Which she had less-than-no memory of. Great. "And… how long have you been here?"

Jiraiya frowned, shrugging his shoulders. "Difficult to say, really. Time has a... different meaning here."

Hmph. This line of questioning was proving to be less than helpful. Sakura had heard all about looking underneath the underneath from Kakashi more than once, but she was in no mood for riddles at the moment, and her companion was obnoxiously full of them. Deciding to try a more direct tactic, she fixed the Sannin with one of her more insistent, Tsunade-inspired stares. "You know, Shishou told me something strange about you earlier today, Jiraiya-sama. This is going to sound silly given our current circumstances... but, well, she said you're supposed to be dead."

She swallowed hard, nervously awaiting his reaction. Jiraiya was known to be pretty laid back, but he was also one of the legendary Sannin, and informing a man that his entire village had written him off wasn't exactly a pleasant task. Sure enough, the Toad Sannin's thin smile disappeared, his gaze falling to the flames between them, shoulders dropping as if weighed down by a heavy burden. He sat like that for several heartbeats, the crackling of the logs the only distraction from the silence. Then, chin rising slightly, he wet his lips and met her gaze, voice strangely gentle in its intonation. "I... am," he affirmed slowly. "As are... you, I believe."

WHAT? "That's impossible!" The words escaped the kunoichi's lips without hesitation, throat tightening in shock. She'd considered several possibilities since waking to darkness, but not that. Never that. Jiraiya had always had a sense of humor… was this some sort of joke? Green eyes scanned his weathered face, quickly concluding from the heaviness of his features that he was serious. And so, despite her doubts and the fervent beating of her heart seemingly insisting that she was alive and well, Sakura considered the matter anew, willing herself to try and remember what had happened after she and Kakashi had first encountered Konoha's assailant.

As before, the memories came in a confusing rush… the sight of Kakashi rushing their opponent… the sickening realization that he had no clue how much danger he was in… the adrenaline coursing through her veins as she leapt into the fray… the anticipation as she released her seal… the pain of the sword's impact… the sensation of her own hot blood soaking her tunic… the vision of the world growing dark… the sound of a voice… of Sasuke's voice. Then… nothing.

Oh Kami. Jiraiya might very well be right.

"But I released my seal!" Sakura protested, voice small and thin as she glared rather petulantly at her companion. "I did everything right. It… it isn't fair!" She sounded absurd - at heart, she knew that - but the horror of her circumstances put the cold rationality that she'd been trained as a kunoichi to exhibit firmly out of reach, at least for the moment.

Jiraiya was silent for a time, either wishing to give her some time to think or not really sure what to say. Both, probably. Then, he let out a heavy sigh. "It isn't," he agreed, tone soft and somewhat halting, as if speaking to a child. "But as you well know, Sakura, life isn't fair. Nor death, for that matter."

Sakura hummed a melancholic response, eyes dropping from her companion's face to the flickering fire between them. In the silence, her stunned mind slowly began to come to terms with her new reality. And it stung. Bitterly. Never again would she walk the streets of Konoha. Train, spar, laugh, or go on missions with her team. Serve twelve-hour shifts at the hospital alongside Shizune. Look up at the stars at night and pray that Sasuke was safe, wherever he was. Meet up for drinks with the Konoha Eleven, ramen with Naruto, tea with Kakashi, or gossip with Ino. Undergo her father's good-natured teasing, her Shishou's well-meant lectures, her mother's periodic questions about boys and life goals. She'd never make jounin, toast Tsunade's retirement, giggle at the absurd sight of Kakashi donning the Hokage's hat, welcome Sasuke home, lead a genin team of her own, become director of Konoha General, see Naruto realize his own dream of leading their village, marry, have a family...

Rubbing her stinging eyes with the back of her left hand, Sakura willed herself not to fall any deeper into the emotional pit her treacherous mind was digging. There had been so much left to live for… to experience... but tears had no purpose. Besides, she'd known for a long time now - from that sunny day that a twelve-year-old Naruto informed Kaka-sensei that he wanted his name emblazoned on the Memorial Stone - what the risks of her profession were. Shocking though it was to have paid the ultimate price so young, she couldn't deny that she hadn't signed up for the possibility. Or that many others had suffered the same fate before her… some, like her former sensei's first teammates, at an age even younger than herself.

Raising her chin, Sakura forced her eyes to meet Jiraiya's gaze once more, somewhat embarrassed for allowing herself to get so wound up. But the soft, almost grandfatherly look on the Toad Sannin's face quickly chased her shame away. "Now then, Sakura-chan, if you're up for a conversation, I'm all ears," the man began slowly, that familiar smile that had settled on his visage warming her lost and lonely heart. "You see, I suspect that this one-on-one fireside reunion was no accident. In the few weeks that I've been on this side of life, I've come to find that nothing is ever truly serendipitous. Perhaps, there is something you might wish to discuss? Some unanswered question or burden with which I might be able to assist?"

Sakura shivered slightly despite the warmth of the blaze between them. She'd left behind a lot of unfinished business in Konoha, but what any of that had to do with Jiraiya was less than clear. Well, except the question of Itachi's behavior. Given that he'd apparently been the one to recommend her to the rogue Uchiha in the first place, the Toad Sannin might very well be able to offer some insight into that. "Jiraiya-sama, that day we spoke about Itachi, back in Shishou's office, you'd said that he'd been your spy for over a decade. What did you actually think of him? Did you truly think him trustworthy?"

The man's brow furrowed in vague confusion, and she paused, realizing that some additional context would probably be necessary giving the timing of the Sannin's death. "You see, after you… left, Itachi was part of a mission to Oto to rescue Sasuke-kun. That night, after killing Orochimaru, he disappeared without a word or trace, only to resurface weeks later as a member of the Akatsuki, this time with Sasuke by his side. I didn't want to believe it at first - that he'd turned around and rejoined the organization he'd professed to loathe - but, well, there was so much evidence against him. They even abducted Naruto-kun..."

She fell silent, noting with a prickle of unease the hard and unyielding expression on Jiraiya's broad face as he evidently considered her words. "I saw a lot of talented nin in my life. But I never met a more perfect shinobi than Uchiha Itachi. Brilliant, powerful, genetically blessed, reserved in all actions, thoughts, and words. And so selflessly dedicated to the cause of his village… no matter the personal cost."

Sakura frowned in surprise. "So… you still believe it then? That Itachi-san was for Konoha the entire time? That he hadn't intended to deceive us? But how can one explain -"

Across the fire, Jiraiya's eyes blazed with wild, honest conviction, reminding her rather dearly of his blue-eyed protege as he wordlessly cut her off mid-sentence. "Sakura, I'd tell you I'd bet my life on it, but I'm afraid it's a bit late for that given the circumstances," he quipped, a certain levity momentarily taking over his features before his face turned solemn once more. "There is one more point we must factor in. Like all shinobi, Uchiha Itachi has a weakness… his brother, Sasuke. As you know, he chose his otouto's life over all else once before. There is utterly no doubt in my mind that he would do it again, if forced by his circumstances. Orochimaru is - was - a crafty adversary, with connections in surprisingly high and unexpected places. It would not surprise me to learn that he too was aware of the truth behind the Uchiha clan's fall and attempted to use such knowledge to his own gain when pressed."

The Sannin fell silent, leaving Sakura to her thoughts. Jiraiya believed Itachi loyal, and Kakashi had said something similar as well, albeit less definitively. Perhaps she hadn't been such a little fool for trusting in him, after all. Staring at the dancing flames, the kunoichi found herself recalling her own conversation with the elder Uchiha their last night together on Toki, when she'd suggested that he save himself by telling Sasuke the truth about their clan's downfall. At the time, Itachi had dismissed the idea, warning her that such knowledge would turn Sasuke against Konoha itself. Could Orochimaru have known who was actually behind the Uchiha massacre? Could Sasuke have found out from him and redirected his hatred, just as Itachi had predicted? The fact that Sasuke hadn't killed his brother, had seemingly chosen to ally with the Akatsuki, and had gone so far as to abduct Naruto on behalf of the organization after the Sannin's death… either he'd gone mad, or something else had swayed him. And if Sasuke had learned the truth, it would have been just like Itachi to remain at his brother's side, to attempt to turn him back towards the life in Konoha that he had obviously wished him to lead, whatever sacrifice that demanded of him personally.

A strange, tingling warmth came over Sakura's body. "I think… I understand now. Arigato, Jiraiya-sama," she murmured to her companion, lips turning upwards as her gaze turned somewhat hazy. Was it just her, or was the fire suddenly growing kind of dim?

"Ah, it was the least I could do. Always a pleasure, Sakura-chan," the man replied with a smile, dark eyes crinkling fondly. Then, he winked somewhat roguishly. "By the way, please say hello to your Shishou for me when you next see her."

Kakashi's steel-grey eye surveyed the impromptu battlefield stretched out before him, heart heavy as he took in the destruction. Sweat dripped from his brow, his body was so spent that his legs shook with the mere effort of standing, and his Sharingan was pulsating with the telltale symptoms of overuse behind its closed lid, but none of that concerned the Copy Ninja at the moment. For large swatches of his village stood in ruins; his rogue ex-student was crouched mere feet from him, awaiting who knew what fate; a second one of his former students had absconded with Pakkun on a very possibly suicidal mission to confront the man who had directed the attack; and countless Konoha shinobi lay dead, including his third and final ex-student and, for better or for worse, the most brilliant ANBU report he'd ever had the pleasure of captaining, Uchiha Itachi.

He couldn't deny that the couple had gone out with a bang. Kakashi had seen a lot in his twenty-plus-year career, but the experience of having Haruno Sakura - that pink-haired girl with a surprising faculty for chakra control who had grown up before his eyes into a powerful, capable kunoichi, not to mention an exceedingly attractive woman - leap to his aid in the face of certain death, giving her life to save him in an act of reckless bravery, was wholly unexpected. He hadn't really begun to wrap his head around what had transpired, but the mixture of shock, guilt, and awe that had gone through him as that damnable sword dove into her lovely torso… it was sickening. Exactly the sort of situation that always seemed to befall those he dared let in.

Speaking of those he'd once opened himself up to to disastrous effect...

Itachi's death didn't have quite the same immediate emotional impact, but it still weighed heavily on Kakashi's mind. It had been so sudden. One minute, the Uchiha had been by his side, red eyes swirling with the fires of his Mangekyo Sharingan as he seemingly willed the Nine Tails back into submission. The next, he was on his knees before a white-faced, exceedingly confused Naruto, coughing up an impressive quantity of blood - was that the illness Sakura had treated him for? If so, her concern had been understandable - as he instructed the blonde in wheezing gasps to track down Pein's true body. And, then, with Naruto's assignment tasked and Pakkun summoned to keep a watchful eye, the man's quickly fading gaze had trailed over Kakashi's own face in a whispered plea to keep an eye on his brother before finally shifting his attention to a completely horror-stricken Sasuke.

It was at that point that Kakashi had decided to back off, wishing to give the brothers some modicum of privacy while simultaneously aware that village protocols demanded that he keep them fully within his sight as previously declared enemies of Konoha. From where he'd stood, he didn't catch the actual words that had comprised their final, murmured exchange, but the low, mournful timbre of Sasuke's voice; the desperation resonating from his newly transformed eyes, wet with bitter tears; and the silent shaking of his body as Itachi's hand slipped from his grasp, prone body growing still, was an intensely painful interaction to witness.

Knowing what Sasuke had gone through, and now this…. There was no doubt in Kakashi's mind that the sole remaining Uchiha would recover with time, and he intended to play as much of a role in that process as the man would permit. But the emotional damage that the losses of both the woman whose death had ushered in the emergence of his Mangekyo and his last living relative, whom he had deeply admired as a boy, loathed as an adolescent, and most recently come to love again, would not be a simple wound to heal.

Neck prickling with the sensation that he was being watched, Kakashi turned his thoughts from the abstract to the concrete, directing his attention fully to Sasuke. Their gazes locked, his companion's deadly eyes swirling in a kaleidoscope of black and red. Kakashi was exceedingly well aware that he was one-on-one with an Uchiha whose every known action over the past five years had placed him firmly in the camps of some of Konoha's most dangerous foes. Yet, despite Sasuke's checkered history and the intimate knowledge of the Sharingan's abilities, his heart beat with pity as opposed to fear.

To his great surprise, Sasuke spoke first, voice oddly detached in contrast to the heavy grief in his gaze. "Kakashi. What will they do with the bodies?"

Of all the things he could have asked. As had seemingly always been the case with Sasuke, it was an exceedingly good question, not to mention disarmingly practical and wholly bare of any personal sentiments. The Copy Ninja ran his right hand through his silvery hair somewhat distractedly, thinking the matter over. Well, Sakura's fate was clear cut, at least. Not possessing any sort of Kekkei Genkai and with both parents living, her mortal remains would summarily be released to Haruno Kizashi and Mebuki. But the question of how to entomb Uchiha Itachi and his highly coveted eyes was undoubtedly one for the High Council.

In the years before the Uchiha massacre, Itachi's body would have been returned to his clan for burial, a process that Kakashi had good reason to believe - at least judging from the chaos that had surrounded the disappearance of Obito's corpse - usually involved the postmortem retrieval of the dead Uchiha's Sharingan in a grisly yet effective deterrent to would-be grave looters. But now? Given the exceptional rarity of Itachi's dojutsu, the immense value of it to the village, the unscrupulous tendencies of certain High Council members, and the fact that the sole individual who could claim any sort of familial right was himself a criminal, it was really anyone's guess. Kakashi intended to do his best to advocate for Sasuke's claim as next of kin - whatever that was worth - and Tsunade was a fair and reasonable woman, but it was hard not to be somewhat pessimistic in the face of Danzo's absolute insistence on doing what he believed was best for Konoha, sensitivity and respect for the dead be damned.

Sasuke's eyes darkened, clearly not appreciating the delay in his response, and Kakashi let out a long, low sigh. Given both of their current mental states, he wasn't exactly looking forward to where this conversation was likely headed, but he could see little in the way of an out. For now was definitely not the time for lighthearted excuses. The shadows clinging to his former student's features and the still-present sight of his Mangekyo Sharingan left little doubt about that. "Well, Sasuke, Sakura will be returned to her parents."

"Hn. And Itachi?"

"That… will need to be determined by the village Elders."

Sasuke's lip curled in a silent expression of utter hatred that had Kakashi's wariness growing. He'd heard the younger Uchiha's uncharacteristic cry of agony at Sakura's death and stood alongside him as Itachi faced down the Nine Tails, but he couldn't deny the unease coming over him now. For his former student's reaction to the mere mention of the High Council confirmed Kakashi's suspicions: Somehow, Sasuke had found out the truth about the Uchiha Massacre. Would the legacy of his brother, his affection for Sakura, and whatever bonds he might or might not feel towards his pre-Oto life be enough to keep him in check?

It seemed that they were about to find out. For a sudden influx of chakra - the approach of at least a dozen Konoha jounin, judging from their signatures - informed Kakashi that their too-brief conversation was drawing to a close. Fixing Sasuke with the most calmly authoritative glare he could muster, the Copy Ninja found himself praying that this time, for once in his life, the Uchiha would listen to reason. "Whatever happens, Sasuke, please don't do anything rash. Think of Itachi… of Sakura..."

Sasuke frowned, head tilting slightly in the barest of acknowledgments. The slight reaction indicated that the message had been received, but the blood-red glint of his gaze coupled with the complete lack of expression on his pale, mask-like face didn't exactly do much to instill confidence.