Author's Note: I'm very sorry if I seem to be updating a little slowly. I'm still pretty busy with schoolwork and stuff with my org at UP, so thanks for bearing with the delay.

Um, the story is parodical to the phrase "HISTORY REPEATS ITSELF." If you have any questions or confusion from the last chapter, this one will answer them all, hopefully. Thanks to those who asked via submitting reviews.

I've also edited chapter 6 since I was commented for OOCness. Thank you very much for telling me. I hope it's not that OOC anymore.

sasukefurever – I am hoping this chapter is not disappointing.

Silver Kitsune6291 – about Sasuke leaving Sakura a pillow…that is only half-right. /wink/ Thanks for reading!

YingYang-chan - I'm sorry I've been very busy lately.

Zuan – Thank you very much!

CrAzY-SiLLy-Me – Hey thanks for the compliment! As for the "Sasuke pillow," if you will read the last few paragraphs, Sasuke performed one more jutsu (a genjutsu to be precise) before he exited Sakura's room. That is a hint to your question. The answer lies there.

Millie-chan - Thank you for the good review!

psychedelic aya – Oh yes, the Sasuke pillow thing should be a fad…they should release a merchandise on that…hehehe.

xelagirl2 – likewise. Thanks for the review.

lyninese – That would be a nice idea now, wouldn't it? Thanks for reading!

IsLandChIck3 – I'm sorry for the delays. Yes, he curses a lot in the first chapter…actually I was trying very carefully not to include the bad words because of the rating, so I ended up with "curse this and that" for most of his lines.

InuyashaObsessed101 – if you read this chapter your question will be answered…hopefully. Hehe. Thanks for reading on!

Akatsuki Blaze – thanks for revewing! Thanks for the encouragement!

happy-yume – thank you! About the pillow-making jutsu, I do have an expalantion for that in this chapter.

laussica – I don't have any Sasuke-pillows, unfortunately. And all my pillows smell nice…sweatdrops

Uchiha Tsakare – thanks for wishing me luck on my exams! That is so touching!

XxFadedSakuraxX - thanks for reading! Hope you will enjoy this chapter too!

PrincessChii – arigatou. Cuteness seems to be the theme of this fic, ne?

Silverchild of the winds – Sakura's POV was pretty hard to insert because it was supposed to be Sasuke's story…but there you go.

rayearth-luvr – edited the OOCness, and yes, I think it is possible to turn into a pillow using henge no justu. Naruto was able to transform into a windmill shuriken in one of the series, a pillow whould be easy! Hehe.

daydreamer53221ChixonCrystal Renee – thanks for reading!

little wolf blossom – wow, two minutes after I posted the last chapter, you've already read it! Thanks!

Disclaimer: I and a bazillion other people absolutely do not own Naruto. If anyone tells you otherwise, kindly shove his/her face to your monitor right now.

Chapter 7: StoryRepeats Itself

Sparrows flew happily across the blue sky. Without a cloud in sight, the morning sun shone brilliantly in the crystal clear horizon. As this radiant sphere stood still over Konoha, a familiar scene was repeating itself somewhere. Except for a few differences from the previous conversation, it was de javu.

"What? Sasuke-kun has influenza?" an exasperated pink-haired ninja cried frantically to his silver-haired teacher as their yellow-haired teammate jumped in surprise at her sudden shriek. Even the sun seemed to have trembled at her response.

It has been two days since Team 7 last met for their daily training and mission. That time, their jounin instructor decided to postpone their activities because of their female teammate having come down with a very bad case of the flu. Now he had another problem to deal with. On the small bridge, Naruto, Sakura, and Kakashi continued their meeting.

"You know you guys are really making it harder on yourselves, delaying our training like this." He added as he ran a hand through his unkempt hair and heaved a sigh.

And I thought only I had 'delay problems,' it would seem it's rubbing off on the group's training sessions as well.

Kakashi was actually a little upset with the news himself, but the two genins were too busy fussing over the topic to notice that he was not even reading his Icha Icha Paradise. His students stood opposite him, a very hysterical Sakura on his left, and a slightly apathetical Naruto on his right.

"Poor Sasuke-kun…all alone and sick in bed…" She clasped her hands together and looked up at the sky wistfully.

"He's got it pretty bad, from what I saw yesterday," their instructor added in a somewhat casual voice as he shifted from his leaning position on the railing. "It's quite a surprise to me as well, Sakura. I didn't think Sasuke would get sick the day you got better." He said as his one eye watched a sparrow that was nesting on a tree nearby. "I know Sasuke would train with us even if he wasn't feeling well, but I told him to can the idea, for his own good."

Upon hearing the end of his teacher's report, Sakura's eyes started to brim with tears. Naruto frowned, voiced a loud "Hmp!", and crossed his arms over his inflated chest. Kakashi noticed this, and though still slightly disappointed, just had to smile at this—their childish displays were amusing to him as always. Of course, they were still oblivious to his presence.

Sakura started seeing images of Sasuke lying in his bed, like those in old films where the picture was sepia-toned.

"Sakura…" he called hoarsely. His back hunched over as he started coughing loudly. He squeezed the blankets as he wheezed. "Sakura…please…"

"Sasuke-kun!" she cried as she rushed to his side. His hands were clammy bone-white, his eyes had dark cirles from sleepless nights. "I'm here."

"Sakura…now that you're hear I know I'll get better."

"Oh my poor Sasuke-kun…"

He takes her hands in his and guides them to his face. Sakura leans into him—

"But Sakura-chan, you shouldn't worry so much about that Sasuke-jerk!" Naruto, who was unable to contain his envy over his crush's dramatic reaction, immediately started barrage of protests, awakening Sakura from her daydream.

A vein popped up from under her cherry tresses.

Unaware of what he had just done, Naruto continued to air his thoughts, "I mean, Kakashi-sensei and I just saw him two days ago and he was just peachy. I bet he's just trying to skip training because he's a scaredy-cat who's afraid that he'll get a whooped."

Another vein popped up, and it was twice as large as the first one. Kakashi's one eye widened slightly when he noticed this, but said nothing. Let's see how many lumps Naruto will get this time, he mused.

"That Sasuke is such a weak baby!"

In a twinkling, Sakura landed a good smack on his head.

"OW! But Sakura-chan!" Naruto said teary-eyed while he sat nursing a lump that seemed bigger than his own skull.

Oh, just one hit? Hahaha, but it's still funny.

"Sasuke-kun is not a jerk, not a scaredy-cat, and not a baby," she scolded Naruto as he massaged the back of his head. Yes, she was unquestionably better, all three of them thought to themselves. Finally, Sakura eyed him and uttered a small resentful "Hmp!" before looking away. She would never allow anybody to badmouth Sasuke within earshot if he wasn't there to hurt them himself.

'"Hm, it seems Sakura seems to have fully recovered," their teacher said, interrupting his pupils. Sakura and Naruto stopped and looked on at him curiously.

"Maybe we should train today, even without Sasuke. After all, that is what I promised. Isn't that right, Naruto?" The blond ninja could tell his sensei was giving one of those playful smiles again under that mask. It looked like they won't be getting out of this hell after all, Naruto thought.

"It's settled then. Let's head to the forest." All three walked through the bridge and beyond the town square, towards the woodland.

As they walked, Naruto noticed Sakura far behind them. He slowed his pace until he was beside her. When she still hadn't noticed him after a few moments, he decided to ask, "Sakura-chan," he said worriedly, "something wrong?"

"Eh?" She replied, taken aback by the interruption.

"What are you thinking about then? You looked pretty serious."

Sakura paused. She put her hands on her waist, tilted her head, and looked distantly, a pose Naruto recognized his intelligent teammate would do instinctively whenever she was deep in thought. Imitating her, Naruto put a hand on his chin and narrowed his eyes.

"Well?" He asked a few moments later.

"No, it's nothing." She finally replied. She smiled at him, waving him off. "on the contrary, Naruto, I'm very happy."

"Huh? And why is that?"

"Well," she replied, placing a finger on her chin thoughtfully. "It's…"

"It's…what?"

"…a secret" she giggled playfully and walked right past his baffled teammate. "Don't just stand there Naruto, Kakashi-sensei is way ahead of us already!" Naruto snapped out of his puzzlement, half-nodded and jogged after her.

"You're not telling me?"

"No."

"Come on Sakura-chan! What is it?"

What the heck was she smiling for?

"Achooo!" Sasuke wearily flung the blanket over his aching head and closed his eyes again. The air was unbearably cold to his skin, but under the sheets, he could hardly breathe. Another sneeze later he propped himself up with his elbows and struggled to sit up.

He had spent most of yesterday and today between sitting up and lying down under the covers. But no matter how hard he tried, the discomfort would not go away. He exhaled noisily in irritation.

This is why I hate this place so much.

Restlessness, his other constant companion in the cold, lonely room, was once more nagging him to get up and do something.

Waste of time, it whispered repeatedly, increasing his annoyance.

There was no doubt that the raven-haired boy wanted nothing more than to miraculously stand up and walk away from this god-forsaken room. But with his shaky arms and aching limbs, his body was too weak to follow his heart's bidding.

Weak—How he loathed that word. It disgusted him to think that one with perfect health and fitness such as himself could easily fall victim so to a tiny virus. It grounded him to the reality, that despite his uncanny skills and iron will, he was just as everyone else – possessing a body susceptible to illness, and more importantly, a mind prone to error.

I would've just ended up with a cold if I had stayed away from Sakura that night. Going there was a mistake.

When he found out that the influenza virus was extremely contagious and airborne, he realized that he had contracted it from Sakura. So there he was, where he least expected himself to be, sick in bed. Moments later, he heard the heavy door slide ajar. A lone figure peeked from the entrance.

"Sakura…" He said throatily, sounding a little calmer than he intended to.

So she was feeling better now.

"Good afternoon, Sasuke-kun," his teammate greeted warmly. "I came here as soon as training was over." She smiled when Sasuke nodded in acknowledgement, and quietly closed the door behind her. Sakura wore a pink jacket over her genin uniform, and held a large paper bag in one hand. She twirled slowly as she entered the room—white walls and white courtains surruounded them and gave a very sterile feeling, the faint smell of disinfectants loomed in the atmosphere. A single open window provided occasional warm afternoon breezes.

"You know, I was really surprised when Kakashi-sensei told me that you were actually here at the hospital instead of at your place. But I almost didn't believe my ears when he said you checked yourself in at the clinic yesterday…I thought you hated hospitals."

"I do." He replied gruffly, rubbing his throat as he spoke. "But I'd rather be here where I can be left alone that back at my apartment."

Sakura paused for a moment to read between the lines. Sasuke threw a glance at the last rays of sunlight that peered from the window as they moved across the tiled floor.

After he left Sakura that morning two days ago, he somehow managed to get home despite his feverish condition. When he got back, he merely threw his soaked shirt to one corner of his bedroom and instantly fell asleep when his face hit his bed. Some time later, he woke up from a fit of sneezing. Kakashi was leaning over his window ledge, scratching his head sadly. Around that time as well, a horde of his fans had gathered outside his apartment and were causing a ruckus. Apparently, some of his loyal stalkers had spread rumors that he was fatally ill when he failed to show up on their daily "Sasuke-Whereabouts" schedule for a whole day. The squealing, the screaming, the wailing...it was agonizing. What else could he do?

"At least I know they can't bug me here." He added before sneezing.

She nodded sympathetically. "Well, I did see a few dozen of them downstairs at the lobby. They were asking the nurses for your room number. I'm glad Kakashi-sensei already told me which room you were staying in. I had to be careful though, I didn't want them following me to your room."

Sasuke tore his gaze from the floor and gazed at her shortly. Her face was a little pale, but her eyes lit her expression with such cheerfulness that she seemed perfectly all right.

"Oh," she said suddenly, her eyes widening with surprise.

"What?"

"I forgot to ask you, silly me. How are you feeling?"

What's up with her?

Is she trying to be cute with me?

What the heck is she smiling for?

"Feh. I'll live." He answered after taking a deep breath.

Sakura took a seat beside him and lay her hands at the edge of the bed. For a long while, neither of them spoke. There were moments when Sakura wanted to say something, but her tongue would stick to the roof of her mouth. She was there for a reason—it was more than just to visit him—she wanted to tell him something important. She had practiced her lines over and over in her mind on her way to the hospital, but somehow she lost the words again.

Surprisingly, it was Sasuke who finally broke the stillness.

"You should go home soon. I don't want you hanging around here for too long. You might get a relapse." He spoke slowly, swallowing after each line. He looked at her, waiting for her reaction. From the look in her eyes, she seemed to agree with him. But her mysterious smile never left her lips.

"Sasuke-kun," she replied. "I want to tell you something."

"What is it?"

"I want to say thank you. Thank you for..."

"For what?" a small pitch of anxiety had made its way from the pit of his stomach to his throat. He waited in anticipation.

"Thank you for…"

Thank you for visiting me in my room when I was sick. It took me a few moments to notice. You used 'Henge no Justu' didn't you? I found that out the moment I felt your charka coursing through the pillow. But I pretended not to know. And when I deliberately left you so you could escape that night, you did 'Kokohi no Jutsu' and changed one of my own pillows to look like you. And you stayed outside my window until I pretended to close my eyes and fall asleep. I knew that when I wake up the next morning I would not find that blue pillow beside me anymore, and I would think of it as a dream. But I didn't care. I saw you put your hands against the glass, and I wanted so much to hold it and tell you how truly happy I was. You put so much effort to keeping it secret that I just couldn't say the words—I can't tell you that I knew all along. But I want to thank you. Thank you for caring, Sasuke-kun.

"..for taking care of me. You, Naruto, and Kakashi-sensei. You guys always watch over me, I'm very lucky to be part of this team."

"Is that it?" He asked in a relieved tone.

"Um…yes, I guess." She brushed the stray strands from her face. "And I brought you something."

Sakura handed the paper bag to Sasuke, who eyed her suspiciously before turning the bad upside down on his lap. A pink square pillow, a thick comforter, some anti-congestion medicine, and a box wrapped up in red cloth with white circles.

"What's all this for?"

"Well, I know it's hard for you to get some rest here. The medicine is for the stuffy nose. I brought my pillow and quilt since it helped me sleep better when I was sick. And that," she said, pointing to the box, "is dinner."

"Sakura…"

She looked back at him with a smile and answered, "I'll see you tomorrow then, Sasuke-kun. Have a good night's sleep, ok?" The door slid shut.

After placing the soft pillow and comforter on his bed, Sasuke slowly unwrapped the box.

Salmon stuffed tomatoes? Did she cook this herself for me?

Sasuke glanced outside the window and saw the pink-haired girl bouncing happily homewards. Maybe it was a mistake to go into her room, but it was all worth it, he thought. And maybe, just maybe, if fate permitted him, he'd be crazy enough to do it again.

History would definitely repeat itself.

-End-

Author's Note: Well, that is the end! I wanted to keep this no longer than Seven chapters. Thanks to everyone who read my story. I will be working on my other fiction now. I will add a BONUS chapter when I get the time to write it.

Information:

Kokohi no Jutsu - False Place Technique (Genin Level)
- Kokohi no Jutsu is a simple Genjutsu technique which changes the appearance of a nearby object.

-Taken from this site (http/s3.