Seven Years and Fifty Days, a naruto fanfic

Title: "Seven Years and Fifty Days"

Author: Yukari Rin

Series: Naruto

Character(s)/Pairing(s): Uchiha Sasuke and Haruno Sakura

Rating: T for violence

Word Count: 3,201

Notes: This is the requested continuation of the third one-shot in my one-shot collection 52 Flavours. Reading the third one-shot is not necessary to understand this piece. The title is taken from the Groove Coverage song "7 Years and 50 Days", which was the inspiration for this fic. I don't know why is screwing with the spacing of the song lyrics, so please try not to let it bother you too much.

Disclaimer: Naruto and related properties belong to Masashi Kishimoto and related parties. "7 Years and 50 Days" is copyrighted by Groove Coverage.

"Seven Years and Fifty Days"

Sasuke shifted his glance around the office as he waited for the Hokage to arrive. He was curious as to why the hearing wasn't being held in the courtroom, but decided it was against his best interests to question the change. He didn't really care all that much if people were there to watch the proceedings, but the private setting of the location change wasn't what he had been expecting.

The door opened and the two ANBU guards greeted their leader as he walked into the room. As the Hokage passed by Sasuke, their gazes met. Sasuke's coal irises met his former teammate's blue-green, each holding the connection before the right side of Naruto's lips lifted in a small, almost cheeky grin. Sasuke snorted softly and lifted a thin brow.

After settling himself behind his desk, Naruto motioned for the ANBU to leave. Once the two men were alone, the blond leaned forward. "You've been well-behaved this year, haven't you, Sasuke?"

The question caught the more sullen of the two off guard. "I've done nothing to risk breaking parole, Hokage-sama," he replied, his voice as emotionless as ever.

"Are you interested in becoming a Jounin?" The question was superfluous; both knew that Sasuke wanted to advance in rank.

"I am."

Naruto nodded and shifted through the file before him, picking up a small and slightly crumpled piece of paper. "When the other shinobi villages heard of your initial desire to be promoted three years ago, the leaders came to agree that you had proved you leadership qualities, although they were shown under questionable circumstances while you were aligned with Oto. You were given a promotion without being tested," Naruto glanced at the dark-haired man across from him. At Sasuke's nod of recognition, he continued. "It was also agreed that should you decide to seek promotion to Jounin, that you would be required to take the exam just like all of the other hopeful shinobi.

"However, soon after you became a Chuunin, you left Konoha without permission to pursue a personal vendetta -" he held up his hand to silence Sasuke before he could comment, "and after completing your goal you returned on your own. This was taking into account during your sentencing, and since then you have completed what has been asked of you." He lifted the small square of paper. "With the upcoming Jounin Exam around the corner, we had to take into account that you would most likely wish to participate, and so I've been in constant communication with the Kazekage, since the final part of the exam will be held in his village. He has given you his permission to enter his village, on one condition."

Sasuke's eyebrows knit together as he absorbed the information. He hadn't thought about needing permission to enter other villages. He became a Chuunin when Konoha held the exam, and he never left the country on any of his missions. He knew that many ninja were wary of him in his own village, so it wasn't too far-fetched to believe that other villages didn't think kindly of him. He wondered how many thought of him as a threat. "What's the condition?"

Naruto handed his rival the paper, and watched Sasuke's eyes as they scanned the coded message. The writing looked vaguely familiar to Sasuke, though he couldn't put his finger on the reason. After reading the condition Sasuke closed his eyes and took a deep breath. "This isn't exactly fair."

"Take it or leave it, Sasuke. Due to his agreement the lesser villages are somewhat forced to allow you in their villages."

Rubbing the sheet between his fingers he glanced down at it again. "With or without the Sharingan I'll earn the promotion. I accept the Kazekage's condition."

The Rokudaime Hokage rose and walked around his desk. "Then I declare you officially a free man, Uchiha Sasuke. The Jounin Exam will begin a month from now. I recommend you seeing Tsunade-obaa-chan soon so that you can re-adjust yourself to fighting without the Sharingan and chakra.

"Hn," Sasuke let out before bowing to the head of his village and leaving the office and heading to the hospital.

Seven years and fifty days,

the time is passing by.

The sweat was sliding down his back, and he was surprised to find himself breathing heavier than he expected he would. The wear and tear after traveling through the varied environments at such a fast pace while also being on guard for attacks had been meant to serve as an example of possible mission situations, but Sasuke didn't care about the meaning behind it all. All he was concerned about was reaching the goal as quickly as possible, with the all the other ninja trailing after him.

The last remaining Uchiha adjusted his makeshift mask as he tried to keep his footfalls as light as possible to keep himself from sinking into the sand dunes. He could see the first out buildings of Suna's territory and smiled to himself at his good luck. He had been delayed by an Ame-nin that had teamed up with a Kumo-nin while he was on his way from Kusa to Ame. Sasuke still felt a bit of pain in his shoulder where one of his opponent's kunai had connected with him, but he shoved it to the back of his mind as he dashed past the first sentry tower.

At the far end of the village there was a small arena where the final stage of the exam would be held. As Sasuke neared the stands he could hear the spectators' cheers and he pushed himself harder before running onto the arena floor.

As soon as he passed the wall he blocked the left side of his face as an opponent's round off threatened to slam into his temple. Without pausing the attacker pressed his hands into the ground and kicked both of his feet into Sasuke's gut. Sasuke staggered back and caught one of the attacker's ankles and raised his free arm to shield from the kick his opponent's free leg was making to his head. Sasuke spun and tossed the man away from him, surprised at how light the man was. The man rose and dusted himself off before lowering himself into a fighting stance. Wiping a trail of blood from his lip, Sasuke took the chance to size up his attacker. The armor he was wearing wasn't specific to any of the shinobi villages, and was no help in suggesting the wearer's gender. The mask was a plain white and simply covered the face, free of additional village features such as animal ears. His enemy wore their hair tucked under a bandana, and every part of his body was covered with clothing and armor, making his small stature well defended.

Sasuke charged at him, throwing one of his last shuriken. The man easily evaded the throwing star and lifted a leg to kick Sasuke. Sasuke crouched close to the ground and ducked under the contender's leg and stayed down as the man's other leg followed the first. Spinning away from the fighter, Sasuke pulled himself into an aerial and hit his opponent's back while it was turned to him. Quickly rising, Sasuke slammed his elbow into the crook of his enemy's neck, pushing him away from himself. His opponent retaliated by lifting his leg and sending his foot into Sasuke's chest. The force sent Sasuke flying back a few feet.

Sasuke jumped up and threw the remaining kunai and shuriken at his foe as he zigzagged across the arena floor. The masked man easily evaded each weapon, and Sasuke wished that had saved some wire. He hadn't realized that this part of the exam would take place immediately after the completion of the first half. Just as there was a break between the second and third stage of the Chuunin Exam, he had been somewhat expecting the same to follow for the Jounin Exam.

Shaking the distracting thoughts from his mind Sasuke crouched as the armored foe rushed at him, one of Sasuke's kunai in hand. Putting his weight onto his hands, Sasuke lifted his left leg and turned his body, catching his foe on his chin, jarring the mask from its location on his face.

The person staggered back, holding a gloved hand to his mouth. From his perspective on the ground, the sun was hidden behind the now unmasked man's head, slightly obscuring the detail of his face. A few strands of hair fell out from the bandana and Sasuke froze. His opponent took his pause as an opportunity and slammed his foot into the ground, sending the hardened earth up into jagged sections. Sasuke jumped back, his thoughts racing. He only knew of one person with hair the color of sakura blossoms, but it couldn't be her, could it? His mind searched back through the past three years, and Sasuke realized he hadn't seen her once in the village after he was let out of prison the first time, three years ago. He thought that she finally understood his meaning after ignoring her for four years. The possibility of her not being in the village at all during that time never crossed his mind.

Sasuke watched as the pink-haired person cancelled his henge and removed the bulk of the armor, leaving the standard protective vest and shin guards. The person slowly pulled the gloves off and tossed them onto the ground before reaching up and removing the black bandana. "Hello, Sasuke-kun."

That voice. It hadn't changed at all. He rose slowly and narrowed his eyes at the only female member of Team Kakashi. "Sakura. What a surprise," he spoke coolly.

"Not really. I'm the one who made the suggestion about the conditions for your being able to participate in this exam," she smirked and rested a hand on her hip.

"You're not an examinee?"

"Why would someone that's already a Tokubetsu Jounin be taking the exam again, Sasuke-kun?" Sasuke continued to glare at her. She might not have changed very much in her outward appearance, but the last time she had spoken to him as when they were seventeen, and she had been crying.

"Hn, how difficult could be to become a Special Jounin if you're one of them?" he scoffed.

He did not catch her glare, but he heard it through her voice. "You haven't seen even a tenth of what I'm capable of, Sasuke-kun."

Seven years and fifty days,

and now just look at me.

Am I the girl I used to be?

So damn, what do you see?

A few moments of silence passed as they sized the other up. Why was she so different from what he remembered? Her hair had grown out a little, and Sasuke could see that her muscles were more toned. She even seemed to be taller than he remembered, and even the determination in her eyes was slightly different from the kind she occasionally showed when they were younger.

Sasuke widened his stance and crouched, holding his hands in front of his in mock defense. "Then by all means, a demonstration."

Sakura hardened her gaze, "I'd prefer not to, given our current location. Let the dead rest, neither of us has time to bury them again."

Sasuke blinked at her in confusion and noticed that they were no longer in the arena in Sauna, but at the Uchiha cemetery in Konoha. A genjutsu. Sasuke reached for his kunai she had dropped, but she pulled it away with a chakra string.

Maybe it was the way she made her comment so easily, or maybe it was the implication that his ancestors would be disturbed from the peace that they had been forced into, but Sasuke found himself charging at his former teammate. She easily slid into a defensive position and made the handseals for the replacement jutsu. An easy slice across the replacement's arm changed it back into a log as he spun, preparing for her next weak attack. She was charging at him again, and she threw a kunai at him. Sasuke caught the blade between his calloused fingers and threw it back at her, but the log fell to the ground when the kunai imbedded itself.

A senbon pierced his right shoulder and as he reached to pull it out and over it transformed into the kunoichi who swung her free arm to cut his arm with a shuriken. He smirked and kneed her rib, the familiar popping sound reaching his ears as yet again the clone replacement fell to the ground. Sasuke reached down and picked up the shuriken and scanned the moonlit cemetery. The ground in front of his mother's marker began to rise, but since he couldn't pin point Sakura's location, he watched to see how much skill she may have had. The grass and dirty was quickly dividing itself, and a quiet scrapping was heard. A small urn plopped onto the ground and its lid fell off. The ashes and bone fragments snaked together and formed the shape of a woman lying in pain on the ground, reaching for him. Sasuke brought his hands together to cancel the jutsu, but another was lying in wait for him. For now, instead of ashes, his mother lay on the ground, blood dripping from her lips and the white of her eyes a soft pink. "Sa... suke," she choked out, coughing blood from the exertion.

Sasuke felt the bile from his stomach race up to his esophagus. He quickly swallowed and tried to make the cancellation seals, but his hands were shaking uncontrollably. His mind screamed at him that the spasms was part of the jutsu as well, and that he was a better shinobi than this, but his gaze strayed to his mother gasping for life. He didn't notice the tightening around his ankles as he was pulled down forcefully. He hit his head on a nearby marker and the shock of pain cleared his senses enough for him to break his way out of the illusion.

Resting on the cold earth panting for breath, he quickly searched for the other ninja. She was in front of his mother's stone, kneeling. Her lips were moving but his heart was pounding in his ears and he couldn't make out her words. She turned to him, her eyes sad and glassy. "I didn't want to do that, Sasuke-kun. But I didn't want to fight you, either." She walked over to him, offering a hand to help him up.

Sasuke dragged his fingers over the carved names on the stone he was leaning against and reached up and grabbed her wrist with his other hand. He bent the wrist back far enough to strain it and pulled the woman down. He slid a kunai out from her leg holster and held it against the pumping pulse in her neck. Her chest rose and fell evenly as she calmed herself. Try as he might, Sasuke couldn't discern fear in her eyes, only pain. Within the blink of an eye, she changed.

She was no longer the Haruno Sakura that showed impressive skills, she was the bright, simpering twelve year-old that would rather focus on her looks instead of training. She was the Sakura that haunted Sasuke each night. The Sakura that had enough knowledge of his behavior to know that something was going to happen the night he left. The Sakura that told him she loved him. The Sakura that offered to join him. That offered to help make his dreams come true. Sasuke pushed himself off of her, but she reached up and gripped the back of his shirt. "Sasuke-kun," she murmured as she rested her forehead against his back. "Don't go. It isn't morning yet."

Sasuke turned his head to look at her and she changed once again. Her hair was long and her body had filled out to a figure that only kunoichi specializing in spying had, one full of curves meant to entice men to give away their secrets. Her full lips pouted and her eyelashes batted innocently. He shoved her away and rose, turning. "Why are you doing this?" he asked coldly.

He heard her rise and walk to him. He felt a sudden heat on the curse seal and jumped, trying to face her, but she wrapped and arm around him and held him against her chest. As the heat flowed through the seal and spread throughout his body, Sasuke felt his senses heighten. The firm pressure of the arm against his torso, and the small mounds of Sakura's breast pressed against his spine mixed with her soft breath falling on the nape of his neck were all too noticeable. She removed her hand from the seal and released him, stepping back. "This is a no-holds-barred exam Sasuke-kun. You know that."

With that she canceled the genjutsu and all of its various layers. Sasuke blinked as the bright desert sun returned. He knew it took a good deal of control to keep so many illusions active and tangible, and he wondered just how much of her potential he had seen. She removed her weapons pouches. "Shall we finish this, Sasuke-kun?" she pulled on a second pair of gloves as she spoke.

"Aa."

The next few minutes were a blur as they each ducked, blocked, and landed hits on the other. In the stands Naruto watched his two former teammates fight for the first time without holding back. Sasuke was proud and was trying to prove to the world how strong he was, while Sakura just wanted to prove that she was no longer the weak little girl he thought she was.

In the end Sasuke's lack of chakra, combined with having his bloodline limit sealed and tiredness over the first half of the exam was too much for Sakura's carefully controlled actions and determination. She sent him flying fifteen meters away after delivering a swift uppercut to Sasuke chin. As he lay in broken up dirt that he landed on Sakura pulled off her gloves and watched him, catching her breath. Naruto knew that she wouldn't allow the tears welling on her lower eyelids to fall.

Now I run to you,

like I always do.

When I close my eyes

I think of you.

Such a lonely girl,

such a lonely world,

when I close my eyes I dream.