Sakura was up early to make breakfast, long before Sasuke had awoken for the day. She was pretty surprised that the smell of food hadn't managed to wake him up; breakfast had been finished and plated, and he was still curled up on the couch. She figured it was best to let him sleep while she cooked, but soon he would have to get up and ready.
"Breakfast's ready," she said softly as she peered over the couch, seeing him with the blanket pulled up almost entirely over his face. All she could see was his mess of spiky black hair sticking out from underneath the blanket and half crushed against the pillow. Sakura could hear a grumble from underneath the covering as Sasuke shuffled at the sound of food.
She'd forgotten how much of a grumpy riser he was.
Nevertheless, he was up and rubbing his eyes as he made his way to the table, taking a seat. Sakura set a fresh, hot cup of coffee in front of him; the cream and sugar were already on the table, though he chose not to reach for it and instead took a sip of the hot drink black. Leave it to him to enjoy such a bitter taste; Sakura could only drink it with copious amounts of cream and sugar before she found it palatable.
"I've made eggs, bacon, and hashbrowns for breakfast if that's all right," she said with a smile. "Oh, and some buttered toast. There's some peanut butter as well if you'd like something else on it. I might have some jam, but I know you don't like sweets, so..." Sasuke looked at the spread of food before him, knowing Sakura was going way out of her way to make him a healthy breakfast. Then again, that was just the kind of person that she was.
"Buttered is fine. Thanks." He hadn't meant to sound as curt as he did, but he was hopeful Sakura would understand. He wasn't the happiest person when woken, no matter the time of day. Perhaps that was because he'd spent many years with restless sleep that the slightest amount was rather unpleasant to have interrupted. At least she'd woken him for food; that made it slightly better.
"Sure, yeah," Sakura replied quickly as she set the food out, taking a seat on the opposite side of the table. She had a more varied spread of food; while she had eggs and bacon as he did, her toast had been slathered with jam, and she had a healthy supply of fruit on the side as well. No hashbrowns for her; the fruit served that purpose well enough. Picking up a fork, he dug into the meal, surprised by the taste; Sakura was a much better cook than he'd anticipated.
"Okay, so I have the adjustments done for you, and I think I have space you'll be able to hang out and keep an eye on things. It'll be a great help, too. I can focus on the patients while you're keeping an eye on anything out of the ordinary." Sakura knew that meant he would be doing what he did best: staying quiet and watching. She was glad it was Sasuke who'd shown up inadvertently to help; standing still and keeping watch wasn't something she could see Naruto doing efficiently. Knowing him, he'd gripe and grumble and complain about being bored for half of it. He was a bit too impatient for this kind of work. He was excellent on other missions, but surveillance and information gathering weren't his strengths.
"Sure," Sasuke replied softly as he finished the last of his coffee, deeply satisfied by his breakfast. "Where did you leave it?"
"In the bedroom. I'm going to get a few things organized in the clinic, so you have time to get ready." Sakura finished picking up the rest of the dishes and rinsed them off; she'd worry about thoroughly washing them later when she had a break.
Sasuke made his way to the bedroom, carefully picking up the clothing. Slipping it on, he noticed it fit incredibly well; she'd done a masterful job of adjusting it where it needed to be. Very samurai-like, that was for sure; the haori was attached where it needed to be to stay put, given he lacked a second arm to keep it in place.
He stepped out and reached for his sword, slipping it into the belt and adjusting the eyepatch over his left eye. It, too, fit comfortably; he also noticed she'd done something to the fabric, as he could still see through it—just barely—when his hair was out of the way. He'd been expecting to have his left eye completely obscured by it, but this was perfect. Those who saw him would believe he had one eye, and in a pinch, he'd still have access to his Rinnegan if necessary.
He exited the living area, moving toward the front of the clinic where Sakura was. She approached him with that odd expression on her face... he felt like he should know what it meant, but he didn't understand why she was suddenly so... demure in his presence. She was strange sometimes.
The moment Sakura saw him, she was taken aback by how good he looked in the outfit. He looked every part the rugged samurai; his hair was wild and unkempt as usual, his expression was serious and reserved, and the addition of the sword and kimono completed the look. She approached with a pleased expression, using all her willpower to try and prevent herself from blushing.
Reaching forward, she gently straightened the kimono and haori in a few places, giving him a more polished look. She could feel him staring at her silently while she did; his expression was unreadable. "There. All perfect. There's a spot right by the corner of the front desk where you'll be able to see most of the clinic. I'll have the exam room doors closed when I'm with patients, but if anything goes wrong, I'll return to you." She went to move away but felt him grab her wrist gently, looking down at her. She couldn't seem to read his expression, but the way he stared at her made her heart race. His grip on her wrist was firm, but not uncomfortably so; it was just enough for her to stop, caught up in the way he was looking at her.
Sasuke stared down at the pinkette before him, warring internally with himself. He wanted to say something to her, but he didn't know what to say. He wanted to ask about the kimono, about why she'd bought it, about why she was so kind to him. He was... too stuck in his head at the moment, doubting himself. She trusted him without question; it was something he'd never understood about her. Words he wanted to say were stuck in his throat, but he couldn't voice them. Not yet.
"Yeah. Sure," he forced out, releasing her wrist. Sakura could tell that the words he spoke were forced, but they didn't have time to talk about it. Now came the hard part.
"To maintain my cover as best as possible... I have to sort of pretend I'm not nearly as combat capable as I am. No smashing walls with my fists or lifting massive boulders, or the entire reception desk... none of that. Essentially, you're guarding a weak little damsel who can only shoot a bow to hunt and happens to be a good shot. I'll signal you if it's time to break cover for whatever reason, but you can assume until then that I won't. I'd rather not have to."
Sasuke nodded in response. He'd be able to manage that. Protecting Sakura at all costs? Easy enough. He would have to remember to rely on her less than he usually would to maintain their cover, but it wouldn't be too much of a change.
"Now... for what happened. Since the story is that I lost my husband and am a widow, let's say you were my husband's personal guard. You lost your arm and eye in the process of protecting him and helped save my life; in return, I nursed you back to health, and you've sworn your life to protect me as you did my late husband. Simple enough, right?"
"Yeah. That'll work." His cover story didn't matter much on his end; it wasn't like he would be the type to talk about it. He'd just let her handle the details of that. She was better at that sort of thing, anyway.
"Tonight, we'll do some more recon to gather more information. I'm not entirely sure what I want to look at yet, but I'll figure it out." She paused for a moment to organize a few more things, then turned back to Sasuke.
"Sasuke-kun... thank you, by the way. I appreciate your assistance so much on this mission. It's good to know I have someone I can trust watching my back." She flashed him a bright smile, then sauntered off to the front door to open it. He was... not looking forward to today. Being on watch meant time for him to think, and with Sakura around... he didn't want to go where he knew his thoughts would go around her.
He wasn't ready to confront that part of himself. Not yet.
Standing in the spot she'd indicated he could stay, Sasuke did his best to keep his eyes trained on the door, watching as each patient came in and was greeted by the doctor. They moved to an exam room where the door was shut, leaving them with some privacy while she went over whatever ailment had afflicted them.
By early afternoon Sakura was able to make her way back out to the clinic to visit Sasuke. "I don't have any more appointments for the day," she announced proudly. "I should make a stop to check on that one guy from yesterday, but I can do that around dinner. If anything's wrong, I'm sure his family will rush down here for assistance." She wasn't worried. She was a medical expert and could save even the most injured of individuals. Hell, she'd managed to keep Naruto's body alive when he temporarily "died" during the war due to Nine-Tails' extraction. She wasn't worried in the slightest about the work she'd done.
Just then, the door to the clinic opened and in swept a very well-dressed man with two samurai guards following behind him. Sakura recognized him from the initial briefing she'd received on the mission; he was the local lord closest to the town and was considered a person of interest in her investigation. And he was coming out here to visit her clinic? Talk about suspicious. Just what was a lord doing coming to a small clinic like hers?