They arrived in the next village about two hours before nightfall and Sakura glanced around the mostly abandoned settlement.

"There's no one here." She said softly.

He nodded. "This village had very strong ties to the Uchiha clan. When they were wiped out most of the people here were run out as well since the neighboring villages believed that the Uchiha and those associated with them were cursed." He explained taking her into one of the crumbling houses. He pressed on a stone with the Uchiha crest on it and it shifted revealing a staircase.

Sakura lowered her head and followed him down. "The more I hear about the far reaching effects of that whole ordeal, the more I hate Donzo and that black Zetsu thing." She grumbled. Her eyes widened. "Speaking of which, do you know what happened to him, it, whatever that thing was."

"Naruto took care of him." He answered quickly. He wished he'd been the one to land the final blow against the disgusting creature that had used the Uchiha to achieve his own ends but Naruto's entire existence had also been warped by that creature's plot so he'd let it slide.

"Good." She said simply. "I was afraid the slimy bastard had gotten away while we took a moment to catch our breath after Kaguya was defeated."

Sasuke nodded and then motioned for her to be quiet as two lanky cats approached him. "Lord Sasuke." One of them purred. "It's been quite a while since you visited us."

"You aren't planning to go after that giant octopus again are you?" the second one sneered.

He shook his head. "No, though I am headed for The Land of Lightning." He replied. "I just need a basic restock for the journey."

"Very well." The first cat answered. "Does the woman with you need weaponry as well?"

He nodded and the two cats walked up to the medic and rubbed her with their heads. Marking her as an ally permitted within the hideout.

"Hello there ninja cats." Sakura said with a smile. "I haven't seen any of you in a while. Thank you for looking after Sasuke."

The first cat glanced at his companion and smirked. "I like this female much better than the last one he brought." He noted before heading down the dimly lit corridor.

"Yes. She has manners and isn't trying to rub her scent all over him like she's in heat the way the other one did." The second one agreed.

Sasuke smirked at that himself his gaze flickering to Sakura who raised a brow at him. They entered a large room and bowed to the woman wearing cat ears sitting there.

"Sasuke. It's been a while. Good to see you." She said with a smile.

He nodded and handed her a list. "Sakura, do you have a list of what you need?" he asked.

She nodded and handed the paper to him that he in turn passed to the woman. She looked over both lists nodded and then stood as she walked around the spacious room filled with ninja tools gathering what they'd requested.

Sasuke watched as Sakura walked up to a painting of the Uchiha crest and touched it gently with just the tips of her fingers. "Is something wrong?" he asked.

She shook her head. "No." she replied. "It's just… After you left I saw this symbol in my head at least one a day. The memory of that symbol on your back getting smaller and smaller as you walked away from me, of it rushing into my line of sight when you stood in front of me while protecting me, even of it next to the Uzumaki spiral as you and Naruto walked side by side in front of me." She lowered her hand. "I don't know how to explain it really. I just can't help but feel connected to it in a way, though that may seem conceited coming from an outsider like me."

The Uchiha's eyes narrowed slightly. She wasn't an outsider. She was the closest person to him besides Naruto. His blonde friend had said something similar about the symbol when he'd caught him staring at one while they went through his things that had been put in storage during their recovery from their final battle.

"I can't tell you how many times I saw this symbol in my head. How many times I chased it in my dreams." Naruto said as he held the wall hanging. "I just wanted that fan, circle, and swirl to stand side by side again."

Sasuke moved towards her and imagined the Uchiha crest on her back where the Haruno circle rested. The only woman strong enough to bear that crest and title of Matriarch of the Uchiha clan on her shoulders, was probably her. He swallowed hard at the thought. Even though he felt that way, there were many steps that still needed to be taken. Conversations to have, lines to cross, and sins to expose and forgive. Then he'd offer her the choice to wear that symbol and pray she'd take that mantel on.

"Naruto said something similar once." He said standing beside her.

She nodded and a sad smiled touched her face. "I remember when we went on our third retrieval mission to capture you. We arrived just a bit too late. Obito and Zetsu had already whisked you and Itachi's body away. Naruto…" she glanced up at the Uchiha crest. "He looked so… Heartbroken as he reached out and touched that remaining section of the wall with the Uchiha crest on it. Even through the rain I could tell he was crying. We were so close and yet you'd slipped through our fingers again." She chuckled and then glanced over at him a little smirk on her lips. "You seriously put us through Hell you know that? And you call us annoying."

He blinked at her change in tone and then shrugged. "I already apologized for that." He reminded her.

"I know." She said. "And we've forgiven you, but that doesn't mean we've forgotten."

He shook his head and walked towards the woman as she presented their replacement weaponry to him.

"Sorry for the wait." She said as he handed her the money.

"It's fine." He replied. "We're not in a hurry."

The woman nodded and then leaned forward. "So when are you going to make that girl an Uchiha?" she whispered in his ear. "A pink haired Uchiha Princess sounds lovely."

He sighed. "When I get my life together." He muttered under his breath.

The woman laughed. "Fair enough." She said before raising her voice so Sakura, who had been watching from a distance could hear. "Take care you two! Come see us again."

"Thank you very much." Sakura said with a respectful bow.

Sasuke handed her the items she'd ordered and she slipped them into her bag. With the ninja cats as their guide, they made their way back to the surface.

"Come again any time." The first cat said.

"We'll be waiting." The second one added.

The pair of shinobi nodded to the four legged sentries before setting out on the road again. After an hour of walking, they decided to spend the night in one of the somewhat intact, abandoned houses furthest from the city center. After a simple dinner of rice balls, they settled in for the night.

"Sakura, could you answer a question for me?" he asked.

"Sure. Ask away." She replied shutting the notebook she'd been jotting down notes in.

"Have you ever had feelings for anyone else?" he asked quietly. He wasn't really sure why he was asking. Maybe it was because he was becoming more and more aware of his own feelings for her. Perhaps it was just curiosity. Regardless, he became a bit anxious when she didn't answer right away.

"Yes." She answered after a few quiet moments.

His eyes widened before he could contain his reaction. Embarrassed and more hurt than he'd ever let on, he looked away. "Oh." He said lamely irritated that he couldn't come up with a better response than that.

She giggled. "I'm totally kidding." She said with a snicker. He fought the temptation to glare at her even as his heart rate slowed. "When we were younger I actually started to take a liking to Rock Lee though." She said in a matter of fact tone. "His devotion to me and determination was inspiring." She smiled. "He was there for me after you and Naruto both left the village leaving me alone. He kept me company when I got lonely but didn't want to deal with Ino and spared with me a lot. Lady Tsunade's Taijutsu focuses primarily on evasion since medical ninja's are not allowed to get themselves killed. He was the perfect choice for a sparring partner because of his speed." She explained. "After Lady Chiyo and I defeated Sasori, he was so proud of me. He went on and on about how strong and talented I was for months after. TenTen told me that during the time I was fighting, he was dealing with his own opponent but was more worried about me than himself. He helped me feel confident in my abilities when I was feeling inadequate." She glanced up at the ceiling. "Whomever marries him is a lucky girl."

"He is an exceptional ninja." Sasuke agreed. He made a mental note to thank bushy brows the next time he saw him though he was a little worried that the enthusiastic Taijutsu user would claim him as his 'eternal rival' similar to the way Guy had claimed Kakashi years ago.

She glanced over at him. "Why the sudden curiosity about my love life?"

He shrugged. "No reason. I'm guessing that means you haven't had your first kiss yet either."

"What do you mean by that?" she asked. "You lost your first kiss to Naruto just before we were all assigned to Team 7. It was a very traumatic day in my childhood."

Sasuke's eyes widened as the horrible memory of Naruto's lips on his surfaced. "That doesn't count." He snarled. "And I promise that it was much more traumatizing to me."

"More traumatizing than your second kiss with him?" she questioned with a wicked gleam in her eye.

His face paled as he stared at her. "What are you talking about?" he demanded.

Sakura giggled. "I heard all about it while we were rebuilding the village after Pain's attack. I had no idea you and Naruto had that kind of bonding experience on that mission to get that stupid statue back. No wonder you two were in perfect sync when you showed up to rescue me."

His face blazed, his jaw clenching as he vowed to pummel the loser into the ground the next time he saw him. They'd both sworn to take that secret to their graves!

Sakura laughed harder clearly enjoying his reaction. "Naruto was pretty descriptive too. He said you came up sputtering afterwards and wailed 'Why do I always end up kissing you!?'"

"That little!" he hissed. As Sakura laughed harder clutching her sides. "It's not that funny." He muttered.

"You're right. It's hilarious!" she exclaimed laughing harder.

He sighed and curled up putting his head between his knees. Damn Naruto and his big mouth.

Sakura reached out and patted his shoulder sympathetically. "It's alright." She said. "I don't hold it against you."

He sighed and straightened. "On that note. I'm off to bed." He muttered laying out his bed roll.

The pink haired medic chuckled and laid out her own before dousing the lamps. "Goodnight Sasuke." She said.

"Good night." He replied before closing his eyes. As he drifted asleep, it occurred to him that it had been quiet a long time since he'd fallen asleep so easily and quickly. He was sure Sakura was the biggest reason for that and was thankful for it.

Hours later he was awoke by the soft but distinct sound of sobbing coming from nearby. He sat up quickly and glanced over at Sakura who was curled up into a ball her body shaking with her sobs. "Naruto." She whimpered. "Stop it Naruto! I can save Sasuke on my own! I'm begging you to stop!" she hiccupped and curled into a tighter ball her hand clutching at her arm. "Naruto!" her voice trembled.

Sasuke's eyes widened as he moved quickly to her side. "Sakura! Sakura wake up!" he called out shaking her gently.

Her eyes flew open her hand reaching out for something only she could see her eyes wide with sorrow. "Naruto."

"Sakura. Look at me." Sasuke said grabbing her hand. "Snap out of it!"

The medic blinked a couple times before her wet eyes focused on the Uchiha. "Sasuke? You're here?" she murmured softly. With his help she shifted upright. "That must mean that it was all a dream." She said touching her forehead.

"Are you alright?" he asked.

She nodded and lightly brushed her fingers over her arm where he noticed the angry scar he remembered she'd received from Naruto marred her skin.

"I'm fine." She assured him standing up. "I just need some air." She said quickly slipping away from him and out the door.

He followed and stood in the doorway watching as she took a deep shuddering breath and then lifted her face towards the heavens tears still sliding down her face. Confused and longing to understand why she was in so much pain he moved forward until he knew she could sense his presence. When she didn't speak, he took it as his cue to ask what he wanted. "Sakura, what's bothering you?" he asked.

She glanced back at him for a moment before turning her gaze back to the sky. "I always go on and on about how much pain and suffering you put Naruto through," she said softly before her head bowed. "but in reality, I put him through unimaginable pain myself."

Sasuke's brow furrowed as he moved forward. "I don't understand." He admitted.

Sakura snickered. "Yeah. I didn't either until Sai came to me after saving Naruto from being killed by Karui and Omoi to enlighten me." Her tears slid from her chin and left round dark marks on the dirt. "I was so cruel. Putting the entire burden of saving you on his shoulders. Crying to him over you, all the while not even thinking about how painful it must have been for him to see me like that. I knew how he felt about me and yet I didn't even factor that in when I begged him to bring you back to me." She trembled and then fell to her knees. Sasuke ran forward and put his hand on her shoulder. "I am such a horrible woman!" she wailed. "I even used his feelings for me against him when I tried to go after you in the Land of Iron and he still saved me."

Sasuke pulled her to him letting her head rest against his chest. "No one can make Naruto do anything he doesn't want to do." He said gently. "Whatever he did for you, he did because he wanted to. Whatever pain you caused him, he accepted willingly because he loves you just like he loves me. None of that is your fault."

Sakura's jaw clenched, a little sound of frustration sounding in her chest. Knowing her stubbornness, Sasuke simply held her until she shifted in his embrace.

"I'm sorry about that." She said standing and wiping her eyes. "I remember now." She said with a soft smile.

"Remember what?" Sasuke asked.

"Something Captain Yamato told me once." She replied walking back towards the house where they were staying for the night. "It was at a time where I was upset and frustrated with myself. I wanted to help Naruto so badly but I could only do the little things anyone could do. He said to me, 'It doesn't matter whether the things you do for him are great or small. What matter is how much you care, really care about Naruto. I can tell just by watching you Sakura, just how much you care.'" She glanced back at him and smiled. "We should go back to bed."

He nodded and waited until she was settled in before laying down himself the words she'd spoken replaying in his mind. She had suffered in a way he could never fathom. As much as she desperately wanted to, and he knew just how badly she wanted to, she'd never be strong enough to truly protect him and Naruto the way she wanted to. He himself was a man of action, always front and center, refusing to back down when it came to what mattered most to him. Naruto was the same. Sakura who was a medic and a woman and just didn't have the same massive amounts of chakra he and Naruto did would never be able to truly stand as their equal. She was the one waiting in the wings to heal their wounds and lend them support while they handled the most deadly opponents. However, what she didn't seem to realize was how much her presence alone strengthened them. In fact, when he'd arrived at the village to save her, he'd taken the ANBU members moving towards her location down with speed and accuracy that he'd never before experienced outside of his battles alongside Naruto. His desire to protect her and to fight for her gave him that strength. He had realized then that fighting for someone else gave a person far more strength than fighting for himself. He'd known that as a Genin even from their mission to The Land of Waves when his speed had increased exponentially when he'd realized the rouge ninja were targeting Sakura and she was in harm's way. He'd felt it when he'd rushed in to save Naruto on that same mission taking the rain storm of needles himself. He rolled over and watched as Sakura's chest rose and fell gently as she slept and felt a sense of protectiveness seep into his being. As long as he was still breathing, he would protect her no matter what the cost.

#%#

They arrived in the port town two days later and quickly secured passage on a boat to The Land of Lightning. Sakura had once again smoothed their way since the captain was initially wary of the Uchiha.

"Well, if he's your escort it can't be helped Miss. Haruno." The seasoned sailor said with a sigh.

Sakura nodded and smiled. "Thank you very much."

"You're welcome. We'll depart at dawn tomorrow." He said handing her a list of supplies. "Make sure you get everything on this list."

"We will. Thank you very much." She said with a small bow.

She walked away from the dock with Sasuke by her side and passed the list to him. "That's a lot of stuff." She muttered.

He chuckled. "It's a long voyage to The Land of Lightening." He said. "You haven't been?"

She scowled. "No. Ever since the war, I've been kept in the village for the most part with helping re-establish the Konoha Orphanage with Kabuto, establishing the new hospital with Ino, treating those who needed long term rehabilitation after the war." She sighed. "I've hardly been allowed to leave the village on missions over the past three years since the war ended."

Sasuke cringed a little at that. He'd never thought of his travels as a luxury. He'd been moving around so much since he'd left the village it was second nature. As he looked over at her, it was clear that she'd felt a little suffocated by her duties in the village. "If it's any consolation, you've been to the moon. I haven't been there."

Sakura chuckled at that. "That's true enough. Though I'll let you know right now, you're not missing out on anything. It's as boring as you would expect it to be. Not that we were there on vacation or anything. In fact, we were almost blown up along with the moon."

The Uchiha sighed. "I hadn't heard that."

"You don't hear much of anything when you're gone all of the time." She said with a grin. "It was pretty funny. Kurama wrote a message on the moon's surface to keep the Kage from firing that cannon at us. He was whining about how writing wasn't his thing." She chuckled. "Who knew that such an ornery fox had such a sense of humor?"

Sasuke nodded a little pang of guilt striking him. He knew that his journey was important but it had also been a selfish move on his part.

They moved through the market place gathering supplies until it their stomachs reminded them that they should eat.

"What do you want to eat?" Sasuke asked. "We won't be able to eat fresh food while we're at sea." He reminded her.

She nodded. "That's true. Maybe some-"

"Sakura!? Sakura Haruno!" a voice called out.

Sakura's eyes widened sweat beading on her forehead at the sound. Sasuke's brow furrowed at the sight. His eyes widened as a man he'd never seen before dashed towards the kunoichi with open arms. Acting instinctively, he stepped between the two his arm outstretched as he stopped the man in his tracks.

"Do you have some business with my companion?" he demanded of the man. He was an attractive looking man with light blue hair and dark eyes.

"Sakura! My sweet honey I've missed you so much!" another young man this one with blonde hair and big green eyes exclaimed leaping forward from where he had hidden behind the other man and wrapping his arms around the medic. "I've dreamed of this day so many times."

"So it's Sakura." Said a third man stepping out. He had jet black hair and piercing amethyst eyes. "Fancy meeting you here? Not that I'm happy to see you or anything." He added looking away from her.

"Sakura, who are these people?" Sasuke asked.

She groaned and hung her head. "The inspiration for Naruto's reverse harem jutsu." She muttered as the men moved together.

"We are the Three Gems of the Land of Ogres." The first one said with a toss of his blue hair. "I'm Yukki."

"I'm Sota." The green eyed man said with a sweet smile.

"I'm Ichiru." Said the black haired man.

"I'm Sasuke." The Uchiha said simply. "Now what business do you have with Sakura?"

"Our paths crossed fatefully many moons ago." Yukki said dramatically. "Sakura along with her team of strong, but not so attractive men saved us from certain death." He moved closer and caressed her cheek. "The sweet cherry blossom of The Leaf and I were locked in a passionate embrace for some time. My body has never forgotten your touch." He murmured leaning towards her with pursed lips.

Sasuke's eyes widened his muscles tensing as he reached out to pull the man and Sakura apart but she reacted first.

Sakura's fist shot out and hit the man in the face knocking him back several feet. "I warned you when we last met not to touch me without permission." She said firmly.

"You're even stronger than last time!" Sota exclaimed clasping her hand his eyes wide, his baby faced grin wide. "I wish I had an older sister like you." He said with a sigh.

"You're still as creepy as ever." She muttered.

"What brutality." Ichiru said with a smirk. "Not that it turned me on or anything." he added blushing slightly.

"Seriously…" she grumbled. "Can you guys leave us alone? We're busy."

"No! My darling please allow us to treat you to dinner." Yukki begged staggering to his feet rubbing his face. "We owe you our lives."

Sakura groaned. "For crying out loud." She muttered. "I'm not interested."

"That's right. Your heart belongs to another. One who slipped away like a thief in the night leaving you and your heart in pieces on the floor." Yukki said dramatically his eyes shimmering with tears. "Just thinking about it makes my own heart ache. Oh how I wish you would allow me to comfort you and make you forget that phantom of a man, if only for the night." He said with a seductive waggle of his eyebrows.

Sakura sighed and smacked her forehead with her hand. "Of all the things for you to remember." She muttered. "You remember me using my own body to regulate your body temperature and that story Naruto told you trying to get you to back off."

Sasuke glanced over at her. He knew exactly who the man was referring to. It was himself, but the story had changed since then. When he left The Leaf without her most recently, he'd made sure she knew he intended to return to it and see her again.

"Team seven saved these three on our way back from an unauthorized mission to save Kakashi Sensei from Hiruko." She explained.

"Hiruko?" he repeated.

Sakura nodded. "I know that you were on the move then but I'm sure you noticed when that creepy mummy looking guy appeared in the sky and talked about starting the Fourth Great Ninja War?"

Sasuke nodded. "I never realize that Kakashi was one of his targets." He admitted.

"Yeah, well anyway. We were flying back on one of Sai's birds when we spotted these three being tossed into a lake with rocks tied to their feet by some thugs." She explained. "We managed to pull them out before they drowned and treated their wounds. As it turned out, they're a group a traveling performers. A boy band." She said motioning to the trio.

"Yes we are!" Sota said cheerfully. "Our latest album is currently the 12th bestselling album in The Land of Lightning where we just returned from our tour."

"Yeah." Sakura said with a nod. "As you've probably guess though, they're also huge playboys. Even that one." She said motioning to the innocent looking green eyed man. "Apparently, they seduced a pair of twins that happened to be the daughters of one of the strongest mob families in the village they were staying at. As you might guess, their father wasn't very pleased to find them in his princess's room and promptly had them disposed of."

Sasuke sighed and shook his head. The group was clearly as idiotic as they looked. The sound of screaming caught his attention and he turned to see a group of energetic looking girls moving towards them.

"Oh my gosh! It's the Gems of the Land of Ogre's and the famous war hero Sasuke Uchiha!" one of the girl's exclaimed.

"Kya! They're so hot!" another screamed.

"Ladies, calm yourselves." Yukki said with a bright smile. "There's plenty of us to go around, right boys?"

"You girls are so cute." Sota said with an innocent smile.

"I guess it wouldn't be so bad to hang out with such loyal fans." Ichiur said with a flip of his hair.

"Let's go Sakura." Sasuke said.

"Right." She replied moving with him through the crowd.

"Wait right there!" Yukki exclaimed grabbing her by the arm and pulling her back into him. "I promised to spend the evening with you my cherry blossom." He murmured gazing into her eyes.

"I'm fine really." Sakura said flinching a little under the cold gazes of the jealous girls. "Thanks though." She glanced at Sasuke, her eyes flickering to the roof.

Reading her intentions, he nodded and slipped a tiny smoke bomb from his pouch and tossed it to the ground. There was a flash, bang, and smoke filled the air covering the two ninja's escape to the roof tops.

"That was so ridiculous." Sakura muttered as they crouched together on a nearby balcony.

"I miss the days when people avoided me like the plague." The Uchiha admitted.

"Oh no! She's vanished! Sakura!" Yukki wailed. "My love for you will never waver! Until we meet again my sweet cherry blossom!"

"If we ever meet again, it will be too soon." She muttered.

Sasuke smirked as he scanned the town streets below, his eyes focusing on a quiet restaurant several blocks from the boy band members and their fans. He remembered it from when he'd come through with his own Team Taka. It was a little seedy, but everyone kept to themselves.

"Let's go there." He said pointing to the establishment.

"That's fine with me." Sakura said. "As long as we're away from those boy toys."

He chuckled and led the way across roof tops to the restaurant's front doors and slipped inside. The bartender glanced up his eyes widening a little at the sight of the Uchiha. He quickly smoothed his expression and nodded giving the former avenger the go ahead to enter. Sasuke nodded back and walked with Sakura to a back table.

"This is much better." Sakura said with a little sigh as she slipped her cloak from her shoulders.

He nodded. "I've been here before." He said glancing over the menu.

"Any suggestions on what to order then?" Sakura asked.

He shook his head. "Order whatever you want. I'd suggest something besides seafood though since we're going to be living off of it for most of our voyage."

"Good point." She agreed glancing over the menu.

A barmaid came and took their orders shooting Sasuke several heated looks as she did so before returning to the kitchen.

"Before we leave tomorrow. We need to send letters to The Leaf." Sakura said as she sipped on a cup of green tea. "I managed to finish rewriting the formula for the medicine that woman gave us using herbs from our continent."

He nodded. "Yeah. The seas are dangerous no matter what time of year you travel. It's best they know where we're headed and with who."

"As long as I don't have to wake up in the middle of the night and save a circus during a typhoon, it'll be fine." She said with a smile.

Sasuke cocked a brow at that. "I imagine there's a very interesting story behind that." He said as the waitress delivered their food.

"Oh there is." She assured him with a wink.

He nodded and she opened her mouth to explain when a man came up to their table.

"Sasuke Uchiha?" the man inquired.

The ink haired ninja glanced over at the man. He was tall and lanky with light blonde hair and baby blue eyes. The man was dressed in a simple ensemble of a grey tunic and black pants but Sasuke could tell by the quality of the man's shoes, gloves, and gold chain around his neck that the man was much wealthier than he appeared at first glance.

"Who's asking?" he replied shortly meeting Sakura's eyes across the table. He heard the barely perceptible click as she opened the holster on her leg and the subtle clink of metal hitting metal as she armed herself. He felt a sense of satisfaction that she wasn't as vulnerable and trusting as she'd once been even as he wished there was no reason for her to be that way.

"There's no need to be so tense." The man said raising his hands palms forward. "I'm not trying to cause trouble."

"Then what do you want?" Sasuke replied his voice a touch dark. Hardly anyone of the male gender approached him without wanting something from him. It was usually either a fight or a proposition to do something underhanded. Based on the man's well-kept appearance he was fairly certain it was the latter.

"I just wanted to give you my thanks." The man said with a smile. "In The Land of Iron I was having trouble with a samurai and he was killed by your hand during your attack on the Kage Summit a few years ago."

He tensed at the mention of the time and place that marked one of the lowest points in his life so far. The blood thirsty, rage filled, vengeance obsessed person he was then, was a person he never wanted to be again. He noticed Sakura tense at the mention of that time as well and felt a pang of guilt. He'd nearly taken her life then too.

"Don't thank me for that." He said quietly. "That incident is not something I'm proud of."

The man raised an eyebrow and shrugged. "Suit yourself. Anyway, I was hoping that you could take care of something for me."

Sasuke studied the man. He was right, the man wanted something from him. "What is it you want me to do for you?" he asked.

"There's a Feudal Lord name Ichigo Kuran who lives in The Land of Lightning. He's been suffocating my trading business with his ridiculous regulations and restrictions lately. I was hoping you could take care of him for me." The man said. "My name is Sanji Inumori. I own Inumori Trading. I can pay you any amount you want in exchange."

"By 'take care of' you mean assassinate right?" Sasuke said his eyes narrowing slightly.

"Naturally." Sanji replied. "He's heavily guarded by skilled Cloud Ninja 24/7."

The Uchiha sighed and shook his head. "I can't help you." He said. "I'm not a rouge ninja anymore. In fact, I'm on a mission for The Leaf and as you can see, I'm not alone."

Sanji glanced at Sakura and gave her an obvious once over. "I see that. She's lovely." He said with a smile. "Well, if you're sure, it can't be helped." The man said turning away from their table. "What a disappointment. I was sure you were a smarter man than that Sasuke Uchiha."

The former avenger's eyes narrowed at the slight hint of malice in the man's voice. Sanji was clearly sending the message that he didn't intend to take no for an answer for long.

"I'll see you again I'm sure. Take care." The blonde said before he swept out of the restaurant.

"Sasuke?" Sakura said softly.

"We have something else to add to those letters of ours." He replied picking up his chopsticks. "Be on your guard. I'm sure we haven't seen the last of him." He warned.

She nodded and picked up her own chop sticks and began to eat. He could tell however that something was bothering her. After a few moments of silence, he sighed.

"What's wrong?" he asked.

"Sasuke, does that happen often?" she asked.

He nodded. "I'm good at that sort of thing and operated on the opposite side of the law for years. It's not surprising. There are many who think that I'm just pretending to be repentant to stay out of prison and secretly take requests for missions like that one the side." He smirked. "Some people say I'm as heartless as Zubuza."

Sakura nodded once in understanding before she resumed eating. "Speaking of Zabuza, is that teammate of yours still after that sword? Kakashi was talking about returning it to The Village Hidden in the Mist."

"Probably." He replied thinking of the shark toothed man. "I don't think it really matters where the blade ends up. From what I understand, that blade in particular has been wielded more often by rouge ninja than Mist Village ninja and Samehada is in the hands of Killer Bee now."

"That's true." Sakura said tapping her lip with her chop sticks. "Naruto told me that Killer Bee offered to return it but the sword is so attached to him, it was decided that he'd keep it for now."

Sasuke nodded even as his mouth watered at the sight. He wanted to push the bamboo away and trace that full bottom lip with his thumb, touch it with his own lip, taste it with his tongue… He took a deep breath and shook his head willing the images from his mind even as heat pooled in his belly and rose towards his face. He clenched his jaw, he was not a pervert like Naruto!

"Is something wrong?" Sakura asked noticing the color on his cheeks. "Are you not feeling well?" she asked moving the sticks from her mouth.

"I'm fine." He assured her quickly. "Let's hurry up and get back to the inn. We have to be up early tomorrow and we still need to send off those letters."

She nodded. "Right."

The next morning came bright and early. Sasuke was awoken by Sakura's light tapping at the door. He sighed and let her in as he tried to wake himself up.

"It's so funny. You and Naruto seem like polar opposites but one thing you both have in common is your hatred for mornings." She said with a smile as she poured him a cup of tea.

He took the warm liquid from her hands and sipped it gently sighing softly. Green Tea in the morning was the best way to wake up in his opinion. "He was late way more often than I ever was." He muttered as he shuffled to the bathroom and washed his face.

"Well yeah." Sakura replied from the other room. "That's because you're way more disciplined than he's ever been." she said. "He's a total night owl too. Captain Yamato used to complain about it, especially while helping Naruto with his training."

"I didn't know that Yamato trained Naruto as well." The Uchiha replied gathering his toiletries and stowing them in a travel case. He quickly changed his clothes and walked out into the main room where he found Sakura pushing the folded futon into a corner. She was probably used to doing the same thing for Naruto on their missions.

Sakura smiled at him as he walked in the room. "Well, it wasn't exactly like that." she said as she stood and pulled out the letters that she needed to send to Konoha. "Naruto was pushing himself to his limit while developing his Rasenshuriken jutsu. When he went too far, The Nine Tails would start to take over. Yamato has the ability to suppress and control that chakra so he had to be present at all times during Naruto's training sessions."

Sasuke nodded as he finished packing his things. Naruto had experienced his own intense hardships while training to become stronger. His old self had refused to see that and could only feel envy and jealousy when he saw how far Naruto had become.

"Are you ready to go?" Sakura asked. "I had most of our stuff taken to the docks already."

He nodded and pulled out the two letters he'd written and tied them to Sakura's bundle. "Is this all you need to send?" he asked.

She shook her head and pulled out the vial of medicine Aria had left with her. "I have this as well. Will it be too much?"

He shook his head. "No. It should be fine." He formed a few seals, bit his thumb and slammed it on the table top. "Summoning jutsu!" he exclaimed.

Mistuhide, his messenger of choice appeared and stretched his wings throwing feathers around the room. He slipped the vial along with the letters into the pouch on his back and walked across the room and opened the window.

"Take that to The Leaf." He instructed.

The hawk clicked its beak once before soaring out the window.

Sakura slipped her bag over her shoulder and waited for him to walk out the room first before closing the door behind both of them.

"How do you do that?" Sakura asked as they left the Inn.

"Do what?" he asked.

"Hand signs with one hand." She replied as they walked down the quiet streets towards the docks. "I remember when you were stuck to Naruto and complained about not being able to weave signs or infuse your chakra."

Sasuke inclined his head. "Well, to be honest a lot of it is because my rinnegan." He explained. "Even the mangyko sharringan has helped tremendously. I used to need to have both active to accomplish one handed hand signs but I've overcome that for the most part."

"Interesting." Sakura said as they arrived at their boat. "I didn't realize it held so much power."

He nodded and then chuckled. "I have the eye of a demon on one side and the eye of a god on the other. Not many people can say that."

The medic chuckled. "I don't think anyone else in the world can say that honestly."

They boarded the boat and within an hour had set sail heading towards The Land of Lightning. Sasuke couldn't help but smile at the emerald eyed girl's enthusiasm as she pointed to the dolphin's leaping alongside the boat and giggled when they splashed her. He watched as her pink locks danced in the wind a soft smile on her face as she looked out across the water. She was beautiful, any man who said otherwise was blind or biased. She tucked her hair behind her ear and glanced back at him her smile widening.

"Sasuke!" she exclaimed motioning for him to come closer. "Look there!" she said pointing to something beneath the water.

He moved closer and watched as a large humpback whale rose up beside them, spraying sea water into the air is it breached the surface of the water and dove again.

"It reminds me of that jutsu Kakashi picked up from that snow ninja." He said as the creature disappeared from his sight.

Sakura nodded. "I was thinking the same thing." She said with a smile. "It was pretty wild." Again she turned to study him. "Sasuke, why is it that you can use your sharringan so much easier than Kakashi could?"

Sasuke blinked and turned leaning against the railing of the ship. "I can't be sure, but I have a few theories." He replied. "For starters, the Uchiha are born with special chakra already inside them, specifically in their brains. Generally speaking, it doesn't do anything except for increase our natural reflexes unless we experience something emotionally traumatic. At that point, our mental and emotional distress triggers that chakra's release which in turn activates the sharringan. Since Kakashi isn't an Uchiha, he doesn't naturally have that chakra."

Sakura nodded before her brow furrowed. "If traumatic experiences is what triggers the sharringan manifestation, why didn't yours activate earlier."

The Uchiha nodded. "I wondered that myself. The only thing that I can think of is that I experienced that trauma through Itachi's mangeyko sharringan. Since I didn't experience it first hand, it didn't activate, at least that's what I think. I'm not sure." She nodded and he returned to her original question. "Back to Kakashi, the body of an Uchiha is also a little different from that of most shinobi. Those from our clan are generally tall, lithe, and nimble the opposite of the Akamichi clan who are short, thick, and strong. Our build allows us to move faster than average to keep up with our sharringan." He explained. "If you'll remember, when I first activated mine, I was injured a little more often than normal for a while. It was because my body couldn't keep up with my eyes and my brain. It happens to every sharringan user at first. Kakashi's body just isn't quite as nimble nor does he have that different chakra in his brain to increase his mental stamina. Those are the only reasons I've been able to come up with besides the obvious fact that he only had the sharringan in one eye."

"That make sense." Sakura said touching her chin.

He glanced down at the ground. "I noticed when I fought Donzo that he didn't have the same trouble as Kakashi but he hardly ever used the eyes he stole in battle. Even then, he used that arm made with the First Hokage's cells to wield it and the Senju were known for their off the charts stamina."

The medic's fist clenched at the mention of the one time Hokage. "That man…" she snarled. "The things he did still make my blood boil. I doubt I'll ever fully forgive him. Not for ruining Sai's childhood, not for treating Lady Tsunade like a second rate Hokage, not for treating Naruto like a mindless beast, and never for authorizing the elimination order on you." Her jaw clenched. "He treated everyone that didn't think the way he did like they were the enemy. Slimy bastard." She snarled.

Sasuke nodded. "I'll never forgive him." He said softly remembering how Donzo and his underlings forced Itachi into a corner where he was forced to choose between his clan and his village. "His death by my hands is the only one that I feel no remorse for."

Sakura glanced over at him and reached out touching his arm gently the smile on her face and softness in her eyes telling him that his feelings didn't bother her, nor scare her.

After a few moments Sakura spoke again. "So, did you know that Guy sensei gets terribly sea sick?" she said with a smile.

He blinked and shook his head. "No way. He can do all those crazy flips and turns with no trouble but riding on a boat makes him sick?"

The medic grinned and nodded. "Yes. He was so upset when he found out that I not only have medicine for seasickness but a jutsu for it as well."

He snickered. "Well, it was probably good for his ego to take a hit like that. He's a more of a reckless idiot than Naruto."

Sakura nodded her eyes lowering to the deck. "Damn Madara." She muttered. "Guy will never walk again thanks to that bastard."

Sasuke's eyes lowered as well. "You were never able to find a way to restore his ability to walk?"

She shook her head. "Lady Tsunade, Shizune and I poured over every single scrap of research we could get our hands on. We even reached out to Orochimaru. Not even that snake could come up with a solution to restore Guy's legs. Well, besides that body snatching jutsu of his and we all know that Guy would have turned it down flat even though Lee would have offered up his body no questions asked."

"That's unfortunate. He was an exceptional shinobi." Sasuke said.

Sakura sighed and looked up at the sky. "He technically shouldn't be alive. The fact that he's still with us is enough."

The Uchiha nodded. "That's true. At least there's that."

The medic glanced out across the sea. "You know, I think there will always be fighting." She said. "It's human nature, it's how we progress. Even a child in the womb kicks and pushes against its mother in order to gain the strength needed to survive the birthing process." She leaned forward. "Even so, I hope for world peace the way Naruto envisions it. A world where we progress together through friendly competition and mutual respect." She smiled and braced her forearms on the railing of the ship. "That's one of the reasons I founded the Children's Hospital and helped Kabuto rebuild the Konoha Orphanage. I want to help Naruto create that kind of world where there is always love and help available to you if you want it." She lowered her head. "I don't want children to have to grow up the way you, Naruto, Kabto, Kakashi Sensei, Sora, Gaara and Captain Yamato did. Alone, and vulnerable to the whims of those who would shun them or exploit them for their own ends. Even though I wish I could do more, it's all I can do for him using the skills I have."

Sasuke touched her lightly on the arm. "What you're doing and have done is more than enough." He said softly. "There's no reason for you to exhaust yourself trying to solve every single problem by yourself." He glanced up at the sky. "Everyone has their own place. It sounds like you've found yours."

Naruto was the one who united nations of people. He had the amazing ability to befriend anyone, even his enemies. He was loud, confident, strong, and drew people to him like a magnet. A fool who was beloved by all. His unique ability to tackle the hardest problems no matter the odds and come out on top was almost unnatural. He was the Hero who would eventually become Hokage like he'd always dreamed with the respect of millions and protect everyone he cared about like he desperately wanted to. Naruto was well on his way to achieving his rightful place in the world.

Sakura had also risen high above her peers and was now recognized as one of the top kunoichi in the world only steps behind Lady Tsunade, and Mei Terumi both women who had held the title of Kage. When they'd first met, she was intelligent but weak making her an average ninja at best in comparison to the other ninja graduates in their class. Now she was a medic whose medical skills were rapidly encroaching on those of her teacher's. She'd been essential to the world's recovery after the war healing their physical injuries and setting up places of healing and refuge for those who had suffered emotionally and mentally from the war as well. A world class authority on medicine and a fierce front line fighter who had landed the final blow against Kaguya before he and Naruto had sealed the progenitor of chakra away. He was certain that The Leaf Village and the world as a whole would continue to rely on her skills for years to come.

His teammates were both invaluable assets to the world they lived and were working to create a better future for all. In the past he had been in the lead, always sure of his purposes and goals. Now, he wasn't sure where he fit in, in the new world they were creating. He was a talented ninja of course. Even without his right arm, he knew he could defeat any enemy. In fact, he was certain that no one could defeat him, except for Naruto of course. Even so, he had a dark and bloody past and extensive knowledge of the darkness. A man like him couldn't light the path for others to follow like Naruto, nor could he heal them body and soul like Sakura. There had to be something that he could do even as a man shrouded in shadows to support and protect those who were most precious to him.

"Sasuke?" Sakura said pulling him from his deep thoughts. "Are you ready to eat? The cook announced that lunch is ready."

"Yeah." He said stepping forward. A particularly large wave hit the boat as Sakura took a step and she stumbled. He reached out and steadied her and she smiled at him.

"Thanks Sasuke." She said using his arm to right herself. "You're a lifesaver."

He blinked at that and shrugged as they walked towards the door that led to the galley of the ship. Him a lifesaver? Wouldn't that be nice?

#$#

Sasuke sighed as he stretched his arm high above his head, his feet on solid ground for the first time in weeks. The rocking of the sea hadn't bothered him much, but he was definitely better suited to the life of a ninja than that of a sailor. He'd much rather race across the earth or swing through the trees than sit on a boat.

"I am so sick of sailing." Sakura groaned walking up to his side her shoulders slumped forward.

The Uchicha snickered. "We're barely half of the way there." He said as they walked into the island port town.

Sakura shuddered and sighed. "I suppose I should enjoy the sensation of earth beneath my feet as long as possible then huh?"

He nodded and walked beside her through the busy streets. "We need to stock up on supplies and rest while we're here." He reminded her. "We're only staying until sundown."

"Right." She agreed. As they walked, a flash of purple caught her attention and she stopped smiling at a beautiful amethyst and mother of pearl pendant displayed in a jewelry store window.

"What is it?" Sasuke asked following her line of sight to the exotic looking item.

"It reminds me of Ino." She said with a little smile. "That's all."

"You two get along better." He noted as they continued down the street.

Sakura nodded and chuckled. "I suppose we do. We both mellowed out a lot after the chunin exams." She said with a smile. "In fact, I was the one who taught her medical ninjutsu."

Sasuke's brow raised at that. "I'm surprised she allowed that." He admitted.

The medic chuckled. "To be honest, she wanted Lady Tsunade to teach her but I was already her apprentice and between teaching me and being Hokage, she just didn't have time to take on another beginning student. Shizune was busy as assistant to the Hokage and running the autopsy and surgical units of the hospital so she couldn't teach her either. In the end, she didn't really have a choice but to let me teach her."

The Uchiha nodded. Her skill and conduct continued to surprise him. Out of the three of them, she was clearly the best suited to be an instructor. He was sure that she'd probably be a great Genin trainer if she ever decided to take on that role.

"So has Kakashi ever approached you about becoming an Instructor?" he asked. "You are a jounin now after all."

Sakura shrugged. "He's mentioned if a couple of times but I've been so busy, I never really seriously considered it. I suppose I wouldn't mind being a teacher." She mused. "Even so, I think my research and work with the hospital is more important right now."

He nodded and then noticed a sweets shop nearby. "Do you want to stop there?" he asked motioning to the little snack stop.

Her eyes lit up at the sight of it and she nodded. "I'd like that." She said with a smile.

He nodded and they sat down inside the tea and dumpling shop. She ordered the sweet dumplings, while he ordered rice. The hostess returned minutes later with their food and hot tea thanking them for stopping in.

"Why did you choose this place?" Sakura asked as she picked up the wooden skewer with three dumplings in pink, green, and white from the plate and popped one into her mouth.

"I remembered that you like sweet things." He replied as he started in on his rice.

"Oh, I didn't realize you'd noticed." She replied with a brightness in her eyes that he'd been seeing more and more often lately. He recognized it from their genin days. The light in her eyes that shone whenever she managed to get him to spend time alone with him no matter how short that time was. He wasn't exactly sure what it meant, but she seemed happier.

She finished the other three and smiled at the sweetness that was surly a nice change of pace after all the salty seafood they'd eaten over the past few weeks. He himself wasn't a fan of sweets but he remembered that Itachi was quite fond of them, a fact that struck most as odd. Sasuke wasn't surprised though. His older brother was a ninja without equal but he was also sweet and pure in heart. The fact that his favorite food reflected that was almost comical.

Sakura lifted her tea cup to her lips and sipped it deeply reminding him of his own thirst. He picked up his cup as well and was about to take a drink when his companion suddenly slapped the cup from his hand sending it crashing to the floor.

"Sakura?" He questioned. She wasn't the type to do something like that for no reason, and he was immediately on guard. His eyes widened when her elbow hit the table heavily bracing her forearm against the table as she reached with a shaky hand into the pouch on her belt.

"Poison." She rasped. "The tea, is poisoned."

His eyes widened as he suddenly went on high alert his sharringan activating as he searched for the perpetrator. He hissed in frustration when smoke suddenly filled the shop. He reached for Sakura's arm and leapt forward as it was tugged out of his grasp. "Sakura!" he called out searching for her through the smoke. "Sakura where are you!?"

Sanji Inumori chuckled as he appeared before the Uchiha with an unconscious Sakura in his arms. "I told you we'd meet again Sasuke Uchiha. Will you please reconsider my request?"

"Bastard!" he hissed. "Let her go! She has nothing to do with this!"

"On the contrary. Protecting this girl is your mission from The Leaf correct? If I take over that duty for a little while, it'll free you up to do what I asked right?" he said in a smug matter of fact tone that had the Uchiha's blood boiling.

His jaw clenched as he funneled his lightning chakra into his hand, the telltale sound of hundreds of birds chirping filling the space as his Chidori crackled dangerously.

"I won't ask you again." He growled his knees bending as he prepared to attack.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you." Sanji said shifting Sakura in his arms and gripping the medic's chin in his hand. "I'll snap her neck like twig if you make another move towards me."

Sasuke's blood ran cold as the image of Kakashi's kunai at his throat surfaced. His teacher's words resonating in his mind.

"Sakura! Kill Naruto or Sasuke dies!" the copy ninja commanded. "Now you're stuck with an impossible choice."

Damn it all to Hell. He took a deep breath and let the lightning retract back to his core.

Sanji smirked. "I knew you were a smart man Sasuke." He crooned. He pulled a folded piece of paper out of his pocket and tossed it to the Uchiha. "Here's all the information you need."

Sasuke picked it up and glared at the business man. "Fine. Now let her go."

"I think not." The man said with a grin. "Like I said before I'll be taking over your job of looking after her so you have time to complete my little side mission. Don't worry, I take very good care of every lovely lady I meet." He said laying his nose against Sakura's blush colored locks. "Such a pretty little thing." He mused. Sasuke's hand balled into a fist, his rage threatening to ignite the man's note. He focused his chakra, preparing to cast genjutsu on the man at the first opportunity and rescue Sakura but was distracted when an explosion rocked the small Tea House forcing him to close his eyes against the light and debris.

"I'll see you soon Sasuke? Try to be quick about it alright? I'd hate to see what would happen to this girl if I got bored." He threatened before vanishing with a pop.

"No! Sakura!" he cried out using a blast of wind chakra to clear the smoke. When it cleared, both she and the man were gone. "Damn." He hissed before closing his eyes. There wasn't time for him to curse the circumstances or wonder how the man had slipped past his defenses. Sakura was a hostage and his top priority. He could figure out everything else later. He had been called by many a genius of the ninja arts, it was time he delivered on that.

His eyes enhanced by the sharringan memorized the message on the note in an instant. Sanji wanted him to kill the feudal lord and then deliver proof in the form of the man's finger bearing a ring that marked his rank. The man had even been thoughtful enough to enclose a recent photograph of his intended victim and instruction on how to get to both the Lord's estate and his mansion. Thinking quickly he raised his hand and focused his chakra quickly creating a shadow clone. His double glanced at him already knowing his plan and took off down the street. Sasuke concealed himself among the rubble waiting until he was sure his double had been spotted by several people before slipping down an ally and sprinting towards the harbor.

He knew that one of the reasons he hadn't noticed the man's proximity was because of the miniscule amount of chakra he had. From the time he'd activated his sharringan, he'd relied on his enhanced eyesight and sensory ability to help him quickly ascertain an enemy's strength based on their chakra level. It had been quite a while since he'd had to deal with someone slipping past his defenses by simply being too weak for him to notice their presence. In fact, had the man slipped away on his own, he wasn't sure even his mangyko sharringan and rinnigan would be able to track him. However, he'd taken Sakura with him, and he knew the green light of her chakra better than almost any other. Tracking it down would be child's play and then he'd make the fool pay for not only trying to use him for his own ends, but for putting one of the only people in the world he truly cared about in danger. His eyes narrowed as the trail ended at the water his eyes cast out over the ocean as he searched for the boat she was on and only finding the trail continuing past his line of sight. It didn't make sense, a sailing ship should not have been able to get that far ahead of him, that quickly.

"Did you miss your boat son?" an old sailor asked walking up to him.

"No but I think my companion got on the wrong boat." He said casually. "Can you tell me what boat was docked here?" he said motioning to the places where faint traces of Sakura's chakra signature hung in the air.

The old man scratched his beard and then nodded. "Ah yes. That's where that fancy new boat from Inumori trading was docked a moment ago." He explained. "I've never seen a boat move so quickly. Almost like it's flying across the water. That one took off in a hurry too. Are you sure your friend is on it?"

"Positive." Sasuke replied. So that was how it had gotten away so quickly. Even so, he wasn't bound to the water and the earth like that fool. He could take to the skies, knowledge that wasn't common, especially in the underworld that he'd worked to distance himself from over the past couple of years. The man's ignorance and arrogance was going to be his undoing.

Glancing at the sky he nearly smirked at the gathering clouds. They would provide the perfect cover for his pursuit. He formed seals and bit his thumb slamming it to the ground. A giant hawk appeared on the deck and the old man jumped back in surprise as Sasuke quickly mounded the bird as it took flight. Using his Susanoo to fly wasn't worth the chakra particularly since he was charging into the situation partially blind. He knew next to nothing about Sanji Inumori's power. He doubted the business man himself would be no problem. Though he was young and charming, he gave off the same aura as Gato. Slimy and unwilling to get his hands dirty unless he had to. Given his wealth, he likely had some hired muscle. He'd have to be careful not to underestimate his resources or the situation.

His hawk glided high into the sky hovering just below the cover of the clouds as he followed the green chakra trail towards the Land of Lightning. After several hours, he felt fatigue beginning to seep into his being as he kept his eyes activated the darkening sky adding to the strain.

"Lord Sasuke, there is an Island up ahead." His hawk said. "You should rest there for the night."

The Uchiha's jaw clenched. The bird was right. He needed to rest his eyes and his mind. He knew better than most what happened when a ninja let their emotions override their sound judgement. Mistakes were made, injuries were received and in the worst cases, lives were lost. He was not Naruto Uzumaki, an emotional risk taker, with the stamina of a work horse, the life force of a cockroach and the devil's luck. He couldn't afford to go on recklessly and risk both his and Sakura's safety.

"Fine. Take us down." He instructed to animal.

It screeched in response and glided towards the small spec of land. Sasuke leapt from its back and landed among the tree tops. A quick scan with both his sharringan and rinnigan told him that he was the only human on the island and he quickly dropped to the forest floor. He leaned against the trunk of a large tree and glanced up at the ink colored sky, pinpricks of light beginning to appear in abundance.

Sakura was not a weak woman. She was one of the strongest warriors in the world. The last time he had come rushing in to save her, she had already saved herself. Yet in spite of all that, he couldn't stop the uncomfortable jittery feelings in his stomach, the anxiety brewing like an angry thunder storm in his mind. She was a ninja, a medic, a war hero, but she was also a woman who had been knocked out by drugs and was in the hands of the enemy. His jaw clenched at the thought of all of the horrible things the man could be doing to her while in such a state. Knowing that the best way to save her was to rest up and continue the pursuit in the morning did little to ease his mind even as his body began to give in to the exhaustion. As his eyes drifted closed he lifted his head to the heavens and silently pleaded with is deceased brother to look after the girl until he could get to her before slipping into a fitful sleep.

The next morning, Sauke rose with the sun. He popped a couple of food pills into his mouth and quickly chased them down with water and took a deep breath. His eyes slid closed as he focused his chakra and then snapped open again. Relying heavily on his rinniagan he pushed with his chakra, a circle of increased awareness rapidly expanding with him at the center as he searched for Sakura's chakra signature. Within just a few moments, he pinpointed the medic's location roughly fifty kilometers from his location. From what he could tell with his advanced sight, she was no longer in motion and was very much alive, the flicker of green bright though he was too far away to sense anything more than that. He also knew that his shadow clone was still in commission which also eased his mind. His plan was going well so far. Now he needed to press onward to where Sakura was being held.

He opened his eyes and quickly climbed to the top of the nearest tree and summoned his hawk again.

"Are you rested Lord Sasuke?" the bird asked.

"Yes. Now move quickly." He instructed the animal. "We have quite a distance to travel."

"As you wish." The bird said soaring through the air near the clouds.

The Uchiha focused his rinnigan as he flew gauging the strength of his enemy as he flew his brow furrowed in concentration as he sensed the differing chakra levels of those who were gathered around Sakura. Though their numbers were large, roughly five hundred, he sensed that none of them had much chakra, not even compared to Sakura who had the least chakra in Team Seven. He nearly smirked, taking care of the guards would be child's play. He'd defeated one thousand before without landing a killing blow years ago. It was going to be easier than he anticipated. The man was rich, but naïve and arrogant. It was going to be his undoing.

Just before nightfall, he arrived just outside the gates of the massive mansion. He swept the grounds pinpointing Sakura's chakra in a room beneath the main house, likely in a basement room of some sort. Now that he was much closer, he could sense wavers in her chakra indicating that she was distressed in some way. She'd been in the enemy's hands for more than twenty four hours now and that was more than enough time for something to go wrong.

He paused and took a deep breath. If he were Naruto, he'd probably break down the front doors of the estate and yell at the top of his lungs for Sanji to give Sakura back or he'd kill him. Then he'd fight all the guards that came at him with his normal recklessness and trash the place before swooping in and rescuing Sakura and befriending the business man, leaving as unlikely friends. He nearly smirked at the mental picture in his head before his face turned back into his usual mask of indifference.

He wasn't Naruto. Wasting time and energy on a tactic like that wasn't his way of doing things. He had one goal, to rescue Sakura. Nothing was coming between him and that goal, however if anyone was fool enough to try to stop him, he wouldn't hold back. Storm clouds gathered above him and he took one more deep breath. Now it was time to go.

He waited in the shadows until the changing of the guards and slipped inside the gate. Using the natural talent that he'd increased through years of training and life experience, he slipped into the mansion undetected following the green glow of Sakura's strong, warm, healing chakra while avoiding as many others as he could. Those who crossed his path, he immediately put under genjutsu ensuring no one sensed nor alerted others to his approach. He frowned when he arrived at what looked like a kitchen storage room. He could sense Sakura's chakra coming from someplace nearby, almost directly beneath his feet. Glancing around, he spotted a barrel filled with wheat. The barrel and even the contents of it weren't out of place but, the marks on the floor showed that it had been moved frequently. With little trouble, he shoved the barrel out of the way revealing a hidden door. He pulled it up and dropped lithely to the ground below carefully avoiding the pressured triggered trap at the bottom. He glanced around the narrow hallway searching for any guards and cautiously moved towards a set of doors at the end of the hall when a sound he hadn't heard in years and had never wanted to hear again graced his ears turning his heart to stone and his blood to flames. Sakura's cry of pain, he'd know it anywhere.

His jaw clenched as he sprinted forward knocking the pair of guards standing at the doors unconscious with two quick strikes with the back of his hand. He stopped by the door and crouched down peering through the keyhole to see what was going on inside.

To his furry, he saw Sakura bound in chains against a wall her eye blackened and fresh blood dripping from her lip. With his advanced vision, he could see that the shackles that bound here were infused with sealing jutsu, likely the only reason she hadn't freed herself. Her clothes were dirty, torn and in disarray. She coughed, fresh blood splattering to the floor as she gasped and glared at the blonde haired man before her.

"I'll ask you once more. What is the security code to get past the protective barrier around The Leaf Village?" the man demanded tapping a riding crop in his hand.

Sakura said nothing, her eyes nearly ablaze with her determination and anger.

The man sighed. "More silence huh? I'm a little surprised, the last kunoichi I captured gave up her secrets easily." His hand flashed forward, crop in hand and struck the woman across the face.

Sasuke's hand clenched against the door even as he fought to stay behind the door. What the man did wouldn't kill her and he'd make him pay for it later. Now, he needed to know what the he was up to.

Sanji stepped forward and grabbed Sakura by the chin forcing her to look at him again. "Such a lovely face." He murmured his voice husky. "Oh how I wish you wouldn't make me hit it so often."

Sakura kept her eyes away from the man, refusing to look him in the eye. "You can torture me until I'm within an inch of my life, but I will never betray my village." She said softly though her voice was laced with venom.

The man smirked. "That's very commendable of you but I don't intend to destroy the village, just one clan in it. They're only second rate at best anyway, I'm sure you wouldn't mind. In fact all I want is the heir. Kiba Inuzuka."

Sakura's eyes narrowed. "So that's who you're really after." She said softly. "I thought your whole story about wanting Sasuke to assassinate that Feudal Lord seemed off. He's not a rouge ninja and was publically pardoned for his crimes. You're smart enough to know that he wouldn't willingly muck that up by getting his hands dirty with work like that. What you really wanted, was to separate us because you thought that I was the weaker of the two. You tried to act like you hadn't even noticed my presence when you walked up to Sasuke on purpose. All you wanted to do was get me alone thinking that I would crack and give you the information you wanted."

"You're a clever one." Sanji said with a grin. "Now then, Kiba Inuzuka's life isn't worth all of this right?" he said slamming his fist into her solar plexus with enough force to make her cry out in pain, but not enough to knock her out. "Just tell me please."

Sakura smirked. "You don't know how big of a mistake you've made." She said softly. "In fact you know nothing about me, Sasuke, Kiba or The Village Hidden in the Leaves." She glared at him. "First of all, Kiba Inuzuka is my good friend and comrade. We've fought and trained side by side from the time we were children. There's no way in hell I'd betray him to scum like you."

"Bitch." Sanji growled hitting her across the face again.

The pink haired medic didn't even flinch. "Sasuke is one of the smartest men I've ever known. He'd never fall for such an obvious trap. I'm sure he's on his way here now, if he hasn't arrived already." She said her eyes filled with fire.

The blonde's brow twitched the veins near his temple popping out under the skin. "There's no way." He murmured. "I received word just an hour ago that he was sighted in The Land of Lightning headed towards the estate I drew on a map."

Sakura didn't even react to the man's words. "And last of all, my teacher hits way harder than you do. This is nothing."

The man moved to hit her again and Sasuke, having gathered all the information he needed burst through the doors and caught the man's fist as he was about to strike her again.

"Hit her again and I'll break your arm." He snarled.

"Sasuke!" Sakura exclaimed her voice tinged with relief and excitement.

He nodded and kicked the man hard in the stomach before slashing through the chains that bound her hands and feet with his sword. She staggered forward and he caught her waiting until she'd regained her balance before using his lightning needles to unlock the shackles at her wrists and ankles. "Are you alright?" he asked.

She nodded. "I'll be fine." She assured him taking a defensive stance. "We need to do something about this guy, he's after Kiba. That mission he wanted you to do for him, is a fake."

He nodded. "I heard everything just now." He stepped between her and the man who was shakily getting to his knees. "Heal yourself and rest. I'll take care of him." He said his eyes flashing dangerously.

"I can still fight." She assured him. "I owe this guy a beating for the crap he's put me through."

The man staggered to his feet and snickered. "I thought you were enjoying it though. Most kunoichi are into that S and M stuff right?"

Sakura's brow twitched at that. "Pervert." She hissed her hand balling into a fist.

Sasuke noticed the weakness in her stance and glared at her. "Heal yourself now." He demanded. "You'll only slow me down if you try to fight in that state."

He expected a sharp retort or even a blow to the face but instead, she sighed and dropped to her knees her hands glowing green. He nearly shook his head. She'd been in much more pain than she'd let on. No that her courage wasn't commendable, but her wellbeing was his top priority at the moment.

"If you let us go peacefully and promise to stay away from The Leaf and there won't be any problems." Sasuke said focusing on the business man again.

Sanji chuckled. "Like I believe that." He said. "Now that you know who my target is, there's no way you'll stay quiet about it." He pulled something silver from his breast pocket and lifted it to his lips.

Sasuke tensed preparing to counter a projectile attack when the man blew into the object surprising the avenger. His eyes immediately widened when a large chakra signature suddenly came racing towards them, barreling down the hallway towards the room they were in at breakneck speeds.

A dog of massive proportions burst into the room snapping and growling as it crouched in front of the businessman. Sasuke's eyes widened as Sakura scrambled to her feet and moved to stand behind him. His eyes quickly took in the animal's chakra levels and nature. It was one of the largest he'd seen in an animal.

"Good boy Fang." He said with a grin. "Now, take them down!"

"We can't fight him here." Sasuke said as he kicked the giant beast back. "There's no room. We have to get outside."

"Right." Sakura agreed.

"Run for the door as soon as I give the signal. I'll follow after you." He said focusing his chakra. He wasn't sure if the technique he was about to try would work, but he was hoping that even if it was imperfect, it would be enough to distract his enemy. Pulling on the nature based energy left inside of him by Kabuto and using his sharringan and rinnigan to recall and knead his chakra, he formed three hand signs. "White Rage Jutsu!" he exclaimed.

A white dragon leapt from his open mouth with an orb in hand and twisted around it turning into a blinding ball of light while high pitched screeching filled the small basement room. He dashed out of the room as Fang yelped and cowered on the floor, Sanji's eyes clamped shut and his hands went to his ears as he fell to his knees.

"What is that terrible sound?" Sakura demanded above the noise as he caught up with her.

He ignored her question for the moment and grabbed her by the arm, pulling her faster down the corridor to the trap door exit. He half pushed, half threw her through the opening and then quickly followed slamming the door shut behind them. The jutsu was incomplete, he'd expected as much considering he hadn't trained in the Sage Arts the way Kabuto had. Though it had form, it wasn't nearly as potent and wouldn't last as long as the one Orochimaru's favorite lap dog had used during his battle against him and Itachi. Even so, he was hoping with the dog's amplified hearing and sight that it would effect it more and give them more time to escape.

"Sasuke! What's the plan?" Sakura demanded as they sprinted down the corridors of the estate.

"We need to get outside." He said kicking open the door of a room and dashing inside. He threw the window open and slipped out with Sakura right behind him. "If we put some distance between us then it's less likely that innocent people will get dragged into it. We'll have to fight him though. That thing was a ninja hound. There's no way for us to cover up our scent."

Sakura nodded as they nimbly scurried up a tree near the window they'd escaped from and took to the roof tops sprinting across the wooden beams and terracotta tiles. "This place is pretty isolated and I've placed most of the guards under genjutsu." Sasuke explained defecting an arrow shot at him and throwing a kunai with a paperbomb attached in response. It sunk into the wood under the watch tower and exploded sending those in the tower crashing to the ground.

Sakura nodded and then shrieked as a dog leapt at her. She dodged the canine's attack and whirled around planting her heel solidly in its chest and kicked it to the ground.

Sasuke glanced back and clucked his tongue in irritation. Sanji apparently had several ninja hounds at his command. Having grown up with Kiba, a skilled ninja hound user and being Kakashi's, son of The White Fang of The Leaf and ninja hound user, pupil had given him a lot of exposure to dogs. However, neither men's ninja's hounds were as ferocious as the ones pursuing them. They were borderline wild in their attacks, going after vital spots like the throat instead of immobilizing spots like arms and legs like what he was used to.

Sakura was holding her own against the vicious pack of predators, her chakra infused fists and feet decimating their numbers as the animals forced the pair to the ground. They stood back to back eyes quickly darting around the courtyard where they'd landed.

"Any suggestions?" Sakura asked throwing a kunai at one of the beasts the knife sinking into the dog's forehead before it collapsed dead.

"If we don't defeat their master, they'll just keep coming after us." Sasuke replied. He stepped in front of the kunoichi and focused his chakra, bringing the electricity at his core to the surface. The familiar sound of birds chirping filled the air as his hand blazed electric blue before swiping his hand across the air. "Chidori Senbon!" he exclaimed as thousands of electric needles whipped through the air striking their targets and taking out most of the hounds.

"Only a few more to go." Sakura said tugging on her glove. "Brace yourself." She warned her partner as she leapt into the air and focused her chakra around her fist. "Cha!" she exclaimed driving her fist into the ground. It cracked as easily as glass beneath her hand and sent the remainder of the hounds flying where they fell to their deaths or were buried under the rubble of the earth and buildings that crumbled around them.

Sasuke smirked at her show of strength. She had grown so much. He truly was proud of the warrior she'd become.

"What have you done to my servants!?" Came Sanji's voice as he appeared before them his eyes almost feral as he stared at the bodies of his hounds.

"Were we just supposed to stand still and let them kill us?" Sakura questioned her brow knitting together. Sasuke nearly snorted at that.

"You… You… Damn brats!" he growled.

"What a creative insult." The kunoichi muttered as she went back to healing herself.

Sasuke glanced over at her. He never remembered her being so talkative in battle. It was probably something she'd picked up from Naruto. That loser couldn't shut up no matter what the situation. He'd lost track of the times Kakashi had told him not to taunt the enemy.

His train of thought was broken when he noticed the man creating seals. It was a set he knew well. "Be on guard." He reminded his partner as Sanji bit his thumb and slammed it to the ground.

"Summoning justu!" the man exclaimed.

Sakura settled into a defensive stance as Sasuke straightened his brow furrowed. The output of chakra wasn't matching the amount he was sure the man possessed. As Sanji pulled a four legged beast the size of an ocean liner from who knew where, he realized that he had linked his chakra network to that of the dog he'd incapacitated with Kabuto's jutsu. He frowned, his jaw clenched as the massive dog with bared fangs and what looked like armor cover his body sank down on his haunches, low growls shaking the ground below. To his surprise, Sakura smirked and stepped forward smacking her fist against her opposite palm.

"Big and ugly." She murmured. "Just the way I like them."

His brow wrinkled as he glanced over at her. "What are you talking about?" he asked.

"This kind of big thing is no match for either of us." She said with an almost cocky grin. "We've got my fists and your Susanoo in case things get too dangerous. I'm not worried about winning this fight at all. I've got your back, and you have mine right?"

He blinked and then smirked himself. She was absolutely right. There was no reason for them to be overwhelmed by the size of their adversary. They'd both faced down much stronger and scarier before. "You're right." He agreed pulling out his katana. "Let's do this."

"Devour them!" Sanji shrieked and the animal leapt forward.

Sakura charged in first and leapt into the air slamming her fist into the animal's helmeted head shattering the metal protection and sending the dog face first into dirt. It yelped and staggered to his feet shaking its head as it wobbled.

"You're going to have to do better than that pup!" she growled as she leapt again and slammed her foot into its chest destroying its breast plate. "Pain's centipedes had more bite than this!"

Sasuke charged in after her as it tumbled backwards and slipped between the canine's legs slitting through the tendons with his sword. The beast roared in agony and tried to stand up barely balancing on three legs. Sakura attacked again from the roof top peppering the animal's back with paper bombs. They detonated bringing the animal to its knees again. It whipped its head in agony and frustration knocking Sakura back into a wall.

The Uchiha's eyes followed her as she quickly jumped to her feet. "I'm fine!" she called out wiping the blood from her face that trickled from a superficial cut in her forehead. "Finish it Sasuke!"

He nodded once as he funneled his electric chakra into his hand and extended it, shaping it into a long sword. With one quick stroke of his arm, he decapitated the beast and it fell to the earth defeated.

He quickly dashed to Sakura's side. "Are you alright?" he asked.

She nodded and winced. "Just a cracked rib. Nothing major." She assured him as her hand glowed green and pressed to her side.

"You…. How dare you!?" Sanji roared. "I'll make you pay!" he shouted his hands forming signs.

Sasuke watched them carefully, his lips turning down into a frown when he didn't recognized them.

"What's he doing?" Sakura asked. "There's no way he has enough chakra to summon another creature that size."

"It's not a summoning." Sasuke replied putting his hand on her back as he moved protectively in front of her. "I've never seen this before."

"Decades ago, my clan the Inumori clan was hunted down and eliminated by the Inuzuka clan who had aligned themselves with The Hidden Leaf Village. Do you want to know why?" Sanji asked.

Neither ninja spoke as the massive ninja hound that had arrived with the whistle call rose and staggered towards the man.

"It was because they hated our secret jutsu. One that they only discovered after breeding us powerful ninja hounds for generations. It enraged them, shall I show it to you now?" he murmured with a manic gleam in his eyes as he formed the last symbol. "Secret Ninja Art, Man Beast Merge!" he exclaimed.

Light exploded around him and the hound and the sound of howling filled the air, chilling the two shinobi to the bone.

"Sasuke, something's wrong." Sakura said softly. "His chakra…"

"I know." He replied. "It feels and looks foul."

The light faded and they stared in horror at the creature in front of them. "For some reason, the disapproved of us combining our forms with that of our hounds." Sanji said.

"What do you know? Warewolves do exist. I'll have to tell Captain Yamato, and Naruto that the next time I see them." Her eyes widened. "Wait a second! Captain Yamato heard that story from Tsume. Kiba's mother!" her jaw clenched. "It makes sense. She said that the Inuzuka's originally came to The Leaf Village to help them with tracking but did so under the condition that The Leaf help them eradicate a clan of Werewolves that hunted and ate their ninja hounds and handlers. This must be the clan they were talking about."

Sasuke frowned. "Looks like they missed at least one." He muttered. He activated his sharringan and focused on the man's eyes pushing with his chakra to place the man under genjutsu. To his surprise, he found nothing but a thirst for blood in the man's mind. It appeared that the dog's psyche was taking over and unlike the Tailed beasts and other summoned animals, there was no form of higher intelligence for him to grasp and manipulate. Not quickly enough anyway. The only way he'd be able to defeat the creature was to kill it or separate the two. He wasn't even sure how to do the first. His body tensed as his own personal feelings to make the man pay for what he'd done to Sakura rose within him interrupting his calculated analysis of the situation.

Sanji laughed and then howled as the moon began to rise behind him. "I'll rip you to shreds!" he roared before flashing forward at near inhuman speeds his sights set on Saakura.

Sasuke' with his sharringan active immediately reacted and grabbed his teammate by the arm and yanked her out of harm's way. He grunted in frustration when Sakura yelped her leg grazed by the wolf man's attack. She back flipped and then charged up to the roof in an attempt to let him take over the fight, but Sanji stayed right on her trail slashing at her with his claws. She crouched low and slid her leg out towards him but he leapt out of the way of her kick and came barreling at her again. Again she leapt and flipped out of harm's way, the creature's claws ripping through her shirt just below her ribs as she tumbled down the roof.

Sasuke quickly peppered the man with Chidori Senbon and Sakura dropped down beside him. "He's too fast." She panted. "Inuzuka offensive attacks are famous for their speed. It seems this man is the same." She gritted her teeth and pressed her hand against the rib that she hadn't had time to fully heal. "I'm sorry Sasuke. I can't keep up and his target it me. It's all I can I do to doge him, there's no way I can counter."

"It's fine." He assured her. "Leave it to me. You don't think I've just been sitting here watching your game of tag did you?" Sakura's eyes narrowed for a moment and then widened as thunder rumbled overhead. "This weather is perfect. I didn't have to waste any chakra to make this storm."

The man-beast charged again intent on Sakura. Sasuke lashed out and knocked the man back with the back of his sword.

"Sakura! Get away from here now!" he instructed. She nodded and immediately took to the roof tops sprinting towards the open ocean in the distance. Sanji rose to follow her but Sasuke kicked him back. "Your opponent is me now." He snarled.

"The woman. I want that woman. I need to see her blood." Sanji panted droll slipping from his wolfish mouth. "Give her to me!" The monster lashed out at him grazing his abdomen with his claws. He winced at the pain and dashed towards the wall. "Where did you send her?! Give her to me!"

Sasuke's eyes narrowed as he quickly flipped up to the highest tower looking down on the court yard where the man stood his hand raising towards the sky. He felt and heard the lightning crackle in response gathering above him.

"What? What is this!?" the wolf man his animal instincts alerting him to the danger. "What are you plotting!? Kiba! The woman! Give them to me!" he roared leaping towards the tower.

"Be gone with the thunder clap." Sasuke said softly flicking his wrist forward. "Kirin!"

Lightning exploded from the sky with a blinding flash and ear shattering crash. The Uchiha looked down at his opponent his eyes narrowing slightly at the scene. It appeared that the ninja hound and Sanji had begun the separate joined at the waist with their heads and torso's separated. It reminded him of some of Orochimaru's experiments and a feeling of disgust and pity welled up inside him. He dropped down beside the man and his eyes opened at the sound.

"Go ahead and kill me." He rasped using the last of his chakra to separate himself fully from the hound. "If I can't avenge my clan, I'm worthless as an Inumori."

Sasuke stared down at the man and couldn't help but see the shadow of his former self in him. "If you really want to die, I can make that happen." He said. "But if you die here, that's the end of the Inumori's legacy. Is this really how you want them to go out? Even if you recover and manage to get your revenge, it will only further stain the names of your ancestors."

The man's eyes widened before they shut. "What would you know about it?!" he snarled.

"Everything." Sasuke replied calmly. "Have you forgotten who I am? I'm Sasuke Uchiha, the last Uchiha. I lived my entire life seeking revenge after my brother slaughtered our clan. I was so sure that killing everyone that had plotted against us would somehow restore their honor and make their deaths mean something. In the end though, I realized that I had only sullied our clan's name and honor further with my childish mindset. No matter how many people I killed, not a single one of my clan members were revived. No matter what schemes I pulled the fact that I was the last Uchiha did not change. Hate only breeds more hate. Only by breaking that cycle was I able to see how pointless that path I was walking truly was."

Sanji's eyes widened. "What do I do then?"

"I don't know the answer to that myself." He admitted. His eyes lifted as a flash of pink moved towards them.

"Sasuke!" she exclaimed dropping down beside him. "Are you alright?" she asked reaching out with a green tinged hand to the place where blood trickled down towards his hips.

He nodded. "I'm just fine." He assured her when the superficial wound healed almost immediately with the coaxing of her chakra.

"What a relief." She said with a smile. Her gaze turned to the other two. "What should we do with them?"

"No need to worry about that." He said. "My shadow clone already alerted the authorities. They're nearly here."

Sakura chuckled. "As usual, you're one step ahead of the rest of us."

He nodded and her gaze shifted to the man lying on the ground. "Go ahead." He said. "I don't think he's interested in revenge anymore."

Sakura nodded and knelt down healing chakra flowing through her hands and into the man's body as she worked to heal his most serious injuries. After a few moments, he pushed her hands away.

"Fang." He said softly glancing over at the hound.

She nodded and moved over to the dog her hands glowing green. After a few moments, her eyes widened and then fell. "I'm sorry." She said softly. "He's gone."

Sanji's eyes widened and then filled with tears. "I see." He said softly. "So that's why it was forbidden." A bitter laugh left his throat. "I understand now why the Inuzuka clan was so disgusted with the Inumori's."

Sakura moved her hands back to him and continued her work. "I am sorry for what I did to you." He said.

She merely nodded before standing up again as officers from The Land of Lightning appeared. "We're here to take Sanji Inumori into custody." The leader said.

"Thank you for coming." Sasuke said.

Sakura nodded and then stumbled as she took a step forward. "You overdid it." he said supporting her as he assessed her condition with his sharringan. "You're almost out of chakra."

The medic sighed and leaned against him. "Sorry Sasuke." She murmured.

"The ship you chartered is waiting at the shore." The officer said after watching the exchange. "You should probably head there and get Lady Haruno the care she needs."

Sasuke nodded and pulled Sakura's arm across his shoulders. "Are you ready?" he asked. She nodded and together they made their way to the dock where their ship was waiting.

"Sorry for the inconvenience." Sakura said as he helped her onto the sailing vessel.

"Don't apologize." The captain said with a little smile. "I'm just glad to have you back with us." His gaze shifted to the Uchiha. "I take it that you took care of the man that kidnapped her?" Sasuke nodded. "Good, in that case, get her into bed. The cook is already working on something nutritious but light for her. We'll continue towards The Village Hidden in the Clouds from here."

"Thank you." Sasuke said before walking Sakura to her room using his arm to steady her. "You're so reckless." He said as he helped her lay down.

"Give me a break." She muttered. "I spent over 24 hours being tortured by a creep and then battled a dog the size of a whale."

He sighed and pulled the blankets over her. "True enough." He agreed. It was his fault. He hadn't been able to protect her.

She glanced at him and smiled. "Don't make that face." She said. "It's not the first time I've been captured and tortured and it won't be the last I'm sure. It's part of being a ninja, especially as a kunoichi." He glanced down at her a little confused by her words and she chuckled. "Come on now. When we were split up by gender for certain classes during our academy days, you didn't think that us kunoichi were studying fashion and makeup while you boys practiced your shuriken jutsu outside now did you?" she glanced up at the ceiling. "As women, we're generally physically weaker than men, have lower pain tolerance and most of us have less chakra. It's a fact that can't be avoided. Because of that, we're usually the first ones targeted for capture. Kunoichi have to spend more than twice the hours with the interrogation core members learning how to resist torture compared to you boys."

"I didn't know." He admitted.

"Of course not." Sakura said with a chuckle. "Why would you?"

He shrugged and headed to the door. "I'm guessing the only sleep you got was when you were under the effects of that sleeping drug?" She nodded. "Ok, then go to sleep. I'll bring you your food when it's ready."

"Thank you Sasuke." She replied before closing her eyes as he closed the door behind him. He walked down the hall and mounted the stairs to the deck. He moved to the bow and took a deep breath, letting the wind whip through his hair. His hand gripped the railing with almost enough force to bend it as he fought to control his anger. He knew that most decisions made in anger caused regret. He knew that killing the fool for kidnapping and torturing Sakura wouldn't solve anything and set him right back on the path of revenge that he'd worked so desperately to distance himself from. Even so, the burning feeling in his chest only became hotter.

"Damn!" he hissed clenching his jaw.

Being stuck on a boat with no outlet was only intensifying the feelings of frustration brewing inside him. He glanced towards the cloud covered sky, the storm he'd used in his recent fight swirling above him. Now that he was a little older and much wiser, he realized that taking a life was just as easy as sparing one, the hard part was knowing when to do which. Even though he was sure he'd made the right decision, the anger inside him at the man's actions lingered. Regardless of what anyone thought, Sakura was precious to him. Seeing her in such a state left him raw and aching inside. The fact that he'd left her in a similar state with his own hands seemed to burn him even more now that his feelings for her were intensifying and changing.

"You should come inside before you catch your death." The captain said walking up to him. "The cook is probably done with Lady Sakura's food as well."

"Right." Sasuke said returning inside the ship. He shook the rain from his ink colored locks and walked into the galley.

"Ah, Mr. Uchiha." The older man with a kind smile said. "I have food here for you."

"Thanks." He said taking the tray. "What about Sakura's?"

"Go ahead and eat first." The cook said. "If you don't you'll fret over her and end up forgetting to eat yourself. Besides, she's probably sleeping."

The Uchiha sighed and then nodded sitting down at the small table. He ate the rich stew slowly letting the warmth seep into him. He glanced up when the cook carried over a plate of tomatoes cocking a brow when the old man winked.

"I heard from a pretty lady with pink hair that these are you favorite." He said walking back towards the kitchen. "Since we were docked for a little while, I decided to venture out and pick some up for you."

"Thanks." Sasuke said popping a red slice into his mouth.

"She's a good woman that Sakura." The man said as he went to work cleaning up the dinner dishes. "Sharp as a tack, with a heart of gold and will of iron."

Sasuke nodded. He knew, he knew better than almost anyone how good of a woman Sakura was. To love someone like him in spite of everything he'd done, she was probably on her way to sainthood. He quickly finished his tomato slices, stew and rice and returned his dishes to the cook who gave him a tray with food for Sakura.

"Do you need any help with that?" The cook asked. "You've only got one arm and with the storm brewing, it's a little shaky in here."

"I'll be fine." He assured the man. "I am a ninja."

The old sailor chuckled. "Good point. In that case, I'll go on deck to see if they need any help. You look after the girl."

Sasuke nodded and made his way down the hall from the kitchen and to the room Sakura occupied. He knocked lightly on the door. "Sakura, I have your food." He called out. "Can I come it?"

The only reply he got was the sound of sobbing coming from the other side of the door. Alarmed by the sound, he shoved it open and put the tray down on the table his eyes scanning the room for danger. Finding none, he rushed to Sakura's side. "Sakura? What's wrong?" he asked. "Are you in pain?"

She shook her head and wiped at her eyes. "No. It's nothing." She replied.

He gritted his teeth. She was hiding something from him, and it was annoying especially in his already irritated mood.

"Sakura." He said his eyes narrowing slightly. She glanced at him and he could see her eyes were filled with agony. "What's wrong?" he asked his hand reaching towards her. To his shock, she slapped his hand away her eyes widening at the sound.

"Oh my gosh." She whispered her hand raising to cover her mouth as the color drained from her face. "I'm so sorry Sasuke." Her hand nervously raked through her hair. "Please forgive me."

His eyes softened as he picked up the tray and moved it to her lap. "Eat." He said simply. "I'm going on deck to see if the crew need any help in this storm. I'll be back to check on you later."

He slipped out of the room and took a deep breath. He wasn't used to this. Her rejection hurt more than he'd ever let on. From the time they were children, she'd all but worshipped him. Praised his every word and deed. Even when he'd began slipping into the darkness, she'd only defied him to try to protect him. It wasn't until that day in The Valley of the End that she'd really rejected him if only for a moment. He remembered it well.

"There they are!" came the familiar voice of Sakura as he and Naruto lay bleeding on what was left of the valley floor.

With quick leaps and bounds she appeared before them. His eyes opened and found her face, his heart twisting painfully in his chest at the look of absolute sorrow that marred her features. She knelt next to her two fallen teammates, her hands shrouded in green light as she worked to stop the bleeding, kill the infection that had settled into the exposed flesh and stimulate the growth of new healthy tissue over the stumps where their arms had once been.

"Thanks Sakura!" Naruto said smiling at the medic his tone overly cheerful in an attempt to comfort her and assure her that he was alright.

Sasuke studied her for a moment, all of the terrible things he'd put her through flashing through his mind. She was intelligent, beautiful, strong, kind and warm. She was precious to him and he'd caused her nothing but pain for the past three years. Remorse for all that he'd done to her welled up inside him. He had to apologize to her. She loved him so he was sure she'd forgive him, though he knew he wouldn't deserve it, but he had to say the words.

"Sakura…" he said softly. "I…"

"Just shut up for now." She snapped cutting him off, her voice hard, nearly cracking as she attempted to reign in her emotions. "I'm concentrating."

He internally cringed. She'd never spoke to him that way before. Never had he heard any malice in her voice directed at him until then. He realized at that moment that the forgiveness he was sure he'd receive wasn't a guarantee after all. It was her right of course. If she chose to cast him aside after fulfilling her obligation to heal him, he had no right to complain. Even so, he needed to get the words out. Needed to tell her how he genuinely felt at least once. He took a deep breath. If she didn't forgive him, he wasn't sure what he'd do and the thought frightened him more than he dared admit. The knowledge that her eyes that had once been filled with admiration when she looked at him might forever be filled with anger or even hatred when she glanced his way was terrifying.

Using the last of his courage, he spoke again. "I'm sorry." He said softly.

"Sorry?" she repeated a hint of disbelief in her voice. "For what?"

The list of things he had to apologize for was incredibly long. For pointing out her weaknesses, for frightening her, for hurting her body and soul, for making her worry constantly for years, for taking her feelings for him lightly, for nearly killing their sensei, for nearly killing her, for nearly killing their best friend, for leaving her alone on the bench that night… The list was almost endless. Knowing he didn't have that much strength or time, he came up with the shortest, most complete answer he could.

"For everything up till now." He replied.

She glanced at him and then lowered her head, her jaw clenching, her body trembling. "You'd better damn well be!" she snarled even as tears filled her eyes and rolled down her cheeks. "Cha… You JERK."

With his strength returning thanks to her hard work he sat up and smiled as she wiped her eyes. Her response hadn't been flat out rejection like it probably should have. Instead, she had made it clear that though she had been hurt, no… Wounded. Seriously wounded by his actions and things would probably never be the same between them. Even so she offered him hope. She wasn't going to shut him out of her heart like any smart girl would and he was grateful. Grateful to his Loser of a best friend for knocking sense into his head and grateful to the girl who had never stopped loving him. He knew now that no matter how lost he became he would always have Naruto's light and Sakura's warmth to guide him home. Back to where they could all be together again.

After almost two hours of tying down sails and helping with the Rutter, Sasuke stumbled back inside and leaned against the wall. He was definitely not cut out for sailing. It was exhausting on a totally different level and required a second arm for sure. After catching his breath, he stumbled into his room and peeled the soaked clothes from his skin and hung them up to dry as best he could on the table in his room. He grabbed a towel and dried himself off before pulling a fresh set of clothes from his bag and slipped them on. Dry and as clean as he could get given the circumstances, he walked out of his room and down the hall to the next door. He lifted his hand and knocked lightly.

"Sakura? Can I come in?" he asked.

"Yes." She responded softly.

He pushed the door open and found her sitting up in bed, her dishes stacked neatly on the tray he'd brought her on the table. She had pillows propped behind her back and her hands were filled with what looked like a medical book of some sort based on the cover.

"How are you feeling?" he asked.

"Better now." She replied simply though there was a hollowness to her voice he didn't like.

"What are you studying?" he asked leaning against the table.

"Surgical arts." She replied. "It's one of my weaker points as far as my medical ninjutsu goes. Shizune usually heads up complicated surgeries and autopsies. Since I use my skills most often on the battlefield I didn't think it was a big deal until…" her hand tightened around the book. "Anyway, it doesn't matter."

"Please tell me." He said.

She blinked and studied him for a moment. Then with a sigh, she relented. "Naruto died on the battlefield before our last fights against Madara and Kaguya." She said closing her book.

Sasuke's eyes widened. It had to be around the same time that he'd also been struck down and nearly killed. When the Sage of Six Paths appeared to both him and Naruto.

"I… I was almost out of chakra and we were out of options." She said pulling her knees to her chest. "There was no other choice, I had to cut open his chest and manually pump his heart to try to bring him back." She held her hand up and stared at it as it trembled. "I literally held his heart in my hand." She shuddered and looked down. "I just don't want to be in that kind of desperate situation again."

"Don't be so hard on yourself." Sasuke said. "Without you, he would have died. All of us would have."

She sighed and then turned dangling her feet off the edge of the bed as she looked down at the floor. "Sasuke, I know that this is terribly late, but I am so sorry that I attempted to take your life." She said her voice shaking with emotions. "Please forgive me." She pleaded tears sliding down her face.

The Uchiha's eyes widened. He wasn't expecting this, not at all. What had happened that day in The Land of Iron was something they'd mentioned in passing but never in detail due to the sensitive nature of it. Her apologizing to him like this was something he'd never anticipated. He'd known when he'd first seen her that day that her intention was to kill him. He'd always been able to read her but he'd only briefly held negative feelings for her because of it. She wasn't a match for him especially at that time.

"It doesn't matter now." He said trying to alleviate her guilt.

"It matters to me!" she snapped. "I…" her hands shook as she looked at them before covering her face. "What was I thinking? How could I…"

His heart ached for her. Naruto had explained the situation to him during their recovery.

"Sakura, I know you're busy here, but Lady Hokage needs your assistance with Captain Yamato." Sai said from the doorway of the room that Sasuke shared with Naruto.

Sakura's eyes widened as she stood. "I see. Thank you Sai." She said moving towards the doors.

"I can accompany you there." The painter said as she neared him.

"It's fine. I know the way." Sakura replied stepping past him and moving down the hall.

Sai sighed and looked down.

"Don't worry about it Sai." Naruto said smiling at his teammate. "She'll get over it. The extra stress of taking care of everyone isn't helping either."

Sasuke glanced at the painter his eyes moving between him and his best friend. There was a strange tenseness in the room as the pale shinobi walked forward and stopped in front of his bed.

"Sasuke Uchiha." Sai said in a formal way that had the Uchiha tensing. "I don't know that I'll ever forgive you for all that you've done, especially to Lord Donzo but" his jaw clenched. "I will do my best for the sake of my friends." He said before leaving the room quickly.

"What was that about?" Sasuke asked.

Naruto chuckled and leaned forward resting his single arm on his knees. "Sai, is a bit hard to understand." He said. "He was raised by Donzo in his foundation and so he doesn't really know much about how to interact with people normally."

The Uchiha shrugged and then glanced at the half peeled apple Sakura had left behind. "What's going on between Sakura and Sai?" he asked.

The blonde sighed. "That's a long story so I'll give you the short version." He said before glancing at the Uchiha. "Don't tell either of them that I told you this ok?" Sasuke nodded. "Ok, back when Donzo was named the sixth Hokage, the first things he did was order Sai to keep tabs on me and issued the elimination order on you. Some things happened and I think Sai was getting fed up with how things were between me, you and Sakura." He raked his hand through his hair. "He thought that Sakura wasn't being fair to me and confronted her about it. I don't know exactly what he said to her but it must have been heavy. She was already stressed out caring for the comatose Lady Tsunade, helping Shizune run the hospital, Donzo becoming Hokage, the elimination order on you, and the way things were changing so quickly." He sighed. "She snapped. Totally lost it and got this idea in her head that the only way to save you from the path you were on and take away my suffering was to kill you herself."

Sasuke's eyes widened. "I wondered why she showed up out of the blue that day in the Land of Iron." He admitted. "So that's what happened."

Naruto nodded. "She's tough and pushed all of it out of her mind during the war but once it was over, I think the weight of everything has started crushing her again." He glanced at the door. "I know she feels guilty about that whole situation."

"So why is she avoiding Sai?" the Uchiha asked.

"If I had to take a guess, I'd say that she's either afraid of him, or doesn't trust him fully yet." He said. "The guy's always been vocal about how he felt about you and from what Shikamaru and Shizune have said, he was brutal when he talked to her before she went after you. It'll just take them time to get back to where they used to be. Sakura is tough as nails but she's only human."

He walked over to her and knelt in front of her. "Sakura, why did you do it?" he asked softly.

Her eyes widened and raised to meet his. Whatever she saw in his eyes seemed to help loose her tongue. "I just… it hurt so much to see you like that." She confessed. "It hurt to see Naruto suffering every day because of the burden I forced onto him." She looked down. "I loved you both too much to watch you suffer like that. I knew that if I didn't kill you, someone else would. I wanted to end everything with my own hands so that no one else would be hurt anymore. I'm so sorry."

He reached out and gently tipped her face up. "You were trying to save me from myself." He said wiping the tears from her eyes with his thumb. "I understand that. You have nothing to apologize for."

Her eyes widened and he was only mildly surprised when she launched forward wrapping her arms around his neck, tears streaming down her face in a way that reminded him of the day Lady Tsunade had appeared in the village and used her healing jutsu to free him from the effects of Itachi's powerful genjutsu. The love she felt for him was almost tangible, evident in the way she held him and the tears that were shed for his sake. Unlike before, he was old enough and wise enough to understand and appreciate her feelings. Acting on his own feelings for the medic, he wrapped his arm loosely around her waist. She was so precious and he knew that the feelings for her that had been planted in his heart during their genin days, taken root when she'd confessed her feelings the night he'd left to join the Sound Ninja, and had begun to bud the day he'd seen her standing tall and radiant before him and Naruto after defeating a horde of fission beings single handedly was love. He loved Sakura, not as a teammate, not as a friend, not as a sister, but the way a man loves a woman. He hoped that the Waterfall of Truth would give him the last push he needed to move forward with her at his side.