one

this isn't how I thought we'd meet again

There was blood on the front porch.

Sasuke's pulse kicked up a significant notch and he called for backup, his gun already in hand. He walked slowly to the end of the porch, his breath mixing with the early morning air to create a misty haze around him. Sasuke peered into the window of the dining room and saw that the table and chairs were toppled over. Clearly, there'd been some kind of struggle.

Sasuke ground his teeth. There was no sign of the intruders- or his ex-wife, Sakura, who had made a frantic 911 call only minutes earlier to the Konoha Sheriff's office. Sasuke had been on his way home after pulling an all-nighter and had intercepted the call right as he was driving by her place.

"Someone's trying to break in!"

That was all she had managed to say before the line went dead.

There was no bad weather to cause a dead phone line, no maintenance in the area.

Sasuke wasn't sure what to expect when he pulled up at the small house Sakura had recently inherited, but he'd parked by the mailbox a good twenty or so yards from the house so the sound of his truck wouldn't alert anyone. At first, he'd figured it would probably turn out to be a false alarm, or else he'd find Sakura cowering inside while some would-be burglars made their escape. But as his eyes took in the blood and toppled furniture, he knew this was something different.

Something worse. How much worse, he had yet to judge.

He maneuvered carefully around the drops of blood and tried the doorknob. It was unlocked. Sasuke eased open the front door and instantly took in more drops of blood in the foyer. He wasn't a forensics expert by any means, but it looked like a high-velocity splatter to him. Someone had been hit, and hit hard.

More debris were scattered across the entryway, including a landline phone that'd obviously been ripped from the wall. And an empty infant car seat, tossed carelessly onto its side.

He knew Sakura had adopted a baby, so the sight of the seat wasn't entirely unexpected, but it put a knot in his gut to see it kicked to the side like that. Where was the baby? And where the hell was Sakura? If that was her blood he'd been stepping across, it was possible she was hurt so badly she couldn't even call out to him.

The knot twisted tighter.

Sasuke silenced his radio. His backup wouldn't be there for at least ten more minutes, but he couldn't afford to waste any more time, especially if Sakura could be bleeding out. He stepped quickly inside, all his senses heightened, and scanned the corners of the house. There was no one in his line of sight. Ears pricked, he thought he heard some movement in the adjacent living room. Sasuke peered around the edge of the wall and for a moment, his heart stopped.

Sakura.

Blood covered her forehead and matted the side of her light pink hair. Her eyes were wide over the swatch of silver duct tape that covered her mouth; that same tape had been used to tie her hands and feet, but despite her bounds and her obvious injury she was trying to crawl towards him.

Sasuke hurried forward, careful to still keep a close watch around them, and eased the tape back from her mouth as gently as he could.

"They're upstairs," she whispered, the words rushing out with her breath.

"Who?" Sasuke asked, looking in that direction.

"I think they're kidnappers." Sasuke's gaze returned to his ex-wife, who was still struggling futilely against her ankle and wrist bands. He was tempted to leave her tied up and somewhere safe while he dealt with the situation, but one look into her fiercely determined eyes told him she'd find a way to follow him anyways.

"Get me out of these, would you?" she snapped.

Sighing, Sasuke pulled out his pocketknife and sliced through the layers. The moment Sakura was free she sprang to her feet- or rather, she tried. She stumbled and probably would have fallen flat on her face if Sasuke hadn't caught her. "Easy," he said, annoyed with the surge of memories that assaulted him with her warm body in his arms. "If you barrel up there this way, you're going to get us both killed."

Sakura blanched. He took her by the shoulder and forced her to look at him. "How many are there?"

"Two, maybe three. I saw them on the front porch and called for help, but then one of them hit me and they tied me up."

That explained the blood, but not why they'd broken into the house in the first place.

Sakura seemed to hear his unspoken question, because she drew in a steadying breath before going on. "I heard them say something… they said something about the baby," she said, voice breaking.

"Where is she?"

"Sarada's sleeping upstairs." Sakura bit her lip and tears flooded her eyes, but she forced them back. "At least, she was."

Sarada. Sasuke figured that was her adopted daughter's name. It was one of the few names they'd been able to agree upon, when Sakura had been able to get him to talk about it at all. A part of him was surprised she'd gone with it anyways.

"How about this one, Sasuke-kun?"

Sasuke looked lazily over at his wife, her nose still engrossed in the enormous book of baby names. "What about Kumiko?"

Sasuke grimaced. "You're wasting your time. We're not having girls," he declared.

"You sound so sure about that," Sakura complained. She carefully marked her place in the book, then stood up and made her way to his side.

"Why don't we find out?" she suggested, wrapping her arms around his neck.

He gave himself a mental shake. If there were two to three kidnappers upstairs, then they needed to get up there now. He listened intently but didn't hear any sign of movement; he hadn't seen any extra vehicles when he'd driven up, either. Of course it could still be a simple burglary and the men had mentioned the baby to get Sakura's cooperation, but something told him this was more than that. The house was off the beaten path, and it'd been empty for months. Sakura had only gotten in town a few days earlier, or so he thought the gossip mill said.

After their bitter split, Sasuke tried to avoid any and all gossip about his ex.

"Stay here," he commanded curtly.

She didn't, of course. Even on good days she was nothing short of die-hard stubborn, and Sasuke knew even as he gave the order she would disobey him.

He sighed again. "Hn. Stay quiet and stay behind me," he amended, and was relieved when she listened. She was still shaky and her breath was coming way too fast, but she kept pace with him as he eased up the stairs. They'd made it just a few steps from the top when the sounds of hurried footsteps and whispers stopped him cold.

"They're in my aunt's old bedroom," Sakura informed him, her breath tickling the back of his neck. "I'm using it as a temporary office."

Better there than the nursery, but that still didn't make things any safer. Sasuke eased onto the stairwell and had to take hold of Sakura as she tried to dart past him. She glared but he ignored her; the nursery was dark and quiet, the only movement coming from the room on their right. He held his breath and glanced around the edge of the office door.

The office was in shambles, things tossed and turned around all over the place. Two men dressed in black were hurriedly stuffing things into a sack, including Sakura's laptop and stacks of paper. With their backs turned they didn't notice him; Sasuke took in the guns at their hips.

"Two minutes," one of them called out. "We don't to get mixed up with the locals."

Locals. Sasuke's lips quirked. They clearly had no idea what they were dealing with. It was obvious they knew Sakura had called, but he doubted they realized he was driving right by when she'd needed him.

He glanced back to make sure she was okay and had to swallow a curse. She was inching her way to the nursery, which probably wasn't the best idea, but Sasuke had his hands full at the moment.

"You think we got it all?" one of the morons asked, still oblivious to his silent presence.

"Can't be sure," the other replied. "Let's torch the place just in case."

Sasuke didn't have time to try to warn Sakura or get her and the baby out of there. He heard a vehicle approaching. Naruto, no doubt. The dobe had the sense to keep the siren off but the crunch of tires on gravel was enough to alert the intruders because they pivoted. Their eyes widened at the sight of Sasuke standing there, weapon already drawn.

"Deputy Uchiha Sasuke," he drawled. "If you're smart, you'll drop what you're holding and put your weapons down."

Both men decided to raise their guns instead. No ordinary guns either, but weapons rigged with silencers. Sasuke threw himself to the side as one of them fired and the bullet tore through the doorjamb.

Shit.

He hadn't particularly wanted to get into a gunfight without backup, and especially not while Sakura and Sarada were still in the house. Another shot came after him and he backed swiftly into the hallway to avoid it, readying to return fire. Sakura was only halfway down the hall and he latched onto her, pulling her into an adjacent doorway. It was her old bedroom. Sasuke noticed distractedly it was decorated the same way it'd been in high school.

"The bullets could hit Sarada," she whispered fiercely, fighting to get away from him. He swore when she slipped out of his grip but she didn't run into the hallway again. She rushed to her nightstand and pulled out a handgun.

Well, that was new.

"Sasuke?!" a voice shouted. Naruto. And from the sound of it, he was already in the house.

"Upstairs," he called back. Even though the men had shot with silencers, Sasuke figured Naruto had heard the gunshots and hopefully figured out the situation wasn't good. Then bad went to worse with the sound of soft, whimpering cries.

Sasuke had to put Sakura in a body lock to keep her from racing into the hall, where the men could easily kill her by putting a bullet through her stubborn, bloody and still beautiful forehead. "Let's get out the fuck out of here," they heard one of the men growl, and Sakura redoubled her efforts to escape.

Sasuke didn't want them to get away either, but he also didn't want any more shots fired in the vicinity of the baby and his ex-wife. He pulled her to the side of the bed so he'd be in a better position to protect them both and angled himself for a good shot if the men came running past them. If they went down the hallway instead of the stairs, he'd definitely be able to put one or both out of commision before they reached the nursery. If they did run down the stairs then he'd shove Sakura behind him and give pursuit.

The seconds crawled by and no one emerged from the office, though he could still hear scrambling around inside. Sasuke's hand tightened painfully on his gun, the need to protect Sakura warring with his anger and fury at the masked men. "They're getting away!" Naruto shouted, and Sasuke let her go to race into the office. No one.

But the window was wide open.

Sasuke frowned. He hadn't spotted a ladder when he'd driven up, and a jump that high would do some damage to whoever was stupid enough to try it. "They're on foot," Naruto called from outside. "I'm in pursuit!"

Sasuke raced to the window and looked down. He instantly spotted the two men and the portable rope ladder they'd used. One of them turned and fired a shot at his head; the bullet tore through the window and sent a shower of glass across the room. Sasuke felt the sting of a cut near his eye but he ignored it and took aim.

He fired and his shot slammed into the nearest man's shoulder. The guy stumbled but his partner took hold of him and they ran toward the barn. Sasuke got a glimpse of a black SUV parked inside before both men barrelled into the vehicle and backed out. Sasuke readied himself to take a shot at the driver when he saw something else.

A second rope ladder, three windows over. Sakura screamed and he bolted out of the office and into the nursery, where he faced the sight of an empty crib and his hysterical ex-wife. "They have her," Sakura sobbed. "They took Sarada."

Sasuke pulled her back from the window so he could get a better look. The windows of the SUV were heavily tinted, making it too dark for him to see inside. But he did see Naruto. "Aim for the tires!" he yelled, but when Naruto took aim and fired his shot bounced off the bumper.

"Sasuke, please! Please go after her!" Sakura begged, and the sound was like a knife to his heart.

He barrelled down the stairs and to the door, but it was already too late. His shot hit gravel as the SUV sped away.

Everything inside Sakura was spinning out of control.

She wanted to keep screaming, to somehow force those men to bring back Sarada, but more than anything she wanted to wake up and realize this had all been a terrible nightmare. Nothing more.

"Give me back my baby, you bastards!" she yelled, but she had no idea if anyone even heard her. She felt dizzy and her head was pounding, but she held tight onto the railing and forced herself to go faster down the steps. Sasuke was waiting to catch her but she pushed past him and almost fell onto the porch, looking around frantically for any sign of Sarada or her kidnappers.

All she saw was the wall of dust the SUV's tires had kicked up as it sped out of her driveway.

"No," she said, as if by saying the word she could make it true. "This can't be happening."

"No license plates," a familiar voice called out to them, and Sakura dimly realized it was Naruto, Sasuke's best friend and partner on the force. Her best friend too, once upon a time, though she suspected that might have changed after she left town without a word to him. And ignored his calls and voicemails until they eventually went away. "I'm calling in a description of the vehicle."

Sakura knew every cop in the area would respond and try to stop the kidnappers, but she couldn't just sit around waiting for that to happen. She had to do something. Anything. Even if it meant risking her own life.

All that mattered was saving Sarada.

"We have to go after them," she begged Sasuke, who had already moved to his truck. She was willing to sacrifice her pride if need be. He looked down at her briefly, frowning.

"You need to stay here," he countered, but he didn't stop her when she threw open the passenger side of his truck and dropped down onto the seat beside him. Her fingers tightened on the gun she still held, although she wasn't sure she could see straight enough to shoot.

The memory of Sarada's cries tore through her, echoing in her head. Sakura closed her eyes and tried to make them stop. She felt tears trickle down her cheeks and heard herself say in a small, broken voice she hated, "I can't lose her."

"You won't," Sasuke said firmly.

She wanted to believe him so badly.

"Put on your seatbelt," he said, glancing over at her as they sped onto the road.

Sakura struggled to do as said with shaking hands that didn't want to listen. To the left was a dead end, to the right the main road. She prayed the kidnappers stayed on it long enough for them to find them. Her hands clenched on the dash as Sasuke steadily accelerated, the trees rushing by in a blur.

"I don't see them," she swore, cursing the sharp curves on this stretch of road. There were too many blind spots and old ranch trails on the outskirts of Konoha. Too many places where a vehicle could pull into and hide. Sakura felt like a vise was crushing her heart, slowly stealing the air from her lungs.

"Who the fuck are these guys?" Sasuke asked, and she winced.

"I don't know," she answered, shaking her head. She'd been asking herself the same question.

"Think," Sasuke insisted. "You need to tell me everything you remember."

Sakura was finding it difficult to focus on anything at the moment, but she did her best. "I came down to get a cup of coffee, and I saw two of them on the porch. But I could swear the blow to my head came from behind."

Sasuke muttered something under his breath she couldn't catch. "There must have been a third. He probably took the baby while the other two were searching your office."

Just the thought of it tore Sakura's heart into pieces. A stranger stealing her baby from under her nose while she lay trussed up with tape, helpless downstairs. Who would want to hurt a precious baby? Sarada was only just twelve months old. She hadn't even taken her first steps yet, though Sakura suspected they were coming soon. Surely no one would want to hurt someone so young and innocent? Maybe it was a ransom, then. Sakura didn't have much, but she would give them everything she had, if only Sarada was okay.

"What do you think they wanted?" Sasuke asked.

Sakura was about to go with the ransom idea, but then she froze, another thought flashing through her mind. It couldn't be that.

Could it?

"What?" Sasuke pressed when she didn't answer.

Sakura swallowed on a painfully dry throat, struggling to get the words out. "I hired a private investigator a few months ago to make sure everything was okay with the adoption."

Sasuke glanced at her and Sakura felt her cheeks heat. "I didn't do anything illegal to get Sarada," she snapped. "But… but…"

Her explanation ground to a halt as Sakura struggled to figure out just how much she should tell him. Not the whole truth, that was for sure. Not now, maybe not ever.

"You trust this guy you hired?" Sasuke didn't glance at her again. If anything his foot pressed even harder on the pedal, taking the sharp curves with dangerous speed.

"I thought I did," she confessed. "He had good references and he told me he had experience doing background checks for other families with recently adopted babies. His name is Hatake Kakashi."

Sakura felt her tears come on again. She struggled to breathe normally as her fear took hold again too, tightening its grip till it felt like it was choking the very life out of her.

"Focus," Sasuke said sharply, sensing she was about to lose it. "Did he find anything suspicious about the adoption?"

It took her a moment to get her voice working. "I don't think so. I was supposed to get a report this morning."

Sasuke cursed. "What?" she asked, dreading his answer.

"They were going through papers in your office. They took your laptop, too. They were looking for something."

Oh God. What if it had been the investigator's report they were after? If so, she hadn't even received it yet. She'd planned to check her email after that cup of much-needed coffee.

"What exactly was the P.I. looking for?" Sasuke asked, shooting her a sideways glance.

Sakura struggled to put her thoughts in order so she could answer as honestly as possible. It was difficult, not the least because she was still straining her eyes for a sight of the black SUV. "I just asked him to do background checks on the lawyers and the woman who gave birth to Sarada," she answered.

And maybe he'd found something. But what could he have discovered that would make a team of kidnappers target her baby?

"You're bleeding again," Sasuke said, sounding annoyed as he shoved a handful of tissues from a box in between the seats in her direction.

"I'm so sorry," she snapped, gingerly pressing the wad to her forehead. "I'll try not to get any of it on the seat."

Just then they rounded the next curve and she spotted the SUV. It wasn't racing ahead of them or pulled off to the side.

It had stopped right in the middle of the road.

Sasuke swore and slammed on the brakes, trying to push her down into the seat at the same time. Sakura batted him away. There was no chance she was staying out of this. Especially when she caught sight of a man dressed all in black holding Sarada.

"Wait!" Sasuke shouted when she bolted from the truck before it had fully stopped.

Lurching, Sakura stumbled to face the man. One arm was holding her baby, the other loosely wrapped around the gun. It didn't take her long to realize why he wasn't taking aim- two gunmen were in the SUV, and their weapons were already trained on her.

And on Sasuke.

Sakura was relieved to see one of the gunmen was bleeding badly.

Sasuke drew his own weapon but Sakura kept hers lowered, not wanting to antagonize them further when Sarada was so close. "Give me my baby," she demanded, hating how helpless her voice sounded. "Please, I'll give you whatever you want."

"We'll trade her for you," the man said in a surprisingly soft voice for someone so big. He towered over her, at least six feet tall with bulging shoulders. Sakura was sure he was the one who had knocked her out.

"No," Sasuke answered for her. "Hand her the baby and drop your weapons. You've got five seconds to get down on the ground."

Sasuke sounded like he always did- a man in charge with a badge to back him up, a man used to instant obedience, but Sakura seriously doubted the kidnappers would just lay down their arms and quietly do what he said.

And she was right.

The man holding Sarada stared intently at her face and she stared back, searching for some sign of sincerity. "You want to save your little girl, pinkie, I'd do what we say," the driver interjected.

"Don't," Sasuke rasped at her as she took a step forward.

"It's the only way," the hulking one said again. He even sounded sad about it. "We have to know what you learned and who you told."

Sakura stopped in her tracks, confused. "I don't know what you're talking about," she said weakly. "I didn't learn anything."

"Time's up," the driver said, pointing his gun straight at Sakura. She closed her eyes and waited for the attack to come, but it didn't. Instead the big one charged towards her. Sarada's blanket unrolled and Sakura watched, sick to her stomach, as her baby started to fall.

"Sasuke! Take her!" she cried, but he was already there. The sound of a truck skidding around the corner caught the gunmen's attention and Sakura felt the grip loosen on her arm as her would-be kidnapper threw himself out the way. Naruto had obviously taken the turn too fast; Sasuke grabbed her and threw her to the side as Naruto crashed into the side of the SUV. The air filled with the sound of metal scraping against metal and Sakura's strangled scream.

"Naruto!" she cried, torn between the desire to check on her childhood friend and the need to protect her baby.

Sasuke thrust Sarada into her arms and darted forward, motioning her towards his truck. Sakura didn't wait to be told twice; she tightened her grip on Sarada and jumped inside, ducking her head and hunching over her daughter to protect her from any stray gunshots. Miraculously, Sarada wasn't crying; she looked dazed, as if trying to figure out how so much could have happened in such a short space of time. "You and me both, sweetheart," Sakura whispered, clutching her closer.

Sakura heard the squeal of tires on asphalt, followed by a shot. She looked up in time to see the black, bashed-in vehicle coming right towards them. There was no time for her to reach the steering wheel and get the truck out of the way. Sakura braced herself for the collision, but it never came.

The driver jerked the wheel at the last second, dodging the truck before taking again to the road.

Author's Notes: Well, this is new territory for me! But seriously, who wasn't filled with suspense after reading Naruto Gaiden last week? So I decided that rather than wallow in self-pity and rage at Kishimoto, I'd turn my pain into inspiration, and (lo and behold) Deceptions was born. Also please note that this plot is greatly inspired by Delores Fossen's Reining in Justice- the whole time I was reading it I couldn't help but think what a great Sasu/Saku story it would be!

Next up: who Sarada's real parents are, and why Sasuke hasn't been around for the past twelve months (because 12 months is forgivable, Kishi, but 12 years is most definitely not).