Author's Note: Hey everyone! I hope you had a great summer. I was so sure that I would have plenty of time to write, edit, upload, and repeat, but well, what can I say? The whole summer evaporated and I barely finished writing this before it was over.

There might be some inconsistencies because it's been awhile since I read the manga chapters that apply to these events and I'm too lazy to look them up.

This chapter was going to be a lot different than it is now anyway, but because of the (awesome) event of Sakura kicking serious hind end in one of the newer chapters but the (shameful) lack of character development for her reaching that level, I had to fix that in my little version of the Naruto universe. It just so worked out that I have been looking for an opportunity to use flashbacks too. I used one in back in chapter 3, and I don't want that to be a one-time occurrence.
So in short, this chapter is Sakura-centric, and either the next chapter or the one after it will be as well.
I hope you enjoy, and don't forget to review!

Sakura was struggling to keep up with them. She'd already lost sight of them twice, and they showed no signs of slowing.

What was Sasuke thinking? Was he thinking at all?

He'd had a dazed look on his face from the moment he broke through the genjutsu and recognized her. She shouldn't rule out the possibility he was still under the effects of the jutsu to some extent, but she just had a gut feeling that he wasn't.

What should she do?

It could all be a part of the enemies plan, and regardless if the enemy intended it to happen or not, the reanimated Itachi was an enemy himself.

She was nearly done healing herself, her lung functioning again, and the pain nearly gone. She hadn't used much chakra in doing so, but her levels were low enough to concern her. Should there be a fight, she would not last long and she could not just rely on Sasuke being able to help in his current condition.

A rational shinobi would have already been preparing a contingency plan should Sasuke prove to be an enemy as well, and though the possibility uncontrollably did cross her mind, Sakura would not entertain it.

She had to trust Sasuke; she had to believe in him.

He and Naruto were pillars in her life, and what structure could stand without its foundation? She was willing to bet her life on him.

She ground her teeth in annoyance as she checked her seal's level despite knowing the answer. She still was not ready to unleash it, but as she again contemplated how bad things might be getting soon, she was again tempted to unleash the seal early.

She had been willing to do so when Madara held them prisoners, and if Itachi was leading them into a trap, the circumstances might require her to.

She felt confident in guessing by Sasuke's disorientation that he would not be riding in with his white horse to make fake deals like he had in their prison.

It would be all up to her.

Chewing on her lip, Sakura couldn't help but remember.

Flashback

"Master Tsunade, wouldn't it be better to-"

Sakura was cut off from finishing her plea as she dodged a kick and the ensuing earthquake and debris.

Tsunade was trying to teach her how to summon slugs.

They were extremely useful to medical ninjas, as most had some kind of healing property or ability. Furthermore, some had useful offensive abilities, such as naturally occurring poison or acid. And it never hurt to have a summoning animal handy to deliver messages either.

Sakura had yet to master summoning small slugs, but Tsunade was impatient and demanded she learn how to summon under battle conditions.

"No talking!"

Despite her master's command, Tsunade imparted some further wisdom, "In a battle situation, you may not be able to heal all of your team as needed. If you have more than one teammate in need of immediate care but the enemy is still actively attacking you, you have to be able to summon a slug to help you heal your comrades."

Continuing her assault as Sakura bit her thumb and struggled through the hand signs, Tsunade chastised her again, "Faster Sakura! You are thinking too much! I know you know the signs, now just weave them!"

Hours later, after Tsunade called it a day, Sakura slumped to the ground, still panting, and closed her eyes.

It was days like this that made her want to quit being a ninja. She felt like a failure, and every aspiration she harbored of rescuing Sasuke from himself with Naruto by mutually kicking his uptight, obsessed behind evaporated. How could she catch up to her boys when she could not master such a simple task?

To her surprise, she felt Tsunade settle down beside her.

After a peaceful moment of silence, Tsunade gently, but hesitatingly, set a hand on Sakura's shoulder.

Tsunade was not a touchy-feely emotional kind of woman, so Sakura stayed very still, cracking an eye open to catch a glimpse of her master's face.

Tsunade was looking away from her, far off into the distance, a sad or wistful sort of expression on her face. It was clear the she was deeply thinking and would not be ready to say anything any time soon.

Sakura relaxed marginally and opened both eyes, trying to refrain from staring as she waited for her master to collect her thoughts.

Her mind couldn't help but come up with ideas of what her master might be about to say. All of them were not good.

Surely, Tsunade was about to say Sakura could no longer be her apprentice. She was disappointed in her repeated failures and lack of progress. Sakura was sure she failed so badly in the day's training that Tsunade was trying to find the words to adequately explain her failure to her.

"I know I'm not obligated to say this," she finally said, drawing Sakura's attention, "but I want to."

Tsunade's honey-brown eyes were intense as they drilled into Sakura's and the gentle touch on her shoulder became a strong grip. It was almost painful, but Sakura dared not say something about it.

Tsunade would tell her that she was disappointed in her. She would say Sakura was weak and that she didn't have a chance of being a useful ninja.

She should have been faster. She should have been stronger. She should have been smarter. She should have –

"I'm proud of you."

The shock of what Tsunade said must have registered plainly on her face because her master immediately explained, "When you first walked into my office and more demanded than asked that I take you on as an apprentice, I accepted because I saw that you had some measure of guts."

"I didn't know then if you would really commit to this and last or not, but I thought it was worth my time to start your training," Tsunade paused as she stood to her feet.

Looking down at Sakura who still must have looked lost, Tsunade continued, "You exceeded my expectations."

"I started my training a few years earlier than you did, but despite that, you have already exceeded the level I was at when I was your age. I know you will surpass me some day. That's why I'm pushing you so hard."

Tsunade turned around and walked away as she ended her speech, "Because the world is the way it is right now, that day may have to come sooner than you or I would like. I pushed you harder than I would have anyone else today, because I knew you could take it and you wouldn't give up."

"Keep going Sakura."

End Flashback

Sakura pushed down harder on the branch, propelling herself even farther, unwilling to give up. The Uchiha brothers may have gone out of her sight again, but they did not have enough of a lead to lose her.

She would not give up. She was far too close to ever go back or quit.

She reached into her medical pack, which thankfully, was still mostly intact despite not having had a chance to restock it since before her assignment to the battlefield she had been abducted from.

Sure enough, there were two neat little round solider pills right where she left them. They were her own special recipe, adapted from her prior disgustingly flavored attempt. The ones she carried on her person now where smaller and flavorless. She fingered one in contemplation. Would it be better to take one now or wait until fighting was immanent?

Nearly fifteen minutes later, Sakura's resolve wavered, ever so slightly.

After all of this, had she lost them?

She sat down in a little clearing, mediating. She was not a tracker, but she had picked up a trick or two in the three months she had spent time in foxholes with an assortment of ninja with an even broader assortment of abilities.

There was always a sign when someone or something passed through an area. Even the stealthiest of ninja could not erase their presence one hundred percent, much like Tsunade had taught her about ninja and their tells.

Perhaps Itachi had made an effort in leaving no trace, whether his controller wished it or if he was in control of his facilities and did not want to be found be wandering pink-haired ninja. Sasuke, however, was in such a daze when he left that he would not have been purposefully stealthy if he tried.

If she could only find the sign, the tell of their passing!

Standing up and drawing a deep breath, Sakura put to use the skills she had been learning. Gradually, she picked up a slight trail, one little clue after another.

She followed it doggedly until the signs disappeared.

Refusing to give up, she circled the area of the last sign, eyes peeled and steps determined.

Fortunately, she did not have to find the next sign. A loud noise followed by a slight tremor betrayed their most likely location.

She turned around, and sure enough, shifting landscape told her what she needed to know. They were underground, just a few feet over and down from where she lost their trail. The entrance could not be far from the last sign.

Sakura followed the destruction until she found the veiled mouth of a tunnel. Swallowing a pill, Sakura prepared for a fight and ran in.