saturn

"I need an angiogram, an x-ray, echo—anything you can get your hands on," Sakura runs her fingers through her hair and goes over Kakashi's medical chart with the Chief of Medicine of Mist.

"I can get an x-ray, but an echo will take a while, we don't have many machines and we need those for storage in case we receive an influx—" Hinamori's voice is cut off when Sakura gives him a look that could freeze the sun.

Emerald eyes crackle with lightning and she hisses, "You have a foreign Kage who was nearly assassinated on your home soil, if he doesn't make it through you're going to have a lot more things to worry about than storage. Mist is going to be pulled into another war, and it won't end with just an invasion; it will end with a complete takeover."

Shikamaru arrives just in time to see Hinamori's face pale to the color of a gurney and Sakura's fury manifesting into chakra and emanates her person like a halo of mint. He grabs her elbow – mindful to keep himself in her line of vision – pulls her back, gently, and gives a quick nod to dismiss the Chief of Medicine.

"Sakura, you have to calm down," Shikamaru hisses into her ear and pulls her into a nearby hallway, "Threatening the Chief of Medicine in his hospital will put us in hot water with Mist! And we already antagonized them by bringing Sasuke with us!"

"How can you tell me to calm down when Kakashi isn't responding to the antidote?!" Sakura snarls in rage and yanks herself backward to get some space.

The Nara clan heir stiffens, "What do you mean he's not responding to the antidote?"

"Exactly what I mean," she exhales roughly and looks over at his chart, "It's the same fucking poison, I don't understand why it's not working! I gave him two vials, and I can't risk giving him more or it will tear into his muscular system."

"Did you receive the analysis on the breakdown yet?" Shikamaru fires at her.

"No, but it's all the same symptoms," Sakura rubs the side of her face violently, "Any luck on the attacker?"

"I have Sasuke and Naruto running patrols right now," he scratches the back of his head and looks over at the window from the nearby lobby, "ANBU is shadowing us, however, they're beating each other up over their lack of awareness pretty bad."

"They should," she agrees darkly, "This should have never happened."

Shikamaru hesitates, "I know we haven't exactly talked about this, but you're the deputy Hokage and we have to follow your orders if the Hokage is indisposed or unable to lead."

Sakura stiffens to the point that her muscles lock up at the back of her neck, her fingers congeal in sharp, deliberate movements as the knuckles crack. She bends those digits, attempting to grip onto her arms in a defensive position and looks at him warily. "What are you saying, Shikamaru?"

"Worst-case scenario," he warns her with some sympathy, "We're going to have a new Hokage when we get back."

The pink-haired medic's knees weaken without her consent, she topples over. Shikamaru stumbles to grab her before hard bone can crack against the hard tile, but it's Minato who wraps an arm around her waist and in between her chest.

The air feels like it's coming into fast, it's not whistling in her lungs, it spins and spins. It seeps into her blood, her head rolls and she can't breathe. She's on fire, burning, and she breaks into a sweat. Their hands are on her, they touch her arms, her back, her legs and they're closing her in.

It's dark in this room, she whimpers because she needs the light and—

Sakura, Minato is in her face, she can't define the emotion etched in starlight orbs, but he holds her fingers and smoothens the fine hair at the back of her neck. He brings his lips to her cheek, anchoring her in feather-light whispers and breathes into her ear. Sakura—look at me. Look at me.

She gasps sharply.

Sakura hears Shikamaru calls for a medic, his words are distorted and her ears are ringing, "She's having a panic attack."

Minato brings his lips over her eyelids, pressing warmly over the delicate skin, something cool is pushed against her neck and it centers her, That's it.

"Easy Sakura, slow breaths," the Nara soothes her and Minato tightens his grip on her.

That's it Sakura, Minato breathes into her ear, his lips brush underneath her jaw and he holds her, Look at me, Sakura.

"I'm always looking at you," Sakura's voice cracks, but her sight sharpens and with the blonde pressing against her stomach, she counts her breaths.

Shikamaru furrows his brows, "What?"

"What?" she blinks rapidly and the hospital lighting refocuses in front of her like two spotlights. Minato gives her a squeeze and helps her stand up; she notices the crowd in surrounding them and a fresh crackle of embarrassment washes over her.

Oh Gods, Sakura nearly turns her head into Minato's chest, intent on burying her head there until the end of time.

It's okay, Minato quiets her and presses a kiss to the side of her neck.

And she flushes even brighter at that.

"Um, Sakura-hime," a nurse from her badge interrupts her mortification to hand her a chart, "The analysis came back."

"Oh," Sakura clears her throat and accepts the paperwork while Shikamaru does some damage control. She quickly flips through the lab reports and fixes on a certain compound, "Oh no."

"What is it?" Shikamaru asks swiftly, once he's cleared the nosy medical staff.

"It's the same poison, but it's stronger this time," she clenches her teeth and reads off the next compound, "That's the reason he wasn't responding to the antidote. I'm going to have to do an extraction once the antidote thins out because oxygen exposure would do more harm than good, but it should buy me some time."

"What do you need?"

"I need you to send this list to Tsunade-shishou, Mist medics aren't advanced enough to find a cure, not to mention they're lacking in herbs," Sakura needs to clear her head and get to work, "If Tsunade-shishou can knock out some of the compounds, we're that much closer to finding a cure."

"Anything else?" Shikamaru nods.

"A bottle of shochu," Sakura's half-serious when she says that, but Shikamaru pulls out a small blue bottle from his pack and gives it to her. She shoots him an incredulous look.

"I was going to give it to Kakashi-sama to drink with Chojuro-sama as a bonding technique," he frowns and shoves his hands in his pockets, "But that went to hell."

"Right," the medic nods slow and unscrews the cap, "If this was a coordinated attack, we need Chojuro-sama on guard, arbitrate with him and his nin. Reassure him that this wasn't his country's fault, but reaffirm that Konoha will retaliate. The Mizuchi all but declared war on the Leaf Village."

"I can get Sand to send in some reinforcements,"

"Until there has been an attempt on Chojuro-sama, we can't drag in our allies even though Naruto would," Sakura sighs heavily and rubs her face, "I'm going to take a nap or something."

Shikamaru squeezes her hand and advises her gently, "Get some sleep, Sakura. I can't imagine what must be going through your head right now. I'll station a guard or two at your door."

"Unnecessary—"

"Protocol,"

Sakura takes a swig of shochu and lets it burn down her throat, "Right."

—

Sakura stares at the compound breakdown from the lab reports and goes over the new chemical bonds that have been added. She compares the report with her notes from the last time she was here and tries to fill in the missing pieces. The antidote in questions gives fewer answers than she would have liked. She sits in between the v of Minato's legs, her head rests on his chest as she goes over the paperwork and his chin rests on her shoulder.

"Tell me," Minato breaks the silence, his hands are warm on her stomach and he brings his cheek against hers, "How are you doing?"

"You can feel how I'm doing," Sakura's eyes continue to scan through the documents and she flips a paper over.

"I want you to tell me," his fingers squeeze her hips and he makes it a point when his thumbs brush over the base of her spine.

"I'm on the verge of another mental breakdown," she answers dryly, the anxiety is a ball of nerves in the pit of her stomach and she can only pretend that she's fine because that's the only way she will remain fine. "We've had an assassination attack on our Hokage. Kakashi is still poisoned because I can't seem to find an antidote that will work. The Mizuchi hasn't claimed responsibility this time, we barely have any supplies or herbs to start the trial processing, and the more time I waste—Kakashi will deteriorate," then she laughs without humor, "Oh, and let's not forget that I am to be acting Hokage until Kakashi is lucid, hopefully, because I don't know where this is going."

Minato doesn't respond to her rant, he merely presses his lips to her temple and watches her scribble something unreadable on the report, "When do you have to do the extraction?"

Sakura glances at the clock on her table, "An hour, at least."

"Why can't you do the extraction with the antidote in his body again?" he asks absently, calmly. She needs an anchor, something to ground her when the world decides to topple over, he needs to be there to keep her on the earth when she feels like she's falling apart.

"Once the antidote hits the air, it acts as a poison, the chemicals oxidize and it becomes toxic," she replies quietly and pauses mid-shift in the report, "I gave him two vials of the antidote hoping that it would do something, but the poison is stronger this time. They've perfected it, I think."

"It's only been a couple of weeks," Minato points out and frowns, "Is that possible? Poison making seems complicated."

"It is," Sakura agrees, "But if you're an expert, it's different. We're dealing with someone high up in the food chain, they may even be more competent than Sasori. I'm not an expert in antidotes and poisons, but I'm not an amateur. It will just take me a lot longer to come up with a cure."

"What's the antidote doing to him right now, then?"

"It's draining his chakra, which isn't necessarily the worst thing that could happen," she explains and sighs against his chest, "Instead of attacking his chakra system it merely rerouted the effects to drain his chakra, presently, as of now. Poisons can't mutate, but they can get stronger. Kakashi-sensei's immune system hasn't been the best since he's been overusing the sharingan, the results post-recovery are unpredictable."

"But once you extract the poison, that should buy you enough time to look for an antidote," Minato interjects.

"Yes, however, the damage will have been done," Sakura sighs and drops the reports in her lap, "I could try using my Yin-seal, but that only works with superficial wounds, not internal. I've tried it with a person who has a terminal disease too; there are limits to that jutsu."

"I knew coming here was a bad idea," he groans into her throat, "But it was necessary, I know."

"I can't catch a break, can I?" she inquires tiredly and looks over at her window. The sun dips behind the clouds and the gray light washes over her room in rainwater. It's almost sunset, almost seven hours since she had Kakashi admitted to the hospital and here Sakura was, sitting on her ass glaring at her lab reports.

"You can't beat yourself over this," Minato scolds her with narrowed ocean eyes – she doesn't need to turn her head to know this – and continues, "You didn't know this was going to happen—you couldn't have predicted that this was going to happen."

"I know," Sakura groans into her hands, "I know, I just wish—" she pauses abruptly and looks down at her pile of paper on the bed, "I wish…"

"Lie down," he orders suddenly and presses a hand against her lower back to urge her upwards.

"What?" she's thrown off-balance by the non-sequitur.

"Lie down," Minato repeats and moves the reports to the foot of the bed, "On your stomach."

Sakura moves, slowly, still confused by his directions, but she tosses herself onto the bed clumsily until her nose digs into the reports and her feet are swinging in the air. She feels him move on the bed, his weight dipping into the center of the bed before he moves to stand on the floor, then his fingers slide underneath the back of her kimono dress – because she hasn't changed yet – and slides off the dress until it rests just above her bottom.

"Minato," she hisses as mortification burns her face, grasps the front of her dress to prevent any accidental exposure, "What are you doing?"

"Hush," Minato soothes her and swings his legs over the back of her hips. He presses his fingers into the muscles at the top of the shoulders and digs into the tissue there. She grasps onto the sheets as he slowly makes his way down her back.

"Why haven't you done this sooner?" Sakura groans when he presses into a hard knot and her hair tangles into the sheets when she turns her head to the side.

"Everything has changed," he answers vaguely, she can't connect those dots when he starts to dig into the knots at the sides of her hips, and asks, "Start with the antidote, what are you missing?"

It's a distraction, Sakura notes, but she goes along with it because he knows her better than she knows herself.

"Chemicals," she reiterates and grabs her reports, "There are more complex, most of the variables are unknown elements. I sent a list out to Tsunade-shishou, with the new technology that we currently invested in, I should have a breakdown soon, hopefully."

"Can you fill out the missing blanks?" Minato rubs deep circles just underneath her scars, he still hesitates on touching the raised flesh so roughly.

"I could try, but I don't have the equipment here," Sakura considers that and scribbles something else onto the reports, "Once the extraction is through, I would have a better picture of what I'm dealing with. Everything…is still up in the air."

He hums deep in his throat, "Kakashi is still unconscious?"

"Yes," she frowns, "I can't give him morphine because he's prone to addiction. Tsunade-shishou has first-hand experience with him and that, but I did give him an alternative painkiller. He shouldn't be too uncomfortable."

"Once the antidote thins out you can start the extraction process," Minato comes back to that statement more than once, "You've done all the preventative care, plus the predictable care, in case, another case should rise and you've been keeping all the options and factors out in the open so nothing can surprise you. So you've done all you can, haven't you?"

Sakura pauses at that and replies slowly, "I guess you can say that."

"So all we can do is wait," he affirms and presses into the base of her spine. He presses his lips to the top of her spine and clarifies, "You need to keep a level-head when dealing with a crisis like this one, nothing good will come from panicking. I know you're trying and I know you're doing the best that you can," he smoothens his hands up her back, "But remember that I'm here to help you, in any way that I can."

"I know," she inhales when his fingers slide over her scars, "I just feel like I'm not doing enough."

"The feeling of inadequacy never truly disappears, but it becomes more minor as time goes on I find," Minato mulls over that and continues, "You can only surround yourself with people who see the good in that you do."

"It's kind of hard to find those people if you hadn't noticed, Minato," Sakura huffs a dry laugh and yelps when she feels his teeth tip at her shoulder bone, "Did you just bite me?"

"I don't know, did I?" he replies sarcastically and traces the bumps of her spine with his pointer finger, "Here I am, baring my soul to you and you're making fun of me."

She swallows a giggle when she feels his pout against her neck and stretches her back, "I'm not making fun of you, I merely am pointing out a fact."

"You know you have a good support system, Sakura," Minato presses his lips against her neck, "At least acknowledge it."

Sakura doesn't know how he does it, but she's much, much calmer from her almost panic attack and her hysteria. She thinks it's the PTSD coupled with her stress that's causing her to produce so many emotional outbursts and instability; it's not healthy. The Yondaime keeps her grounded with his hands on her bare skin, pressing into the tense muscles there and mollifying her aches with quick work of his fingers.

A knock on the door causes her muscles to tense back up again, the blonde's fingers are pressing harder there and they ease the strain as she melts back. There's another knock, "Sakura-hime? The IV is at the ten percent mark."

Sakura sighs into the bedsheets and instructs, "Okay, prep the OR."

"Yes, Sakura-hime,"

She arches her back and pushes the blonde off of her. She rolls her hip upwards to stretch out the newly lax muscles and sits up on her knees. Minato slides back to the bed until the curve of sunset radiating from the window, the burnished red and tiger lily hues of sunlight washes over the pink of her skin, the scars harsher under the reddish tone and contrasts with the satin of her skin.

Minato couldn't look away.

It's atrocious as it is striking, brutal in its beauty and the flex of muscle. It's steel under silk that causes the blood in his ears to sing.

Sakura slips her dress back on, oblivious to Minato's rivets in emotions – he's hidden them away he realizes – and ties the obi tighter around her waist. She grabs her reports, she can't look at him or she would crumble beneath those eyes of his. She needs to be strong, if not for herself, then for her Hokage and her friends.

She can't afford to be weak in times of peril.

When Sakura walks out of the OR in a daze, she throws her gloves in the disinfect pile and tugs her mask down. She struggles to breathe outside of the room, her hand pressing against the cold window of the lobby and she inhales sharply. Her hand makes its way to her chest, a sharp thump of her knuckles against her sternum and she trembles the way her head spins.

"Sit down," Minato orders firmly, his fingers are tight against her shoulders and he pushes her back onto the bench. "Slow breaths, look at me Sakura. I'm right here."

"This is horrible," her voice cracks and she drops her head in between her knees to settle the violent upturn in nausea.

"I know," he whispers and drops down to his knees to rest in between the v of her legs.

"I didn't think there would be so much damage," Sakura breathes quietly, almost as if she's trying to tie the shuddering gasps that seem to be determined to claw out of her lung with every breath that she takes, shut. "Even with reinforcements, there is no coming back from this."

Minato presses his lips to her wrist and says, "Deep breaths, we're going to get through this. Together."

"Sakura," Shikamaru arrives in front of her, dark eyes look at her in concern and he takes a seat next to her. He hands her a cup of water, "Take this."

"The extraction is complete," Sakura sips on the cup slowly, she tells him after a moment, as her fingers untie her ponytail and leans her head against the backrest of the wall, "His chakra pathways are shot."

Shikamaru blinks at that and crosses his arms, "What does that mean?"

"It means the damage has been done. Once we administer the antidote, his sharingan will be useless and his chakra system will be beyond crippled. His life as a shinobi as he knows it will be over," her voice cracks and she wants to cry, so bad that it burns the back of her throat.

Minato rests his head on her thigh, still kneeling in front of her and swipes a thumb over her cheek soothingly, "He's not dead, Sakura. We still have time."

"Can it be fixed?"

"No," Sakura presses the back of her palms to her eyes and puts pressure on the sockets. She removes them from her face just as quickly, black bleeding into light as she refocuses her gaze on the ceiling, "It's irreversible."

Shikamaru sighs, but takes Sakura's hand and gives it a squeeze and looks at her kindly, "I know you did your best, Sakura. You did well."

She sniffles and looks at him with watery emerald orbs, "Did I?"

He groans and fishes for a handkerchief in his side-pocket, "Don't look at me like that, woman. You know I'm an idiot when it comes to women crying."

Sakura laughs wetly and she accepts his handkerchief.

"It was an impossible situation, there weren't very many outcomes and I only could see this being handled a few ways. We are limited by the kei pieces put on this board," Shikamaru explains and keeps his hand in hers when he derails her train of thought – Minato's eyes focus on that – and he continues, "There is no queen in shogi, because the game was probably made by men, but the point is, always protect your most valuable piece."

She frowns, "But Kakashi-sensei almost died, how did we protect the most valuable piece?"

"Your tears are very distracting," he replies dryly and gives her hand a squeeze, "In Mist," he emphasizes, "Kakashi-sensei is not the most valuable piece on the board, you are."

Sakura's mouth parts open, "Shikamaru—"

"You are the only one, perhaps in this world, who can tell the shinigami to fuck off," Shikamaru scoffs, her strokes her pulse point at her wrist – it seems like her panic attack had scared the shit out of him – and goes on, "You are also the Deputy Hokage, but you are an essential and irreplaceable shinobi. Even if Kakashi-sensei kicks the bucket, everything wouldn't go to hell if you were still alive. It's troublesome, but shogi isn't perfect and a Queen is the only person who can hold the entire kingdom together."

"But shogi doesn't have a queen," her eyes brighten because of his praise and recognition, but her mood is still somber.

Shikamaru gives her hand another squeeze and Minato wraps his arms around her hips, "It should."

—

Sakura doesn't go to sleep very easily, she's been interrupted her very well avoided sleep by two people. One who was Shikamaru, who is both apologetic and sheepish when he hands her a binder of things to go over to the next day. The second was a team that was sent from Konoha – from Tsunade-sama carrying the vials of antidotes – and once she administered the doses to Kakashi, she went back to her room and dropped onto the bed.

Minato exhales at the rough drop and she curls up at his side.

Sakura sniffles, "I don't know why I'm crying,"

Minato's arm curls against her, he pulls her back into the plane of his chest. He's warm and she can feel him burning woodsmoke into her chest. The rapid thump of his heart, the few tears that ran down the curve of his neck, the warm puffs of air that brushes the corner of her ear and his hair that tickles the side of his cheek.

"You're going to be fine," Minato's voice is rough, bordering on scratchy, but it holds and stands tall.

"How do you know that?" Sakura gasps raggedly, desperately.

"Because I'm with you," he says and holds her tighter, "I'll always be with you even when you don't want me to."

"You're a pest," she laughs wetly.

Minato presses a kiss to her shoulder and she swallows thickly, "You're so much stronger than you give yourself credit for. You don't need me, but I want you to. We'll get through this together, me and you. Like we always have."

You don't need me, but I want you to.

Sakura doesn't sleep then, but Minato does and she starts skimming over the binder. She blinks at the certain sets of information, apparently, Kakashi had been keeping more than just information from his circle of advisors. Sasuke wasn't arrested or punished solely because the Elders objected, as the last Uchiha, he has certain privileges – she knew this of course but having it confirmed is another thing altogether – moreover, Kakashi used Sasuke's guilt as a tool to dismantle the legs of the Mizuchi.

There are records, reports from Sasuke addressing Kakashi and his findings.

Kakashi had kept Sasuke in the shadows, creating an intelligence network solely to remove the Mizuchi from power, she can't feel too upset with Sasuke because he's been working nonstop to cut them out and ordering him to come to Mist was just a front for his secondary objectives.

Kakashi wants the Mizuchi to know that Sasuke is in Mist.

It's cunning, evil almost, by Kakashi's standards.

Sakura would've never thought of using Sasuke in such a matter, but then again, she never thought much of Sasuke until the Mizuchi entered the playing field.

She would have to keep an eye on this, for now.

The next morning, Sakura dresses quickly and sips her miso soup. She stares in the mirror of her bathroom, she debates on whether or not to put her hair up or leave it down to her back. It's unbecoming of a shinobi to have long hair, but Ino had told her once, long ago, that if no one can touch her hair, then it doesn't matter whether or not she leaves her hair down.

"I like your hair down," Minato remarks helpfully, he sits on the bathroom counter and watches her intently.

"I have a meeting with Chojuro and his advisors. I have to look like I know what I'm doing," Sakura reminds him from the umpteenth time and runs her fingers through her hair, "When Tsunade-sama sent the team of medical chunin from the lab with the antidote last night, after I administered the vial to Kakashi-sensei, there was a side effect. Kakashi-sensei has to sleep off the poison. The antidote will keep him unconscious in order to speed up the neutralizing process, but I don't know what his recovery time will be, so I have do his Kage duties."

"It's not much different from when he's in office," he snorts, but tugs a strand of pink hair behind her ears, "And your appearance will do what exactly?"

"Make it look like Konoha isn't weak,"

"Sakura, you can smash boulders with your fingertips," Minato states with incredulity, "You can bring someone to the brink of death and heal them to life just with the wave of your hand; what part of weak does that sound like to you?"

Sakura gives him a look, "I'm also a woman."

He frowns, "Surely men aren't so ignorant."

She gives him a look.

"Chojuro-san has the utmost respect for you," Minato tries again and pulls her hands until she stands in between his legs, "I can guarantee that he would vouch for you, even when blind."

"It's not him I'm worried about," Sakura sighs and presses her hand on the counter, parallel to his thighs, "It's the remainder of his council. Who knows how many Elders will be in the room? Mist hates involving foreign powers in their sovereignty; they prefer isolation."

"Look where isolation has got them," he argues and crosses his arms underneath his chest, "Their Mizukage was butchered, the ministry and nearly all the political heads were murdered," then he hisses with clenched teeth, "They also allowed a Leaf diplomat, who was one of the sole reasons why we won the war in the first place, to be captured and tortured by their own country's mercenaries."

"We don't know if it was Kiri's mercenaries," Sakura corrects calmly and she straightens up to consider, "Though, it is highly likely."

"The Seven Swordsman of the Mist did come from Mist," Minato offers with a crinkle of the nose, "Who's to say that the Mizuchi didn't come from the same place? The water dragon does seem to hit some notes."

"So did the Akatsuki, and no one thought red clouds were a bad omen until we saw what they were capable of," she counters and decides to leave her hair down, "We have no idea what we're up against and my movements are limited due to the sensitivity of the nature. Kakashi-sensei gives the final decision, so I can only advise from here. Shikamaru is much more adept at foreign politics."

"He's more adept at handling foreign leaders," he rectifies that sentence and jumps down from the sink, "You know how to wield the knife and stick it in."

Sakura rolls her eyes, "That doesn't sound very pleasant."

Minato presses his lips underneath her jaw and grins against her cheek, "It's not."

It's a power move, she knows this when she sees the salt twinkle in his ocean orbs, and knows that it's her move to make.

—

Are you out of your mind? Sakura scowls furiously at the blonde occupying her seat, the rest of the political leaders takes a seat at the surrounding table.

Minato raises a brow, Take a seat.

On your lap? she hisses at him internally, embarrassment and shyness spark like ember flames. They wrap around his throat in petals and he wants to chuckle at the tickle there, but Sakura looks pointedly at his chair, We're in front of the Mizukage!

It's not like he can see me, he snorts.

That's not the point!

"Sakura-hime?" one of the Elders calls out to her with concern, "Is something wrong with your seat?"

"Ah, no," Sakura almost stammers at the thought, she turns her head to glare at the seat, where Minato smiles up sweetly at her, she grumbles underneath her breath and grudgingly, takes a seat on his lap.

It's a strange feeling. Sakura doesn't sink into the chair, she doesn't go through him, so to say, because he wraps his arms around her waist and pulls her flush against his chest. If anything, she looks taller, more powerful to the other leaders in the room, and maybe that's the reason he purposefully forced her hand like this.

I don't know why you're so embarrassed, Minato breaks her thoughts as she shifts to a more comfortable position on his lap – for a moment he is uncharacteristically thankful that he's dead or his control would be slipping at the seams by then – rests one hand on her thigh and the other arm wraps around her waist loosely, I've seen you naked before.

This is completely different, Sakura snaps back, she leans into the chair but her back doesn't hit the back of the chair, Minato's chest props her up and his chin digs into her shoulder, What is the point of this anyway?

Maybe I just wanted to hold you, is that reason enough?

Sakura wasn't ready for that answer.

"I assume Kakashi-sama is well?" Chojuro begins the meeting with that question and looks at her apologetically, "Our scouts have not picked up anything on our end."

Shikamaru who sits at the edge of the table answers for her, "Naruto and Sasuke found a chakra trail, but it goes cold at the edge of Nori."

Sakura flinches at the name.

Minato's fingers dig into her thigh, she slides a leg over his thigh in response and leans into the table. Her back arches against the chair and the hard muscle that she sits on flexes in response to her shift in weight. She exhales slowly, roughly and as much as she wants to turn back to look at Minato, she doesn't.

The blonde parts her thighs, so the other leg can sling over his lonely knee and solidify her sitting position. In the end, Sakura ends up straddling his laps, with her fingers crossed on the table and she inhales, "We believe the neighboring islands are hiding things."

An Elder – Mira-san from her packet – narrows her eyes at her, "What things?"

"When I was captured," Sakura says this without flinching because Minato's fingers rub small circles on her lower back to distract her from the memory, the sting of the whip and she continues, "They took me to the woodlands in Nori. I didn't know Kiri had woodlands. With your permission, Chojuro-sama, I would like to send some nin to scout the area."

On foreign soil you must remember to be courteous, Minato tells her, It's only polite to give them a fair warning, however, it's not a request.

It's their land, Sakura reminds him.

With Kakashi as the precedence, that removes quite a bit of formality, he retorts and slides his fingers to rest at the edge of her hip, You have a bit of wiggle room to strong-arm them.

I need to keep the peace, she almost shakes her head, But I have to be firm too.

"Granted," Chojuro speaks before the Elders can put their ryo in and he sighs into his hands, "I cannot begin to thank you for your work, Sakura-sama. From fixing our country's worst water crisis in history and healing those who were infected, coupled by your leadership in tending to the chaos from the assassination attempt on your Kage—I am simply at a loss for words."

Sakura leans back into Minato's chest wanting to disappear from the looks the rest of the councilmen gives her, she doesn't shy away, but she doesn't look at them directly either. He presses a kiss to her shoulder and she says, "I did what I had to do, Mizukage-sama."

Chojuro starts at the title, but it's a reminder as to what brought them these problems in the first place. He nods, "And Kakashi-sama?"

"I'm afraid until he wakes up, I cannot give you any more information," Sakura brushes the pointed question and looks over at the room, "Our main focus is to test keep the waters in Kiri clean. We would like to set up a joint poison and antidote program, I would like to include Suna in this as well, more people involved would minimize any future casualties and keep the people safe."

I thought you didn't want to include Suna in this, Minato whispers into her ear.

Sakura hides a shiver with a tilt of her head, I don't, but their poison program is much more advanced than ours. Despite their lack of herbs, their greenhouses are top-notch, they have an abundance of rare herbs that we don't have. I'm sure Gaara can spare some specialists. Besides this is a poison and antidote program, not patrols.

Tread carefully, Minato warns her and tightens his arms around her, If there is another attempt, Suna will want retribution.

They won't be the only ones.

"Rejected," Mira scoffs and slams her hands on her table, "Mist does not want overseas aid residing within our village! It goes against our foreign policies and it most certainly—"

"Granted," Chojuro puts a pin in her squawks and he narrows her eyes at the Elders, "We can't afford to be picky with who we put in the village. We have allies and we need to make use of them. Our military has taken a hit, one that caused massive causalities and we're losing nin by the day. Sakura-sama has been kidnapped, tortured and put through hell just to help our country, I'm sure you can find some compassion and empathy in that body of yours, Mira-sama."

Holy shit, Sakura swears violently and sags against Minato's chest.

Minato's fingers thrum against her hips, You found yourself an ally, Sakura.

He's always been an ally, Minato.

Not that type of ally, he alludes.

Shikamaru hides a grin, "Joint-program is a go. We need to address the Mizuchi issue, unfortunately, that falls outside of Sakura's ring of power. Kakashi-sama will have to take it up with you, that falls under the terrorism and deployment of troops section of the International Fire Code."

"What can Sakura-sama do then?" Another councilman asks sarcastically.

Sakura doesn't know his name, but she can threaten him, "I can pull out all of our shinobi, drop all of our agreements and allow you to waddle on your one leg until your economy falls flat on its face. You'd be susceptible to another attack and this time it will end in conquest rather than a war," she smiles then, "I am not the Hokage, so I do not have the power to carry out some actions. My Hokage is resting, not indisposed, therefore, my power is limited. But I'm sure you can tell by the way I ripped your hospital inside out and increased your medics productivity by an overall one hundred twenty percent that I can do some things, yes?"

Reel it in now, Minato instructs against her cheek, You want to dig Konoha into the ground, like a pillar and let them know that you won't be pushed around.

What? Is this a hazing? she inquires sarcastically.

Yes, actually.

Sakura did not expect that answer either, startled, she stiffens and Minato soothes her, You're doing fine. Just a little more and you can level the playing field.

"Are you threatening Kiri, Sakura-sama?" the councilman asks softly.

Insinuate, but give them enough smoke to cover them, he murmurs and looks over at the Nara Clan head, Shikamaru has his eyes on them.

Shikamaru can't do anything once I open my mouth, she points a matter-of-factly.

"Your economy is on the brink of a total collapse," Sakura states bluntly, "Help us help you. The Mizuchi has not only assassinated Mei-sama, but they attempted to assassinate our Kage; can you really not see the position your country is in?"

Shikamaru clears his throat, "I think it's time for a recess."

Minato groans, That is not what I meant.

I can't do this pussyfooting type of talk, quite frankly, it pisses me off, Sakura bites out, There is a reason I'm not in politics.

You're a great politician Sakura, he defends, You're an even better diplomat; that's what you have to be. Be a diplomat.

Sakura removes herself from his lap, walks over to the balcony outside the tower – it's unprotected she realizes with some disdain – and groans into her hands, "I can't be diplomat if I have to look out for Konoha's best interest."

"You're high-strung from everything that has happened, it's understandable, no one can fault you for being edgy," Minato tries to reason with her and his fists grab the rail from behind her. He stands behind her, shielding her back from displeased looks and scowls. "Take your time. We're negotiating."

"Can we really negotiate if we're demanding that they hand all their information over?" Sakura ponders over that, "Even though we're the ones who decided to visit on their soil, we're the ones being punished for it."

"Even so, if our ultimate goal is to put the Mizuchi to rest, it's a much better tactic to include our allies who are directly affected by this organization and use our supplies efficiently," he considers the other angles, "We are stronger unified; destroying our coalition is exactly what the Mizuchi wants."

"Divide and conquer," she summarizes and he hums into her neck, "It almost worked too."

"The attack was a distraction," Minato concludes and looks over at the sea, "Their real goal must be to sink the relationships we have—or at least Water Country with the rest of the shinobi nations. If they're looking to cripple that alliance, it would be easier for them to move in."

Sakura knows that she can't let her emotions cloud her judgment, because if she does, that's how people die and hasty moves can cause more internal issues rather than external. She needs to restructure her kei pieces, if the Mizuchi is looking to weaken their alliance, they aren't doing a good job at it.

"We need to get back to Konoha," Sakura announces suddenly and Minato agrees, "The longer we stay here, the more problems it's going to cause and the people are more than traumatized by past events."

"They are skittish," he suggests.

"I don't even understand what the point of this meeting was," she mutters to herself and grasps the rails of the balcony tighter, "Shikamaru wasn't exactly forthcoming."

"I doubt he knows what this meeting was for either, it was sudden and not planned at all," Minato scowls at that and covers her hands with his, "I think he believed Kakashi would wake up today and the issues would solve themselves."

"Sounds like Shikamaru," Sakura affirms with a light laugh, "Too troublesome for him to deal with."

"Those packets he gave you last night were probably just a precaution," he presumes. "He wasn't sure if you would use them."

"I did though,"

He pressed a kiss to her hairline, "I know."

"Sakura-sama?" Chojuro's voice comes from the left, shunshin from the conference room, and he walks towards her, slowly.

Sakura turns her body to face him and Minato orbits her until he's at her six. She nods her head with a small smile, "Chojuro-sama."

"I would like to speak with your privately," he pauses and looks over at the ANBU hiding in the trees, "If you would please."

She waves her hand and they disappear.

"Can I be frank, Sakura-sa—Sakura," Chojuro straightens his shoulders and rests his hands behind his back.

Sakura's eyebrows raise at the change in attitude, even Minato tenses behind her and she nods, "Yes."

"We have a mole," he tells her and narrows his eyes, "We have highly classified information being leaked. Our security, our, missions, even those off the books are being passed out like homemade dango."

She squares herself and her voice drops, "Is this confirmed?"

"By my right hand," Chojuro points to the top of the ceiling and looks over at the ocean, "I've been leaving traps, but so far I haven't received anything. Our lack of shinobi is part of the problem."

"That would explain how they weaved in and out of the security detail for Mei-sama's funeral," Sakura muses and she looks at the council room, "And the Elders?"

"They are aware," he replies quickly, "However, they are stubborn and refuse to see way. I know I can trust you and Naruto, Sakura. Which is why I've come to ask for your counsel."

She blinks rapidly and takes a step back. She inquires with incredulity, "My counsel?"

"Sakura, you rival the Nara in intelligence," Chojuro looks at her funnily, "You helped defeat Kaguya, you're the Godaime's apprentice and the Rokudaime's student. You're best friends with the last Uchiha – even though we despise him – and with Naruto. You're the best medical ninja in the world, why wouldn't I ask you for your counsel?"

I've been telling her the same thing for months, Chojuro, Minato sighs dramatically from behind her, But she just doesn't listen.

Sakura mentally slaps Minato on the arm and he winces at the blow.

"I just wasn't expecting…" Sakura shakes her head when she realizes that she can't finish the sentence, "I don't think I'm the best person to offer you advice; seeing as how I'm not a Mist nin."

"I know," Chojuro says, "But I'm asking as a friend."

Her resolve wavers then, rubbing her face with the palm of her hand, she concedes, "Go."

"The Mizuchi, have claimed responsibility for Kakashi-sama's attack," Chojuro drops that piece of information abruptly, "I received a letter earlier today; I did not discuss it with the elders because I don't know who I can trust."

Sakura's eyes sharpen, "You think it's one of them."

He pauses, "I don't know."

"Off the record," she starts, "I would suggest keeping a tight circle. People you can trust with your life and then leave a trail. Misinformation will lead them into a trap. I would suggest something small, like, trade."

"Trade?" Chojuro walks closer.

"Remember our trade agreement? It's not fully set up yet, see if you can put a pretense in the treaty before sending a copy out to Konoha. Be sure to put in case of, in very print," Sakura instructs and her eyes darken, "Lead them into a trap."

"Whoever follows the trail.." he trails off.

"…we can find the culprit then," she finishes and crosses her arms, "I heard, unofficially of course…"

"Of course," Chojuro agrees.

"That Ame has a boatload of refugees looking for a new place to settle," Sakura says slowly and Minato stands next to her, "The war ravaged their homes. Of course, these refugees are welcomed in the Leaf, but I believe they would be comfortable in a place that resembles their home town. Better to acclimate towards, yes?"

"I would have to expand our foreign policy," he muses.

"Or rip it apart and redo it," she offers dryly, "The refugees must obviously become citizens and those who want to become nin…"

"Rain turned Mist shinobi?" Chojuro looks at her with wide eyes and takes a step back in shock.

"It will rebuild your forces, you gain more loyal followers, flush out the mole and if they have any networks," Sakura advises, "It would spike the economy obviously and strengthen the number of goods you're exporting."

"That's highly unprecedented,"

"Leaf did it with Whirlpool," she points out, "Though most of them decided to leave Fire Country, Naruto technically, is the son of an immigrant and he is highly valued in the capital; for reasons other than the obvious."

"Drawbacks?"

"Internal issues," Sakura offers, "Mist citizens would more than wary about Rain refugees, unifying them is key. Segregation might also be an issue. I suggest activities or festivals; those things to promote communication and mingling."

Then Sasuke appears in front of her before Chojuro could reply. He looks minutely uncomfortable, but gives a quick bow to the Mizukage, "Kakashi is awake."

Sakura stares at him for a moment and relief washes over her like a blanket. She nods, "Find Naruto, tell him we're leaving."

Sasuke flickers away.

"I'm sorry to cut this meeting short, but I need to get Kakashi-sensei to a proper hospital," Sakura doesn't mince words when she tells him.

"No, of course, I understand," Chojuro shakes his head and offers his hand, "Please relay Kakashi-sama my regards, and," he pauses with a small flush, "Thank you, Sakura."

—

"So to be frank, I'm…just like Gai now?" Kakashi sounds so dejected that it would have been hilarious, if not for the serious situation. He sits in his own bed, in his apartment with a sulky pout and crossed arms.

"Well, Gai can use some ninjutsu and a bit of genjutsu, you can't, at all," Naruto corrects him.

The Hokage shoots him a baleful glare.

"I'm sorry, Kakashi-sensei," Sakura is so goddamn apologetic that her voice cracks a bit when she takes a seat on his bed and looks at her hands, "I tried—tried so hard and I kept—"

"—Sakura," Kakashi cuts her off with a squeeze of the hand and she looks at him with watery eyes, "It's okay. Also, please don't look at me like that, you look worse than Pakkun."

Her laugh is wet, incredulous and hysterical, "Sensei—"

"This was a risk, this entire visit was a risk," he interrupts her again and squeezes her hand again, "We were prepared for this to happen."

Minato glances at their interlocked hands.

"You mean you were prepared," Shikamaru interjects and scowls, "I was against this entire thing from the beginning."

Kakashi shrugs, "You win some, you lose some."

"You lost your ninjutsu and genjutsu abilities, not to mention your sharingan abilities as well," Sasuke emphasizes in disbelief.

"How are you being so calm about this?" Sakura sniffles and almost starts crying again when Kakashi wipes away her tears.

"Because I expected something to happen," Kakashi tugs a strand of pink hair behind her ear, "Going to Mist was a gamble. Especially with tension so high and the slaughter so close to this visit, but if we got some type of information within Kiri—one that our hunter nins couldn't get, it would've been worth it."

"But did we?" Naruto frowns.

"Mist has a mole," Sakura reveals suddenly and Shikamaru freezes at that, "Chojuro told me, privately and off-record. He said that the Mizuchi claimed responsibility and well, he alluded to that this might have been planned."

"The attack?"

"Both seems to be connected," she frowns and falls back onto the side of his bed, "He thinks it's someone on the council."

"There are only five elders, Sakura," Shikamaru points out.

"I know," Sakura scoffs and wipes away the stray tears. "The list is short."

"What are they even planning?" Sasuke sighs.

"They want to cripple the alliances we have or at least Mist has, this entire rouse was to create problems," Shikamaru figured and shoves his hands in his pockets, "Their target really wasn't Kakashi-sensei, they wanted to create enough fear that it would cause an avalanche of tensions—hopefully enough to pull us out of the peace talks."

"Divide and conquer," Sakura breathes, Minato walks to the foot of the bed and leans over her. He presses his palms into the sheets – Kakashi can see the imprints of hands on his mattress next to his pink-haired student – and presses velvet kisses on her eyelids.

Dark eyes narrow when Sakura's eyelids close and the pink of her eyelashes bend forward.

"The only thing we have to deal with, as of now, is the fact that Kakashi-sensei is out of commission," Naruto drops the statement that they all have been dreading.

Shikamaru groans.

"He is not out of commission," Sakura snaps and sits up, "He still has taijutsu."

"Which may be enough to outlast you kids," Kakashi drawls out lazily, but then he finishes with, "It won't be enough for the Elders and the council at least."

"What are you talking about?" Sasuke frowns.

"It's always the fallout, Uchiha," Shikamaru looks over at Sakura, "We always have to worry about the fallout."

"Konoha will never accept a leader that cannot use ninjutsu," Kakashi declares bluntly and cracks his neck, "A Hokage of all things. We are the biggest militaristic leader in the world and having a Hokage who can't use basic chakra will ruin our reputation. It's an unspoken rule, but it still holds."

Shikamaru knows this, "Once you tell the council that your chakra network is basically disabled they're going to have to find a replacement."

Kakashi looks at Sakura, "No, they're not."

Sakura stares at him, poleaxed and she exhales an incredulous laugh, "You can't be serious."

Naruto and Sasuke exchange a look of shock.

Kakashi's eyes crinkle at the sides as he smiles and announces her fate, "Sakura will be our next Hokage."