Sakura's shared seal with Kabuto proved to be much more of a distraction than she had anticipated. There was a constant awareness of his heartbeat. It was such an odd sensation to feel two pulses at once, to know that the second one belonged to Kabuto. It almost felt as if it were her own, as if she had two pulses. Every now and then her fingers flew to her wrist where she could easily sense the two separate heartbeats.
When she measured the pulses of her patients throughout the day, she had to make a conscious effort to tune out Kabuto's pulse. It was always in her awareness, always present in a way her own pulse never was.
Even her patients seemed to notice her absence, the way her eyes glazed over while she thought of Kabuto and how he sat motionless on the cot in his room. It felt impossible to drag her mind away from him sometimes, to focus on the tasks at hand. It was not a good time for her to be losing focus, so she prayed that Kabuto would wake up soon so she could remove the seal.
Even at night, she found herself unable to fall asleep, mesmerized, but not lulled by the haunting presence of Kabuto's heartbeat.
It was one night in particular that she couldn't sleep and sat upright on her bed, her eyes trained toward the window. It was well past midnight, she knew, and she needed to be getting her rest and restoring her chakra. But the silvery moonlight was too bright, and the steady, pulsing chakra in her wrist seemed stronger than usual.
She stared blankly at the sky through the window, recognizing but not really seeing the grey wisps of clouds drift by. Kabuto's pulse was slow and steady, and she could feel the rhythm of his pulse coming close to matching hers. Hers was a little faster, but if she waited just long enough, for a few beats, their pulses would be in sync. She counted in her head, subdividing beats until for three solid pulses, their heartbeats matched.
There was something morbid about the impulse, something slightly masochistic. She loathed Kabuto, but she found something very pleasant about this new perceived closeness she was finding.
Sakura suddenly wished her window faced the hospital so she could look to see the building where he was. It felt strange to be so distanced from someone yet so connected to him as well.
Maybe the seal had been a mistake. She shouldn't have used it when she hadn't practiced it on another person before. She couldn't have known the way it would make her feel, or the way it would possibly make Kabuto feel. Surely he would feel this same thing – this connection and weirdness of having two heartbeats. At this point, she could only hope that the adverse affects of her seal were minimal. It was way too late to do anything else about it.
With a heavy sigh, Sakura sank down beneath her sheets, pulling them up over her head to block out the blinding light from the moon. She could hear crickets chirping outside, close to her window. Beyond that was silence, nothing but wind and two distinct heartbeats.
For a moment, her eyes felt heavy and she felt so content that she might have actually fallen asleep, had one of those heartbeats not increased drastically and frantically.
With a racing pulse, Sakura bolted upright, flinging the covers off the bed. That racing pulse was not her own, which could only mean one thing. Quickly, Sakura dressed herself and hurried back to the hospital.
Sakura was in full-blown panic mode, which was the absolute worst thing under the circumstances. She knew Kabuto would be able to feel her elevated heart rate as she rushed to get to the hospital before he could try to escape. She tried, in vain, to steady her heartbeat, but she was too distracted to focus, too in a rush to do a proper job.
Instead, she focused all her mental energy on trying to get to the hospital quickly while keeping a careful portion of her mind dedicated to Kabuto's vitals.
When she reached the hospital, she found Kabuto perched on the steps outside the building, staring in her direction as if he had been waiting for her. He still wore his hospital gown, and without his glasses Sakura could tell that he was unable to see very well. His hair still hung loose around his shoulders and he looked so different from the Kabuto she was used to seeing, though now that he was awake and with a smug smirk on his face, he seemed more like himself.
"Sakura Haruno," he said, his tone haughty but with some underlying note of hesitancy, maybe fear or confusion.
"Hi, Kabuto-san," she said with as much respect as she could muster for the despicable man as she fought to catch her breath.
His eyebrow twitched at the sound of the honorific attached to his name, but he gave no other indication that it affected him in any way. "I presume, based on the fact that I'm in Konoha's hospital, that you were the one to heal me after Naruto's attack," he said slowly.
"That's correct," Sakura said, her heart still wildly out of control. By contrast, she could tell that Kabuto's heartbeat had evened out and he didn't seem so frantic anymore.
"And this seal," he said, extending his wrist out toward her. Sakura was too far away from him to properly see the seal in the dark, but she could see the faint glow of chakra on his wrist. "You put this on me?"
Sakura swallowed, uncertain of what exactly Kabuto was going to do. He didn't seem inclined to fight her. That would have been quite a sight, in fact, as he still wore his open backed hospital gown and lacked the proper eyewear to be able to see her. Still, she could sense hostility in his tone, but she didn't necessarily blame him.
"I did," she answered, trying to focus now on steadying her heart rate.
Kabuto stood up and took the steps down to the grass where Sakura stood and watched him nervously. "I can feel your pulse through it," he said, his eyes unfocused, but searching her face nonetheless.
"I needed a way to monitor your vitals remotely," Sakura explained, "to make sure you didn't try anything shifty when you woke up."
"Shifty, huh?" he asked with another smug grin. "Not too surprising that you would think that. What is surprising is that you would deign to heal me after what Naruto did. Why would you do that?"
With a bit of resolve, Sakura took her power stance, shifting her feet slightly apart and squaring her shoulders toward Kabuto. "Kabuto-san," she began. She noticed the way he seemed to fidget again, obviously unnerved by the formal way she addressed him. "I need your help."
"What a surprise," he said dryly. "The intellectually lacking Konoha medic nin needs help from someone with real skill."
Sakura clenched her fists and teeth, but avoided opening her mouth lest she say something she wouldn't be able to take back. She was too desperate for his help to fail at getting him on board.
"I do, Kabuto-san."
She had hoped that the sincerity of her tone would at least give him pause. He retained his haughty smile, his air of superiority, which looked so out of place on him while he was in such a disheveled state.
"I suppose you think I owe you because you healed me," he said.
"I'm afraid I might have actually been the one to cause you to get hurt in the first place," she offered, hoping that the truth would be the best option in the long run. "I sent Naruto to find you and bring you back here. I didn't think he'd beat the shit out of you, though."
Kabuto's grin disappeared, replaced by a feral scowl that disappeared just as quickly.
"Naruto is easy to provoke where Sasuke is concerned," she warned, "so perhaps that hadn't been the best idea. However, he is to remain on his best behavior for the remainder of your stay here."
His expression stayed neutral as he mulled this over, deciphering what 'the remainder of his stay here' actually meant. Sakura was more than willing to offer him whatever information he asked for, but for now she thought it wiser to stay silent until spoken to again.
"And what about you, Sakura-san?" he asked, surprising her with a suffix of his own. "Are you as easy to provoke where Sasuke is concerned?"
Sakura schooled her expression, relaxing her jaw to avoid gritting her teeth. She allowed a brief moment of anger to boil inside her, but she let none of it show outwardly. She would not be as easy to provoke and she would ensure that Kabuto would not use Sasuke against her like he had Naruto.
"Sasuke is irrelevant," she insisted, "and I think you'll find I've matured since the last time you saw me. You won't be able to use Sasuke as a bargaining chip, I'm afraid."
This surprised him, evidenced by the way his eyebrows shot up and his lips parted as if he wanted to gasp but thought better of it. "If Sasuke is not the reason for this kidnapping, then to what do I owe the pleasure?" he asked, his voice seeped in sarcasm.
"It's your medical expertise I need," she replied. "Surely by now you've encountered this flu-like disease that's ravaging Fire Country."
His brow furrowed and Sakura was suddenly grateful for his lack of sight. She couldn't deny that the seal between them gave her away – she was still unable to get her heart rate under control. But he couldn't see the shame on her face, the redness in her cheeks borne from her inability to get this job done herself. She was supposed to be the top medic in the world. She was supposed to be able to handle any medical problem thrown her way, yet here she was, groveling for help from a criminal.
"A disease?" he murmured to himself, glancing back up the steps of the hospital.
"I quarantined you so that you would not catch the infection, but you're literally the only person in Konoha who is not infected so far," she explained. "You might want to check your system to make sure you have no strange bacteria accumulated near your chakra points."
Kabuto scowled again. "You think I didn't already do that?" he demanded. "There's a reason you're asking for my help right now, and it's because I'm very good at what I do. Obviously better at it than you are if you've been infected, too."
Sakura pressed her lips together to keep herself from snapping at him. It would only hurt her cause. Besides, she could just consider this a massive exercise in self-control, which was not one of Sakura's strong suits. If she could manage her temper, perhaps they could get along at least well enough to figure this thing out and then go their separate ways.
"That's a good sign, then," she said, ignoring his hostility. "Either the quarantine worked or you yourself are somehow resistant to the infection."
Something shifted in Kabuto's expression, something Sakura wasn't able to identify. He looked calmer, more resolved somehow, but the darkness in his unfocused eyes unsettled her.
"Where are my glasses," he asked, "and my clothes?"
"Your glasses were broken during your scuffle with Naruto," she explained. "I can get you a new pair if you know your prescription."
"And my clothes?"
"They're back in your hospital room," she answered. "They're filthy, but umm… I can wash them for you."
She felt a spike in his heartbeat, a steady two or three pulses that were harsher, more pronounced than the rest. She saw the twitch of his mouth, the hardened set of his eyes. As uncomfortable as she had been offering to do his laundry, it seemed to unsettle him just as much.
"Did you… bathe me?"
Sakura barely managed to repress the laugh that bubbled up in her chest. If the pinkness in his cheeks was any indicator, Kabuto was embarrassed. On any other person she might have found that charming, but they were both medics and a little nudity should not have caused him to feel ashamed. It was part of the job.
"I'm afraid it was Naruto who had that pleasure," she replied.
Kabuto frowned, the blush on his cheeks fading as anger and then complacency developed on his features. "Well then," he began, "as always, Sakura-san, it has been a pleasure, but I really need to get going. I'm sure you understand." He sidled past her, a little too close for her comfort. She recognized the intimidation tactic, but it lost a bit of its potency in his half-naked state.
"No, wait!" she screeched, moving to stand in his path. He paused for a moment to look up at her face expectantly. "I'll make you a deal. I mean I'll give you something in return for your help."
"That desperate?" he asked, eyeing her disdainfully. "What could you possibly have to offer me?"
"What do you want?"
Kabuto let out a short, derisive laugh. His eyes lingered on her face unnervingly, and Sakura wondered how well he could actually see her without his glasses. Could he see the worry between her brows or the anxiety in her eyes? Was he able to sense through their seal that she was nervous?
There were probably many things she could give Kabuto that he wanted. Information about Konoha, about the Uchihas, or Orochimaru. She had a plethora of utilities at her disposal, all that could prove quite useful to an inquisitive man like Kabuto. But what did he want? And what was she willing to give?
"You have nothing that I want, kunoichi."
Sakura was taken aback by the abruptness in his tone and his use of the word that sounded almost foreign after his politeness. He took another step forward, but again, Sakura moved to block his path. She was treading dangerous ground now, but desperate times called for desperate measures.
"Then let me owe you," she implored. "You can cash in a favor from me in the future when you need it."
Kabuto chuckled darkly and shook his head. "Again, Sakura-san, my dear, you've got nothing that I want," he explained. "I have no reason to want to help you."
"Come on," Sakura begged. "I'm the Hokage's apprentice. I have connections, inside information. I'm more than just my medical knowledge, Kabuto-san. There are other ways I can help you."
This seemed to draw in Kabuto's attention and he frowned as he mulled over this new option. "I'm surprised you'd offer me such a thing," he said, "but I know how dedicated you Konoha-nin are to keeping your word. I suppose we could come to some sort of agreement."
The feeling of dread lifted from Sakura's stomach, and for the first time in weeks her nausea was completely gone, replaced instead by an overinflated sense of accomplishment. He hadn't quite agreed to help yet, but it was a start and Sakura would take anything she could get.
"Don't look so relieved," Kabuto said dryly. Perhaps he could see more than she gave him credit for. "We haven't made any deals yet. First I'll need some clean clothes and a new pair of glasses."
"Yes," she agreed. "Okay. I can get those for you."
Sakura never thought she'd find herself sitting in the library at four in the morning across from Kabuto, who was now wearing a very orange, very obnoxious t-shirt from the Naruto collection. As strange as the situation was, there was also a small bit of comfort in sitting to converse with someone who was not ill, someone who was more than capable of taking care of himself.
In the dim light offered by the hanging lamp above, Sakura tried not to stare at the pale man before her, so washed out by Naruto's orange shirt. It was like staring at a mythical figure, she thought. A unicorn.
"For starters," Kabuto said as he chewed a small bite of the protein bar Sakura had offered him from her pack. "Does your Hokage know I'm here? This doesn't seem like something she'd agree to."
Sakura nodded. "She knows."
Kabuto eyed her warily, but didn't ask her more probing questions about Tsunade's thoughts on his presence in Konoha. They both knew she wasn't fond of the medic-nin or his snake summoning accomplice. "Is she sick as well?" he asked.
Sakura nodded again.
"Then this is quite serious."
Kabuto took another bite of the protein bar, his eyes, still without their glasses, wandered behind her over the dimly lit stacks. Sakura, too, let her gaze drift away toward the rows of books behind him. The library was a fairly safe zone. Civilians didn't leave their houses anymore – certainly not for a trip to the library. It felt cozy and eerie at the same time.
"I need a guarantee that no one will attack me while I'm here," Kabuto said after swallowing the last bit of his protein bar.
Sakura sat up rigidly, not expecting his willingness to negotiate terms so readily. "Yes, of course," she agreed. "You have my word."
"And I'll need my own quarters in the hospital," he continued, "with proper equipment for research. I'll also need access to your notes so far, and a few patients to examine."
Sakura frowned, but she couldn't deny him any of those demands. She would have asked for the same things had she been in his position. "I can do that," she said, letting her eyes refocus on his face.
"Great," he said with a terse, but polite smile. "Then we can move on to what I'd like on your end of the bargain." He extended his arm out on the table between them, wrist up to expose the glowing seal there. Hesitantly, Sakura extended her own arm beside his, placing her seal next to his.
"Would you like me to remove it?" she asked, eyeing the seals, watching the pulse of chakra between them beating in time with their respective hearts.
"Not yet," he said. "Did you create this seal yourself?"
"Yes," she replied. "I'd been working on it for a while, but it was still in the development process when I used it. I needed a way to know when you were awake and to remotely monitor your vitals, so unfortunately I was forced to use it before it was ready."
"What is its intended purpose?"
"I was mostly just dicking around when I created it," she explained, amused by the way his eyebrows flew up in surprise at her vulgar language. "I was just experimenting around with fuinjutsu because I discovered an aptitude for it when I was improving aspects of the yin seal." She pointed to the little rhombus on her forehead. "I thought this seal could come in handy on missions with Team 7."
"So this isn't the finished seal?" he asked. "What more are you capable of making it do?"
Sakura retracted her arm and crossed it over her chest, fixing Kabuto with a curious gaze. "That remains to be seen, Kabuto-san," she said. "Why are you so interested in it?"
"As you know, Orochimaru is planning to use Sasuke as his next vessel—"
"Let me stop you right there, Kabuto-san," she said. "As a condition of this agreement, I would like to table all discussions relating to Sasuke or Orochimaru in the interest of avoiding such confrontations like yours with Naruto."
"Agreed," he replied, "however, as payment for my help here, I would like you to give Sasuke and me matching seals so that I can remotely monitor his health. This will help me in the long run to prepare his body for Orochimaru and to stop him from doing something foolish before Orochimaru is ready for him."
Sakura blanched, feeling bile rise in the back of her throat. She certainly didn't like the idea of helping Kabuto do such a thing and her immediate instinct was so say no. If she thought hard enough she would be able to come up with an alternative acceptable to the both of them.
But she was having a hard time coming up with something now, something that would instantly appease him. So instead, she swallowed the bile in her throat.
"Do you expect me to readily agree to that?" she asked, trying to keep her voice as neutral as possible. Kabuto only seemed amused by her restraint.
"You're a Konoha nin, Sakura-san," he said with a tone so polite that it bordered on condescending. "That means I expect you to do what is in the best interest of your precious village. That's what the Will of Fire is all about, isn't it? Sasuke made his choice to leave and it's no longer your duty to protect him. It is your duty to protect those left here, those who are in your care even at this very moment. Besides, this will give you an opportunity to see Sasuke again. An opportunity not steeped in violence or vengeance."
She considered this, wondering whether or not Sasuke would even permit her to place such a seal on him. She wasn't so sure that she knew Sasuke as well as Kabuto did, but she knew him well enough to know that he wouldn't be fond of being directly linked to Kabuto via a seal. His only interest was to kill Itachi, and if the seal would inhibit that in any way, Sasuke would want no part of it. Sakura was certain of that.
"Now, if you think you can use that as an excuse to talk him into returning home, well then I'm afraid you're out of luck," Kabuto continued. "You and I both know Sasuke will never return to Konoha. But at least you will get to say goodbye to him. That's what you want, isn't it?"
Frustrated, Sakura slammed her hand down on the table between them. Kabuto's eyes widened, but he gave no other indication he was surprised by her action. "Don't think you can trick me into believing you care about what I want. This isn't about me. This is about your benefit from this bargain. If you want a matching seal with Sasuke, fine. I will do that. But don't patronize me."
A slow grin spread across Kabuto's face, which unnerved Sakura enough to send a shiver down her spine. "Well, well, well, look at you," he said, leaning closer to her over the length of the table between them. "You really have matured. Perhaps Sasuke was actually capable of breaking these bonds."
Sakura clenched her fists under the table, wanting nothing more than to flip the damn thing right into his smug face. "Perhaps I wasn't clear," she seethed, digging her nails into her palm. "From this point on, Sasuke is a forbidden topic. I agree to your terms and I will give the seal you've asked for."
"Yes," Kabuto agreed, the ever-present smirk still adhered to his face. "I see the subject is still a little sore with you, so I will refrain from mentioning him again. So do we have ourselves a deal?"
Kabuto extended his hand to her, waiting for her to shake it. Sakura stared at his palm for a moment, wishing she had some way to prove to him that he couldn't get under her skin by using Sasuke. Unfortunately, it seemed she had already disproved that, and given what Kabuto already knew of them, it wasn't likely she could change his mind. She didn't like the idea of working so closely with a man who knew her biggest weakness, who knew all her weaknesses. Hell, for all she knew this whole thing was some elaborate plot by Kabuto or Orochimaru.
But again, her desperation trumped all. Resigned, she grabbed his hand and shook, feeling so much like she had just signed her life away that she felt a sudden swell of emotion threatening tears at the back of her eyes. She blinked rapidly, distilling the odd feeling. For some reason, it felt like Sasuke was the one she had given away, the one who had gotten the short end of the stick. Would he be angry with her for making this deal?
"Your heart rate is increasing," Kabuto said clinically. "Are you feeling alright, Sakura-san?"
Sakura glanced down at the seal on her wrist, then her hand, still linked with Kabuto's. "I'm fine," she said, pulling her arm away self-consciously. "Come on, let's go back to the hospital. I'll show you where you will be working."
A/N: It's been a while, huh. Well, I'm still kicking.