Aishiteru, Cherry Blossom

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Chapter Two: New Beginnings

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Can't you hear my heart beat fast; I want this to last...

-- Cascada

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That alarm, Sakura thought blearily through its shrill beeping, has got to go. She groaned and slammed her fist on it. The beeping stopped, but there was a huge dent in the machine. Sparks flew from severed wires, and Sakura sighed. "Whoops." Oh, well... now I won't have to worry about it anymore... She pushed away the green covers on her bed and stretched, mumbling an incoherent blend of curses and sighs as she remembered the events of last night. It was unbelievable even to her that she could yell at Sasuke.

She pulled on her clothes. Her outfit had changed during the past years: her black bike shorts and ninja shoes were the same, but all the rest was different. There was a short white skirt with slits on the side for easy movement that went over the biking shorts, and a Chinese-collared, stretchy top with no sleeves and that had the same design as her old dress. She slipped on her fingerless black gloves and strapped on her shoes, putting all of her supplies into her hip pouch and pockets. She filled a small bag with toiletries and other neccessities and slung it over her shoulder, tying her shinobi forehead protector around her head to keep her hair back. After a quick hair-and-tooth-brushing, she was off, sprinting towards the Hokage's Tower.

"Sakura."

She halted at the sound of her name and turned to face the voice. "Ye-?" She cut herself off mid-sentence; it was Sasuke. Deliberately, she turned again and started to resume her running.

He ran next to her, keeping up easily, even when she increased her pace. "Where are you going?" He knew where she was going, of course... but it wasn't likely that she would start a conversation.

"I have a mission, remember?" She scowled at him. "Leave me alone, will you, Sasuke?"

He skidded in front of her and pulled her up to him, hugging her tightly. He was memorizing the contours of her body, her scent, her chakra signature... everything.

Sakura's jade eyes widened. "Sasuke, please..." Her voice was a whisper. This was it, then... the hug that she'd wanted at age twelve? The... acknowledgement she'd wanted at age twelve? She was getting it now, and the strange thing was that she actually wasn't sure if she liked it.

"I'm sorry."

Good God. The stubborn Uchiha apologized? It must have been the apocalypse. Sakura gently pushed him off. "Sasuke... I have to go." In an inner turmoil, she leapt off, leaving a smug-smiling Sasuke behind her.

"SASUKE-TEMEEEE!"

The punch was anticipated, and so was stopped before it even came.

"What, Naruto?"

The blonde's eyes were narrowed. "What was that?"

"What was what?"

"The hug! What was that for? I know she yelled at you last night, teme-"

Did the whole world know? Ino had called him last night and had shouted at him (he had let the phone drop and continued reading) for a full five minutes, ranting on about how Shikamaru told her that Kiba had told him that Shino had heard that Rock Lee had seen Sakura take off from the ramen shop in a rage.

"-and I know you're probably pissed." Naruto eyed him angrily. "You're messing with her head, Sasuke-teme, and that's not cool!"

"Look, baka-"

"No, you look!" Sasuke was surprised. Naruto was actually shouting at him... and not about their own rivalry. Of course, shouting at Sasuke seemed to be a quickly-catching trend now. "I don't want you making Sakura cry like she did when you left! I don't want her to ever be that sad again, because somehow, you're always the cause of it! So stop messing with her, and maybe I won't blast you back to Sound!" The blonde set his jaw and stalked off, still fuming.

Sasuke raised an eyebrow and leaned against a tree. If Naruto, dense as he was, could sense that Sasuke was up to something, how could he continue in his course to get Sakura to care for him again? Especially because he knew Naruto's threat was probably true (even though Sasuke could probably beat the crap out of him before he did anything). He couldn't wait till after her mission... she'd be gone for days with Gaara and Neji. But, he couldn't leave, either... that damn village arrest.

Screwthe village arrest, Sasuke thought suddenly, frowning. I'm following them on that mission.

---

"So, what's this about, Tsunade-sama?" Sakura asked, seating herself in front of the Hokage's desk. Gaara and Neji were, predictably, standing, though Naruto had made himself comfortable as ever. He put his feet on the desk.

Tsunade pushed them off, and they fell heavily to the ground with a thud. "There's a group of rebels that are threatening the politics and rulers of every country and city here. They kill the leaders, encourage the rising tyrants, and perform assasinations and various other 'jobs' for wealthy clients by the thousands. There isn't a known number of them, but it's suspected to be large."

"What country are they from?" Neji asked, frowning.

"Nobody knows," Gaara said, speaking up, staring at the wall. "They have a tradition of welding their forehead protectors into their bodies. Just the metal part. So they can't be seen unless they bare their stomach, arm, leg... wherever the metal is located on their bodies."

Sakura shivered. "That's a bit..."

"Insane? Yes, very." Tsunade frowned. "So, because Sand and Leaf are both threatened, we're sending all of our most elite shinobi on this mission to prevent anything more horrible from happening. This group has already assassinated the leaders of three countries. It needs to stop as quickly as possible."

"But... if we're taking the top shinobi from the villages... Gaara-kun, you're the only one here from Sand." Sakura looked at him, and he turned his cool aquamarine eyes to her.

"Temari and Kankuro may be joining us, but my shinobi have recently been attacked by our own rebel group; it was quickly put down, but our medics aren't the best, so it takes more time to heal."

Sakura nodded. "All right, then. But Tsunade-sama, three people sounds a bit... well... small for the job we have to undertake."

Tsunade folded her hands across her stomach. "You'll be joined, for a time, by Temari and Kankuro, like Gaara said, and Naruto will be with you until you reach the Fire Country borders. But the smallest group we can find is the best for more stealth and less suspicion. Also," she added, nodding, "you all have different skills that are all important in this mission." She smiled at the four. "You are all dismissed. Good luck."

Neji, Gaara, and Naruto left. Sakura stayed, her hand on the doorknob. "Tsunade-sama... you said that the best shinobi were taken, and all those with special skills."

"Hai."

"Well..." Sakura turned to her with a pained expression. "Why not take someone like Rock Lee, or Tenten, or someone... well... someone stronger than me?"

Tsunade's face softened as she got out from behind her desk. "Sakura, I don't think you realize how strong you really are. You're so swept up in your old wounds and insecurities that you don't think about what's happening now." She gently brushed a strand of pink hair from her apprentice's face. "You're the top medic-nin in the village. You're as strong as me. You have vast amounts of chakra and extremely good control of it, and your fist will, believe me, soon become legendary." The Sannin smiled. "I'm proud of you, Sakura, and so are Uzamaki and Hyuuga and Yamanaka and Naru and maybe even Sabaku no Gaara. What you really need now, Sakura, is pride in yourself. Courage and the knowledge that yes, you can do whatever you want to do, that you're not some imbecile pining over Uchiha Sasuke anymore." She smiled wryly at Sakura's face. "Yes, I heard about your little... erm... conversation with the traitor (well, who hasn't?), and I think you did absolutely the right thing. I'm possibly more proud of you for standing up to your past love and tormentor than I am for that superior blood-flow jutsu you mastered last week."

Sakura smiled, a real one this time. "Domo, Tsunade-sama. So much."

"It's no problem," the woman said. "Now, go and find your current teammates... I suspect they're wondering where their medic has gotten to."

Tsunade watched the girl walk out of her office with a newfound confidence and reached for the sake bottle with a sigh. Maybe I should go into counseling, she thought vaguely, sipping straight from the bottle. It probably pays more...

---

The four flashed through the trees quickly, the sound of the wind and the tap of their feet on the occasional branch making a soft, soothing rhythm. Sakura dashed side-by-side with Gaara, while Neji and Naruto were one step behind them. "What did you talk to Tsunade-baa-chan about, Sakura-chan?" Naruto asked from behind.

Sakura smiled slightly. "Nothing important," she said. "I just needed some help on something."

Naruto beamed. "I'm glad it worked out for you, Sakura-chan," he said, and stopped. "This is the Fire Country border. I'm supposed to leave you guys now."

Neji and Gaara nodded, and Sakura gave Naruto a hug. "Go take Hinata-chan on a date," she said teasingly.

"Maybe I will!"

Sakura laughed and took off again, this time with only two boys for company. She looked back and saw Naruto sprinting off into the distance, probably excited at the prospect of asking Hinata to go get ramen.

"What's our best bet?" Neji asked thoughtfully to the other two after a moment.

Gaara thought a moment. "These rebels aren't just going to be lying in wait... we need a decoy, someone stupid and malleable enough to work through." He pulled a sheaf of paper from his pocket. "I have a list of names of businessmen that have contacted the group."

Sakura grabbed the list and read, scanning it quickly. "The problem is, businessmen are usually clever," she said. "They have to be. Ah, wait-- this one sounds promising. Tanaka Satoya. He owns a string of tea shops in the Willow World in the Grass Country. He frequents geisha and is known to be a sort of... dim-witted man." She raised her eyebrows. "Do you think we could hire a geisha to coax information out of him?"

Neji shook his head. "Too risky. The geisha could get scared and let something slip. Plus, how could we trust her? No, we need someone we can trust to get the information... as well as not tell anyone else."

The boysboth looked pointedly at her.

Sakura glanced up. "Me? Are you joking? I can't be a geisha!"

"All you have to do is act seductive," Gaara said. Was that a hint of actual amusement in his eyes? "Shouldn't be any trouble."

Sakura shot him a death glare. "I'm not a seductive kind of person!" she said harshly as they ran. "I can't even pretend to be seductive!"

Neji snorted, but quickly turned it into a cough as she turned her leer to him. "Look, Sakura, anyone can act seductive. Just... be confident."

Be confident. Why were those two words the hardest things she could ever try to do? Sensing the boys' looks, she sighed in defeat. "Fine. I'll do it. But," she said, her glare returning, "if I ever hear a sarcastic, smart, or otherwise anger-inspiring remark after this, I will personally poke out your precious Byakugan and wipe that damned love tattoo off your smirking face."

The two boys said nothing, but their eyes showed the deepest amusement. Sakura scowled. Her, a geisha?

This would never work.

---

Sasuke frowned as he followed them, trying to hear every word. They would use Sakura as a geisha? That was a surprise. But then, so was her yelling at him last night. I guess, he thought wryly, people have changed a lot more than I thought. He made sure his chakra signature was diverted and drew closer. Hyuuga won't use his Byakugan here, Sasuke told himself. I'll be fine. They'll never sense me, unless I stop masking my chakra.

Suddenly, Sakura threw a kunai at him. Had she seen him? He ducked, and the kunai went over the bush, over his head, and dug into the spot where his hand had just been.

"What was that for?" Gaara asked, raising a nonexistant eyebrow.

"I thought..." Sakura frowned. "Never mind."

Neji frowned. "Someone might be following us, masking their chakra. Hang on..." He quickly made handsigns, and Sasuke cursed mentally, speeding off at once. "Byakugan!"

"Do you see anything?" Sakura asked.

It was the last thing Sasuke heard. No, no, don't see me... damn that Hyuuga and his eyes... don't see me...

"Hai! I see something!" Neji's voice was surprised.

Sasuke cursed himself harder.

---

Tsunade was shuffling through a sheaf of papers when someone knocked on her door. "C'min," she mumbled, trying to concentrate on the words of the memo.

The door opened, and Kiba stepped in. "Ummm..."

"What is it? I haven't got all day." Lack of sake had made her snappy. "Close the door and say what you've got to say."

"Well, I was walking to the store to get more dog food for Akamaru..."

"You came all the way here to tell me that?"

"No!" Kiba grinned sheepishly. "Well... I passed by Uchiha Sasuke's house to say hello."

Tsunade looked from her papers, sensing something was about to go wrong. "And?"

"And... he wasn't there."

The Hokage let out a long, slow breath through clenched teeth. "And... have you checked in the village?"

"Hai."

"And?" Tsunade's voice was raw with impatience and anxiety.

"No one's seen him, except for the owner of the ramen shop."

"When did he see him?"

"This morning, around seven-thirty. He said he seemed in a hurry."

Kiba ran from the room as a sake bottle was thrown at the wall, crashing in a spectacular shower of glass and liquor and Tsunade's shout. "DAMMIT, UCHIHA!"