CHAPTER 5- Preparations

The two reached Suna within the next day without any further incidents. They barely exchanged a word during their travel but Sakura couldn't say that she minded at all. The silence allowed her to carefully think about everything that happened on their mission so far, starting from her and Itachi's small argument until they found the corpses of their Anbu backup.

It simply wouldn't leave her head. She knew that many people wanted to see Itachi dead for various reasons, probably thrice the amount that disliked Tsunade as the Hokage. She knew that he used to be in Anbu as well and even though she didn't know what kind of missions he carried out, she knew very well what kind of missions were assigned to the members of Anbu. Additionally, he was the Uchiha heir and it was no secret that there were people who disliked the clan. Most loved, admired and respected the infamous clan and their Police Force and never dared to openly challenge or comment on them both out of respect and fear, but there have been quite some incidents where one would do so and in the end, pathetically beg on their knees for forgiveness.

Death was something that Sakura was more than familiar with. It was nothing that she hadn't seen yet, especially as the head-medic of Konoha's infamous hospital and member of Team 7. She didn't like it, but came to accept it as part of life that would inevitably touch all of them someday but if she could save someone and keep death away from them for a little bit longer, she would do so without any hesitation.

Sakura turned the water hot and sighed out of relief as the hot liquid run down her body and soothed her aching muscles. She was beyond grateful that Gaara didn't expect them in his office for another two hours, what left her more than enough time to take a nice long shower in the rather spacious bathroom that was connected to her room after hours of running through the hot desert under the burning sun.

The pinkette hummed softly as she turned the water off and stepped out of the shower before she shrugged her white bathrobe on. A nice shower has always worked miracles and was enough to lift her mood whenever something saddened or bothered her and as soon as her chakra would be fully recharged again, she was certain that she would be back to her best self again.

Sakura dressed into a fresh pair of clothes that consisted of a red sleeveless qipao dress with black shorts and black sandals before she tied her long, still damp cherry blossom colored hair back into a low ponytail and left the bathroom with a smile on her lips that instantly brightened up her entire face.

A knock echoed through the silent room as Sakura was about to take out one of her medical textbooks, but as soon as the noise reached her ears she stood up and went to answer it.

Halfheartedly already expecting it to either be a guard to pick her up for some unknown reason or Itachi, Sakura was surprised to see that it was none of these two that greeted her upon opening the door.

Instead, standing in front of her was a familiar young woman with her unruly sand-blonde hair tied up into four short pig-tails. Her hand was on her hips and the all too familiar smirk present on her lips as her sparkling teal eyes fell on the young pinkette that greeted her.

"So the rumors were true after all." She drawled, her smirk turning into a sharp smile. "Sakura Haruno came all the way to Sunagakure and didn't even bother to tell me about it. You probably intended to leave without telling me as well, huh?"

Sakura's smile turned into a heartfelt grin as she moved forwards to pull the sand kunoichi into a strong embrace. "It's good to see you too, Temari."

Temari, clearly taken off guard, awkwardly patted Sakura's back until the pinkette pulled away and moved aside to let her enter her room. The blonde entered and Sakura closed the door behind her before she sat down on her broad bed while Temari decided to remain standing and instead leaned with her back against the broad window that brightened the room.

"Well, what brought you to our village?" The blonde inquired, seemingly curious as she crossed her arms above her chest and gazed down at Sakura who in return shot her an apologetic smile.

"Hokage business." Was the curt answer that Sakura could offer her but just as expected Temari gave her an understanding nod in return.

"Thought so." She commented before she turned to look towards the door, brows furrowed. "I am usually the first to know whenever any of you plan on visiting us, regardless of whether it is business related or just to see my brother, so it surprised me to hear that the infamous Hokage and his side-kick were in town and that I didn't know."

Sakura couldn't help but lift her brow at her words and fought the amused smirk that played on her lips as she threw one leg over the other. "Side-kick?" She inquired with a disbelieving snort, this title clearly being a first.

She was used to being called the most different kind of names that were either related to her status in Team 7, her being the head-medic or her hair-color, but Temari was the first to comment on her position as the Hokage's advisor and assistant.

"Yes, Side-kick." Temari confirmed, her playful glare causing Sakura to chuckle. It was nice to finally have someone to joke around with again after her rather busy schedule lately and Temari never failed to make her laugh. It was a year ago when she visited Konoha as an Ambassador of Suna and Sakura was responsible for showing her around the village that the two of them grew closer. Sakura knew that Temari carried a lot of responsibilities and many burdens on her shoulders as the bigger sister of the Kazekage and Kankuro, and that was exactly why they seemed to bond so well.

Sakura herself still carried a heavy burden from her past around with herself and knew all too well how lonely the road and how heavy the weight could get.

"You're lucky, you got one of the nicer rooms on this floor." Temari commented as her bright eyes scanned her surroundings closely. "Though, it looks like you only got the second best room on this floor." Temari observed, the sarcasm that laced her nonchalant tone causing Sakura to roll her eyes with a smile.

"Oh my," Sakura drawled as she allowed herself to fall back on her bed and turned her emerald eyes heavenwards to look at the ceiling. "I wonder who got the best one."

The blonde in return hummed as she tipped her finger on her chin with a sly smile. "Such a pity Sakura, I heard that the best room even got air-conditioning as well."

Sakura groaned as she laid a hand on her forehead. "I can see why he wanted to become the Hokage. I mean Air conditioning?" The pinkette pouted as the heat in the room seemingly intensified at the mentioning of air conditioning. "If that's what you get for being the Hokage then sign me up."

"That can be arranged."

Sakura tensed and could have sworn that her heart skipped a rather painful beat as the all too familiar voice filled the room. She didn't need to turn her head to the owner of the voice to know whom it belonged to and instead, the pinkette moved her gaze to Temari who instantly caught her eye with a smirk.

Sakura's eyes narrowed accusingly at the blonde.

Traitor.

"Hokage-sama, welcome to Sunagakure." The Suna ambassador greeted the Uchiha with a bow of respect and a polite smile on her face, as required by Suna's etiquette. Itachi straightened from where he formerly leaned against the door in a leisured matter and returned the gesture with a curt nod.

"Thank you, Temari-san." Itachi replied, his deep velvet voice adding to his rather intimidating looks. "The Kazekage was looking for you, if I am not mistaken it's something regarding your brother." He told her and this time, Temari didn't even bother to hide her annoyance upon hearing the news and rolled her teal eyes at the mentioning of her brother.

"This idiot probably caused some trouble again." She muttered under her breath as she narrowed her eyes and exhaled deeply before she gave him a grateful nod. "Thank you, Hokage-sama, I shall take my leave then."

Itachi gave her an understanding nod and moved out of the doorway to allow her to pass. The blonde gave him a polite smile before she turned to look over her shoulder and offered her pink-haired friend a lazy salute. "See you later, Sakura."

Sakura, who clearly related to Temari's annoyance, sat up on her bed and shot her friend a sympathetic smile and a wave of her hand before the door fell shut, leaving Itachi and Sakura once more on their own.

Sakura pointedly ignored the heavy silence that filled the room and instead tilted her head slightly aside as she turned to look at Itachi in mild wonder. "I didn't expect you to arrive this early. Did anything happen?"

He didn't look like anything happen, but Itachi wasn't one to appear out of nowhere just to chit-chat with her. It didn't seem as if he had any injuries either, she assumed that he had taken a shower as well and marveled at the sight of his lean and muscular arms that were visible through one of the black custom Uchiha shirts that he was wearing. He wore his usual pants and a pair of black Sandals and other than the fact that he looked slightly tired.

Itachi shook his head and moved over to look out of the window, hands folded behind his back as he gazed out at the scenery. "Nothing happened, I just came to discuss the schedule for our stay. It would be wiser if we discussed it so that in case of an emergency we will know where to meet up."

Sakura's mouth formed an 'o' out of realization and the pinkette gave him a nod before she turned from where she was seated so that she could see his profile. "How long are we going to stay?"

Itachi's face didn't even show a flicker of emotion. "If everything goes according to plan, we'll leave the day after tomorrow. After we've discussed our most recent incidents and discoveries with the Kazekage, there will be a political gathering tomorrow evening which we have to attend."

Sakura narrowed her eyes, clearly confused. "We?" She inquired, wondering why she would have to attend such a gathering. Of course she knew that there were plenty of gatherings that Shizune or even her had to attend with Tsunade when she was still an active Hokage, but they usually never attended without a reason.

This time, Itachi's gaze sharpened for the smallest of bits. "You will accompany me as my advisor. There will be several other ambassadors, advisers and others of high political status attending." He clarified, and it was then that Sakura realized that something was off. All of this didn't add up and Itachi was no man who liked to do things spontaneously.

"I thought that no one with the exception of Suna's highest ranked shinobi are supposed to know of our presence here." Sakura reminded him, not liking where this was going. She already had a couple of assumptions but she needed him to confirm her thoughts nonetheless.

"I doubt that it matters now that the one's that are after us already know where we were headed." He paused. "This is why we need to turn the tide now."

Sakura tensed as her eyes darted to his. She finally understood what he was indicating and knew that this would happen sooner or later, but she never expected him to take that approach this soon.

"Got it." A sigh, followed by a humorless smile. "Guess I am in charge of keeping all the drunk ones away from you?"

The Uchiha heir now turned to fully face her as he sideways leaned against the windows til, expression blank but eyes sparkling with something that she recognized as concealed amusement. He was seemingly content with her decision to follow his orders without questioning them as she usually liked to do, but Sakura would make sure to remind him that this would not be the case all the time.

"Now that you suggest it, it sounds like an appropriate task for my advisor."

Sakura rolled her eyes, trying to seem annoyed but failed at her attempt to hide her smile. "The great Uchiha Itachi in need of his assistants help in handling drunk statesmen. This could become a bestseller."

Itachi shook his head and she barely missed the way a corner of his lip twitched upwards into a dry smirk that eerily reminded her of the one that Sasuke always wore before he turned back to look out of the window. "We don't know what will expect us, so we should be prepared, especially since many people are going to attend this event."

"Alright, if I can handle Naruto and Sasuke in their worst moods, I think that I'll be able to handle them just fine." She assured him, confident that a group of high ranked shinobi would not pose a greater problem that her two teammates to her. During her time as Tsunade's apprentice she managed to learn a lot about Fire countries politics. Whereas she never was a fan of the rather boring meetings or having to feign interest in their tiring conversations, she knew that it was important to show Konoha from its best side.

She wasn't unfamiliar with getting information either, thanks to her kunoichi training. Sakura had a knack for getting the needed information out of someone if she believed him to be suspicious or to know something of importance to them, so that wouldn't be much of a problem to her either.

"You may believe to be familiar with their way of thinking from when you attended meetings with the Godaime, but you have only scratched their surface." Itachi interrupted her thoughts, his voice cold and firm. "Every one of them has their dirty secrets that allowed them to get this far and they don't particularly like curious pinkette's sticking her nose into them."

Sakura frowned, offended. "I think that after all these years as a kunoichi I would know how to keep my intentions hidden, Uchiha-san."

Itachi exhaled, his shoulders still tense as he closed his eyes. "I wouldn't have told you to keep an eye on them if I believed you to be incapable of doing so. Stay alarmed and don't dig in too deep, a kunoichi like you is not ready to face such secrets yet."

Sakura's eyes softened ever so slightly at his words and even though she could have easily taken offense to them, she knew that they were more of a warning rather than a hit at her skills. He didn't want her to get caught up in an even bigger mess and for a moment, Sakura wondered just what Itachi Uchiha has already seen of this world.

"Why do I feel like this is the same case with you?" She inquired, her voice having dropped a few octaves lower as her eyes softened. The words escaped her before she could stop them, but she didn't regret it.

Uchiha Itachi was a reserved man of little words who liked to keep his privacy and even though he seemed like the invincible Hokage of Konoha, Sakura knew that she had only managed to scratch his surface.

There was more to him, and she would make sure to find out just what kind of man Uchiha Itachi really was behind the cold mask of indifference that he wore.

Silence followed her question and just when she thought that he may not answer anymore and brush it off, he opened his eyes to reveal blood red eyes that moved to lock with her surprised emerald ones. The black wheel was still, not spinning but since it was the first time that Sakura actually got to see it, she couldn't help but keep her eyes on his.

Sakura always was fascinated by this Blood trait and always forced Kakashi to allow her to take a look at it in hope of understanding how it worked. She knew for a fact that Kakashi's vision was slowly getting worse and it was only then that she realized that maybe the same was happening to Itachi as well.

His Sharingan was different though. She couldn't explain why, or how it differed from the others, but she just knew that these eyes have witnessed more horrible sights than they should have.

"I am no exception."

With that, he disappeared into a blur and left her on her own.

Sakura stared at the place where he was standing at mere seconds ago and laid a hand on her forehead in order to stop all the questions from filling her mind.

She never realized before, but maybe Itachi Uchiha was more dangerous than she believed him to be. Him being the Hokage only proved that fact. She has only heard rumors about the great Uchiha prodigy having been part of Anbu before he became the Hokage and the Hokage was known for their dirty business, so who knew what kind of dirty secrets he was hiding?

Now she found herself even more curious about Uchiha Itachi's life before he became the Hokage, but she was certain that her curiosity would eventually result her witnessing the Sharingans powers first hand, and that was something that she could gladly live without.

Uchiha Itachi was a mystery that would forever remain unsolved.

"My oh my, look who my dear friend the Sandman brought us this time."

Sakura rolled her eyes as she continued to walk down the corridor, completely dismissing the voice that suddenly appeared behind her. She glanced down at the staple of papers in her arms, ensuring that she had not forgotten anything that Gaara told her before she rounded a corner in hope of being able to avoid the owner of the voice.

She was in a rather sour mood in the first place and certainly didn't have the patience to deal with him now. Her clothes were sticking on her skin, her head was throbbing and her patience was running thin.

This damn Uchiha.

"Oi, Sakura!" The voice yelled before she heard hurried footsteps approaching her from until they slowed down and the person fell in step next to her. "It's not nice to ignore your friends."

She didn't even need to look to her right to know that he grinned at her in a way that would send a chill down every onlookers spine. Sakura however was already more than used to it and pointedly ignored both the grin and his mere presence in the first place.

"Kankuro, as you may have noticed I am not in the mood to chit-chat with you." Sakura sighed, praying to whoever was willing to listen that she would get through the day without breaking someone's neck. She liked Kankuro and appreciated that he simply wanted to lend her some company and brighten up her mood but right now, that was the last thing Sakura needed.

All she wanted was to get to her room, work through the papers and enjoy the silence of the evening.

Kankuro lifted a brow and hummed out of wonder as he followed Sakura towards her room. "How can anyone not be in the mood to talk to me?" He inquired in feigned disbelief, causing Sakura to snort in return.

"How can anyone be in the mood to willingly talk to you?"

"Ouch."

Sakura couldn't fight the smile that pulled at her lips and shook her head at his antics as the two of them made their way down a flight of stairs, Kankuro following her like a long lost puppy what of course, didn't go unnoticed by the kunoichi.

"Let me guess, you're bored and need someone to annoy after you just escaped Temari's attempt of beating you into a bloody pulp?" Sakura deadpanned before she blew a strand of her hair that came loose out of her face, emerald eyes fixed on the corridor before her.

Kankuro let out an uneasy laugh as he scratched the back of his head and it was then that Sakura decided to actually take a look at him and noticed that his usual attire was absent. Instead, he was dressed in a pair of black pants and a worn white undershirt that was drenched in what she assumed was sweat.

"Let's not talk about me." He said with a wave of his hand, swiftly dismissing the topic. "What got your panties in a twist this time?"

Sakura unconsciously gripped the files that she was holding even tighter and shook her head as the mage of a certain Uchiha flashed in front of her eyes. Sakura may be known for her bad temper but she would never go as far as disrespecting her elders or superiors, even though this time she was having a very hard time holding back all the curse words that teased her tongue like a feather.

Instead of unleashing them though, Sakura forced her lips to curl upwards into a sweet smile that was formally dripping in sugar as she innocently tilted her head aside and eyed him through narrowed lids.

"Everything's fine. Why would you think that something's bothering me?" Sakura asked whilst inwardly hoping that he would get the clue and leave her alone. Unfortunately, this was Kankuro and he never got the clue, regardless of the circumstances.

Kankuro snorted upon hearing her words and lifted a disbelieving brow at her, clearly not buying it. Sakura's smile fell within the split of a second and instead morphed into a displeased frown.

Well so much about getting off the hook.

"I'm fine Kankuro, really." Sakura attempted to assure him, although just halfheartedly. "It's just that a certain someone decided that it would be a great idea not to inform me about a change in our schedule, what resulted with me waiting in front of Gaara's office for an hour until he passed by and told me that the Hokage would not return before dawn and that he left me an entire stack of medical files to review so that I would not get 'bored' during his absence."

Kankuro blinked, for the first time unsure of what to say. Even though he was not unfamiliar with the duties and politics of a Kage he knew that this had to be a first, especially since it was an Uchiha that she was talking about. Kankuro bit the inside of his cheek before he poorly tried to mask the chuckle that threatened to pass his lips with a weak cough.

Sakura bristled and fastened her pace, not planning on holding this conversation any longer and much to her relief, she found herself standing in front of her room mere moments later.

Oh how she wished that Naruto was here so that the blonde could run off with Kankuro and pull some of their stupid pranks on some clueless villagers.

"Aw come on Sakura, you can't possibly be mad at him just because he wants you to drown in all these reports until he comes back." Kankuro drawled as he jogged after her in order to catch up in hope that she would not lock him out.

Sakura huffed. "Mad? No, that would be quite childish of me. Displeased and more than ready to give him a piece of my mind when he returns? Definitely."

Sakura formed the familiar signs with her free hand and was relieved when she heard the clicking sound of the door as soon as she formed the last one. Ignoring Kankuro's not-so-manly pout, Sakura pushed the door open with her hip and entered it without sparing him a glance.

"Goodbye Kankuro."

Just as she pushed the door close with more force than was necessary Kankuro placed his arm in between so that it wouldn't fall shut. Sakura's expression turned into a frown while her eyes sparkled with a mixture of annoyance and anger.

She liked Kankuro, she really did, but he was doing nothing that came even close to brightening up her mood.

"Kankuro, find someone else to annoy. I have some files right here that apparently need my attention." Sakura stated, not sounding too convinced by the last part herself but in the end, work was work. If Itachi wanted her to review the filed there was little that she could do against it.

It was part of her job whether she liked it or not and until she would get to leave on a mission with Team 7 or her help at the hospital was needed, she would have to come on terms with her new responsibility.

Kankuro pushed against the door and shot Sakura a satisfied grin when she yielded and allowed him to enter, although reluctantly.

He remained standing in the doorway though and leaned sideways against the frame, a wide grin on his lips as he eyes her up and down in a matter that made Sakura want to punch him.

"You know what, I was just on my way to the training grounds and I think that you it would be a good idea if you would let out some of that stress of yours by destroying some trees with your freaky power." Kankuro commented as he tilted his head aside. "Wanna join me?"

Sakura stilled in the middle of her room, the files in her hand burning and her expression thoughtful as she actually considered his offer. Of course she knew that she could not defy the Hokage's orders and should take care of the files first and yet, Kankuro was right. She really needed some distraction and besides, Itachi didn't bother to inform her of his departure either.

Sakura lifted her gaze from the floor to Kankuro and gave a deep sigh, already knowing that she would regret it later on.

"I'll be there in ten."

Kankuro's eyes lightened up like the candles on a birthday cake before he gave her a salute and turned around to take off, obviously content with the twist that his day had taken. "Perfect. See you there in ten, and don't you dare be late!" And with that he closed the door shut behind him, leaving Sakura once more on her own.

Sakura shook her head placed the files on her wooden desk with a loud thud. She eyed the stack of papers with calculating eyes as she contemplated if she would really manage to review all of them if she were to actually join Kankuro now.

It would be a lot of work and quite time-consuming to go through all of them. She would also need a lot of silence, patience and some food since she would most likely be forced to pull an all-nighter if Itachi wanted them revised and reviewed by tomorrow morning but then again, why shouldn't she have some fun before she would seal her death?

Besides, the political gathering was tomorrow evening as well and she would have to accompany him, all dressed up whilst pretending to get along perfectly well with the Hokage who was currently wasting not only her potential but also precious time all while using her feminine charm to get some information regarding the most recent attacks on Konoha's shinobi from some drunk and perverted high ranked shinobi.

Oh Itachi would owe her big time for this.

With newfound determination, Sakura allowed herself to smile as she put her hands on her hips and gazed out of the window, clearly content.

She would allow him to treat her like his little secretary for now, but Itachi would soon realize that Sakura Haruno was not one to be taken for granted. He may be used to get everyone do what he wanted without objecting but she would not be one of these people.

His status and position didn't matter to her and she truly hoped that he would realize this because Hokage or not, she would not tolerate to get treated like this.

She didn't train under Tsunade's supervision for years just to get stuck as his little secretary that he didn't even take serious to begin with.

If he wanted to mess with her that was fine, she would allow him to play his game until she would deem it fit to show him how to win because Sakura would do anything to win, especially if her opponent was none other than Uchiha Itachi.

"Are you certain that they will attend the gathering tomorrow, Hokage-sama?"

Itachi gave a nod as he gazed down at the sleeping village from his position on the balcony. It wasn't like they didn't expect it to happen, but to hear their informants confirm it was quite displeasing nonetheless.

It was quite unfortunate that not even one simple gathering could be held without someone causing any kind of commotion. Both Konoha and Suna were targeted the most ever since they have formed an alliance years ago and there were many who opposed to the alliance itself, the leaders of the Hidden Villages and the way they ruled.

Then again, no one would ever be satisfied with whatever they would do. Human beings were indeed a strange species.

Now that someone obviously targeted Konoha and they suspected that some of Suna's shinobi were involved it was important for Itachi and Gaara to work together from the very beginning on.

Of course Itachi didn't plan on involving Gaara in every plan and investigation, but it was important for the Kazekage to know what was going on in his country and that someone was trying to threaten the peace that they were currently having.

Gaara moved to stand next to Itachi and crossed his arms above his chest as he as well gazed down on the village, unblinking.

"Does Sakura know?" He inquired, lips pursed into a thin line as his thoughts wandered to the pink haired medic. The pinkette was an intelligent young woman that would greatly benefit Konoha and Suna's relationship even without her position as the Hokage's right hand. It would only be right for her to know of their most recent discoveries, especially since she was probably the most loyal person to Konoha there was, with the exception of Naruto and the Hokage himself.

"The less people know, the less commotion there will be." Itachi replied after a moment of silence and if Gaara was surprised upon hearing his words he didn't show it.

Whereas it was true that Itachi told Sakura to keep her eyes and ears open for anything that may seem or sound suspicious he didn't plan on completely involving her. If this was only a minor incident and they would find the one who was behind this it would only cause much more drama and gain more attention than necessary.

If this situation were to get out of hand and cause further threats to Konoha and its inhabitants however he would make sure that it would stay on the low until this problem would be taken care of. Else, the ones involved may get into further danger than was necessary.

Gaara lowered his head ever so slightly and closed his eyes. "Some things can't always remain hidden in time, Hokage-sama."

Itachi's gaze hardened. The dark circles beneath his eyes seemed more prominent, his eyes seemed colder and his posture was stiff as he spoke.

"They'll have to remain hidden until I rid the world of them before anyone else finds them."

A/N: Hmm, who else is curious and wants to know what happens on the gathering next chapter?

After ages, I hereby present you an Update!

I apologize for the long wait and hope that you'll forgive me. As always, I hope that you enjoyed this chapter and want to thank you for your support by following, favoring and reviewing!

If you liked this chapter, please leave a review and tell me so. Your reviews are what keeps me going!

All the love,

Sara