Back in the Academy, everyone was a little envious of Sakura. Some of them childishly bitter about it, the others just impressed.

She was top of her class, hands down the most devoted student out of all of them. Theoretically, at least. Sakura had always been painfully aware of her physical limitations, thus resorted to abusing that prodigious brain of hers all teachers liked to brag about.

And, as it turns out, those acclaimed abilities also helped tremendously during her training with the esteemed Lady Hokage. For someone of her tender age, Sakura was pretty much a badass.

She tried to be, at least.

She sighed, putting one foot before the other, leaping between steady branches.

For someone who's supposedly SOOO smart, I sure am stupid! She derogatorily thought, rolling her eyes in frustration.

What a (shitty) situation. Could it have been prevented? Maybe. Did it matter? Not...really. Somehow, in the deepest, darkest corners of her heart, Sakura knew that when it came to a certain Uchiha, nothing ever went her way. The most infuriating part? She wasn't sure if she despised him for it, or...

After swallowing what little remained of her pride, the young kunoichi decided to go over the events that led to her infuriating frustration:


She should've known better, should've suspected or at least anticipated Sasuke's reaction. She should've been better prepared to face the implications seeing him again would demand of her composure.

But Sasuke made it almost impossible for anyone to get close to him, let alone predict his moves. Sakura was a glutton for danger. And obviously, out of her fucking mind for foolishly daring the Uchiha to kill her.

Only she did. Sakura arrogantly invited Sasuke to push his blade a little further, just enough for her skin to tear in all the right places and familiarize her blood with the pitiful world outside the body. She taunted him with something she wholeheartedly hoped he couldn't go through with. She didn't want to die.

And to her surprise—because it had been a surprise, considering the way he had dangerously glared at her—Sakura's silly gamble suddenly became a winning one.

Good.

That meant she finally had a small chance to get some answers out of him. And maybe (she was getting ahead of herself here) even knock some sense into the man.

(What a dangerous game to play. Sasuke played with fire, but Sakura had long learned her way around his flames.)

He gave her five minutes.

Cursing the inability to rethink her earlier conviction, Sakura followed him to where the trees looked a little darker and her heart a little smaller.

She only stared him down for a moment, nervous and hesitant, as for all the confidence and determination she'd felt when passing through the gates of Konoha, Sakura found herself utterly incapable of mustering a single word.

False bravery was definitely better than no bravery at all. So she hardened her eyes and disturbed the struggle she felt under his scrutinizing gaze:

"Look, Sasuke. I know you killed Orochimaru."

She saw him shift a little, probably taken aback by the imprudence of gossip. Expectantly, it didn't take him long to recover as an ever so mocking, ever so proud smirk appeared on his face.

And Sakura might've had a clue or two as to why.

He had nothing to be ashamed of, after all. If Sakura knew, then Naruto knew, and if word had traveled as fast as it apparently did, so did Itachi. That could have meant only one thing: people from all over were finally made aware of his power.

"How did you find me?" The black haired man demanded, settling his right hand on the katana Sakura was forcibly acquainted with no longer than a few minutes ago.

"…and while I'm happy that you did it, I couldn't help but wonder why," she went on. Sakura would only answer Sasuke after he indulged her first.

A small plea appeared in her eyes.

"Back at Orochimaru's base you…you told us it didn't matter anymore. That you'd do whatever it takes. But you killed him and all this time, you let us believe...We only ever wanted to help you, Sasuke!"

"Tch. As if I need help from you."

Hearing him so blatantly dismiss her resolve, it made her stomach turn with a familiarity she knew all too well. But Sakura promised herself she wouldn't shy away from hardship anymore. She wouldn't back down. Not before showing off bits of her bitterness, too.

"Oh yeah? If you don't NEED help then WHY are you holding auditions for random people to play your little game, huh? As if some, some STRANGERS could ever replace what we have! As if we-"

"What I do is none of your business, Sakura." He coldly cut her off, "You're as much of a stranger to me as everyone else."

She gasped. His words were merciless and wounding, maniacally echoing in the insides of her mind.

Strangers, then?

However noble he might've been on the battlefield, it was a dirty game he played with his words. Voluntarily aiming right where he knew hurt the most and making the shot every goddamn time.

"You can't really mean that, Sasuke. I know you."

"You mean nothing to me."

Regardless, he went on, pressing salt to her open wounds, and...she refused to hear any more. She just couldn't bare it.

It happened hastily, what unexpectedly followed. Sakura had undoubtedly changed over the years and in all the right ways, but some part of her remained tainted with a weakness for him.

And it would always stay that way, haunting her soul and consuming every part of her being.

Kissing Sasuke a second time wasn't something she was necessarily proud of. But for all the complicated things he made her feel, regret wasn't one of them.

Her lips tenderly danced on his, desperately trying to express what words never could. Sakura tasted winter on his lips and found it absurd how she'd been named after spring and flowers and brightness but nothing ever fascinated her as much as the darkness residing in his chest.

With eyelids tightly shut, and hot tears threatening to fall, Sakura acted not in the absence of fear, but in the presence of emotion. She stubbornly refused to accept that her existence, along with her feelings, her memories, all of it meant nothing to the broken boy who meant everything to her.

Sasuke was a dirty liar.

When reality hit, with its sour taste and its sharp claws, completely ripping her from fantasy, she knew she had to move away. And move away she did, but not before breathlessly mocking:

"Then why haven't you killed me yet?"

Emerald met obsidian and if Sakura didn't know any better, she might've said she almost caught faint traces of something unfamiliar in his eyes.

Sasuke himself seemed to be having trouble breathing. Disoriented, his gaze remained locked on swollen red lips but not for long (enough). He quickly moved, turning away from her.

Surely he couldn't despise her that much for a stolen kiss, could he? The feelings she'd fought so heavily to suppress suddenly escaped her, taking over everything. Including her body. And he could have easily pushed her away.

But he didn't, did he?

The moment she picked up on his reluctance to speak, an unfamiliar voice shamelessly called through the forest bursting their bubble:

"What's taking so damn long? C'mon Sasuke, I want my sword!" Suigetsu yelled with his voice sharper by the second, a clear indication of his approaching proximity.

All of a sudden, Sasuke wasn't next to her anymore, wasn't trying to find his words anymore. Instead, he was walking towards Suigetsu. And before she could fully process everything, she heard him say:

"Sakura will come with us."

The kunoichi blinked in confusion, frustrated at the unfairness of it all. Who did Sasuke think he was? Saying something so infuriating, so outright scandalous, without so much as an apology.

Who was HE to act so untouched by it all, when Sakura was left alone to struggle, frantically searching for her broken pieces on cold ground?

"Is that so?" Suigetsu smirked.

The two immediately started walking back, leaving her behind. Sakura gawked at their retreating forms, baffled by this ridiculous turn of events.

"You comin', Pinky?"

Sasuke was an ass. He never asked for anything, instead he kept on taking and taking and taking, leaving Sakura completely devoid of any authority she might have previously possessed over herself.

She wanted nothing more than to run away, but her legs, her arms, her eyes, her heart—none seemed to listen to their wielder anymore. So Sakura foolishly rushed to catch up on to them.

She'd accused Sasuke of being reckless, went and tried to talk to him, even. Straighten him out, or whatever. Tried to save him from the inevitable destruction, as a good friend should always strive to do.

But maybe, she had been the one who needed saving all along.


She went in for another leap, sighing.

Sakura was glad the boys were far ahead. To her embarrassment, the look on her face gave too much bewilderment away. Regardless, she was determined to hold on to any last pieces of dignity she might have had left, no matter how small.

An optimist by nature, she refused to give up hope. Not yet. The clock was ticking, but she still had some time before Naruto went crazy and stormed Tsunade's office.

Maybe all was not lost. Maybe she still had a chance. She would only need to play smarter, not harder—this time around at least, and NOT kiss him every time he upset her and...

"So how do you know Sasuke anyway?"

Suigetsu, the one she'd earlier referred to as 'shark face' abruptly pulled her from thought by...making conversation? Sakura nervously bit her lower lip. She had to at least try and be civil, right? Albeit unconventionally, she was presented with another opportunity to make something out of this mess. Her target was a black haired arrogant jerk who made her hate herself but she wouldn't miss the shot this time around.

"Suigetsu, right? I'm Sakura. Me and Sasuke were teammates back in...Konoha," she replied. "Listen, I'm sorry for before. But maybe we could start over? If you want."

The kunoichi saw his purple eyes widen with surprise, as a slight blush grazed his abnormally pale cheeks.

"You're as soft as they come Pinky," he chuckled, "I could use some eye candy around here. Sasuke's not really my type, if you know what I mean."

Sakura giggled at his shameless flattery. She didn't find it too hard to keep a conversation going with the guy, it seems. In a weird way, Suigetsu reminded her a little bit of Naruto. He was relatively easy to talk to and obviously too proud of his bad jokes. But that also made Sakura a little bit suspicious. Maybe Suigetsu's easygoing personality had been among the reasons why Sasuke gravitated towards him. If he unconsciously sought after the way he'd felt with Naruto around.

Nostalgia aside, the difference between the two was just as clear. Compared to Naruto—genuine kindness, from flesh to bone—Suigetsu had something twisted, a mean streak about him.

"I understand. He can be rather difficult, but deep down he's a good person." Sakura didn't necessarily have to like Suigetsu to feel sorry for him. She knew firsthand how brutal and downright discouraging Sasuke could be at times.

Before she could even blink, Sasuke appeared in front of her as she was unexpectedly met with a furious, dark glare.

"Cut it out."

"As I said Suigetsu. Deep, deep down."

"C'mon Sasuke leave her alone, we were just talking."

"Stay out of it, Suigetsu."

She studied Sasuke for a second longer, before smugly returning the favor:

"Well pardon me, your Highness, for daring to speak without asking your permission. How incredibly stupid of me," she mocked, "What's your problem, Sasuke? Seriously."

"You are my problem." He admitted, gripping her arm tightly, "Keep your mouth shut."

Oh, so now he was feeling conversational? Sakura dangerously narrowed her eyes and viciously snapped at him:

"You are NOT my father, you are NOT my brother and, to your upmost delight, you are NOT my boyfriend. I don't answer to you."

Seemingly pleased with herself for openly insulting the Uchiha, Sakura took a deep breath. It felt exhilarating, defying him like that. And with a witness on her side, no less. Sasuke finally got a taste of his own medicine. Green eyes were sparkling with excitement, nothing had ever felt as rewarding as standing up to Sasuke Uchiha, save maybe for kissing him and...

...he looked so handsome, hot with familiar anger and full of annoyance. Let it be anger, frustration, let it be anything—she'd rather he felt something than nothing at all.

"Starting now you do. You're a medical ninja, aren't you? You will replace Karin."

"As if! I'm going back home. And I don't know who this Karin person is, but send her my sincere condolences, because whoever agrees to join in on your suicide mission is completely insane!"

Why didn't you come to us? Why are you doing this, Sasuke? Why are you pushing me away?

"It was a lie, then."

Sakura's eyes suddenly widened. Could he be referring to...that night? And that absolutely outrageous proposal of hers? Why bring it up now? Why acknowledge it now, after all this time?He had hurt her back then. Badly. Terribly.

She meant every single word.

"It wasn't! All I said, all of it is true, okay? But I want to do things right by you this time, Sasuke." Sakura sighed, "And this, this isn't right."

.

.

.

.

By that point, neither of them paid any mind to Suigetsu anymore. He was just part of the background, left staring at two clueless people who argued as if estranged and in love at the same time. Fucking hilarious.

He couldn't tell which exactly, but, he might've discovered the reason Sasuke overreacted like he had earlier. An all knowing smirk molded his lips as he boldly interrupted their silly quarrel:

"I get it!"

Sasuke and Sakura snapped their heads in his direction, flustered by his sudden intrusion.

"I just gotta lock the two of you somewhere. That'll take care of the tension." He explained.

"Excuse me?"

Sakura raised an eyebrow and Sasuke sighed, closing his eyes in attempt to collect himself.

"We wasted too much time here. Let's just go."

Without waiting for a reaction, he quickly jumped off. Sakura and Suigetsu both nodded in agreement, following him shortly after. They had previously agreed on stopping for the night. Sakura had in plan to leave at first light. They continued on and everything seemed decently fine. Well, save for the nasty glares Suigetsu continuously received from Sasuke.

And she never missed the strange looks the white haired man kept giving her, either. It annoyed her to no end, people looking at her as if they knew something she didn't. And there was that unfinished "conversation" with Sasuke, too.

It sucked, but she would give it one more try before going back home. And hopefully keep things appropriate. Because there was no easy way out of this, but she wouldrather die than return to Naruto empty-handed.


Author's Note:

interesting chapter, not too dynamic, i know but I feel as though it's important for the rest of the story. i wonder what's going to happen at night? ;)

stick around to find out. and REVIEW.

sendin' love!

(also did you guys hear we're gettin' a Sasuke Retsuden Manga?! i'm so excited and nervous at the same time. i hope they won't fuck it up or else HELP ME GOD.)