Ok. I know you all wanted to see his reaction, but it will play into the story later. I'm sorry, but I am a procrastinator, and I have things planned that will work up to the "meeting Itachi again" part, and this is part of it. For now, you can just interpret that he is wondering about it, but doesn't want to ask her about it. So, yes, I am begging you all to have patience. But I do want to thank you for all of your wonderful reviews, they've helped me keep going, and I hope that you'll keep doing so.
Thanks so so so so so much.
Time passed quickly, first a day had gone by, then a week, then a month, and then a year. Sakura felt as if time, itself, was leaving her behind.
The day she found out that Naruto and Hinata were getting married, was all she needed. It was like her finger had been sitting on the trigger of a gun, now all she had to do was make the choice of weather to pull it or not. She decided she was going to try to take control of her life, as best she could.
It wasn't as if she didn't like her life, on the contrary, it was wonderful. With days filled with the constant teasings of Genma, her job, and her friends, she was very happy.
But she wanted more.
Maybe she was only selfish, but it was true.
Somehow, she couldn't be as happy for Hinata as she wanted to be. Standing there, wearing a long dress in a shade of deep indigo, she couldn't help but selfishly think about where her life was going. Perhaps this was only jealousy. She allowed a feigned smile to spread across her features for her friend. She could at least give her that. It was amazingly easy, to slide on a smile, just as if she was putting on a noh mask.
Her smile became a real one as a jounin sidled up beside her, his senbon bobbing as he took her arm.
Genma...
It seemed as if he was the only one she could talk to about her numerous problems, and for that she was truly grateful.
But it was not enough.
She couldn't tell him about how her dreams of him had become more life like and some what more... urgent. But of course she would never betray his trust, and lie to him. If he would ask her straight out about it, she would not lie, but she knew that it would cost them their friendship.
She felt a light tap on her shoulder, and turned to see Tsunade, sake in hand. "Come here... I would like to speak with you..." She beconed, stepping over to a small table in the corner as Sakura followed.
The reception hall was rather large, and Sakura found herself watching as people waved at her from across the room. People she hadn't seen in years.
"I approved your request Sakura," Tsunade began, sipping at her sake. "But I'd like to know where you will be going for the duration." The hokage said in a somewhat worried tone. Sakura had trained under her for a few years, and knew when it was best to lie, or to tell the truth. She also knew that Tsunade wasn't distracted enough for her to get away with lying at the moment.
"Well..." Sakura began, choosing her words carefully, and swishing around the small amount of wine in her glass as she contemplated her words. "I'm not sure. I'm going to search for an old friend, and frankly, I have no idea where he is. I do think that I can track him down within a month and a half's time." Sakura lied.
"He?" The sannin asked, her eyebrows lifting as a smirk touched her lips.
"He."
"Well, alright. Just don't get yourself into any trouble."She said, sighing.
Sakura grinned, but it faded slightly at her sensei'snext words.
"I trust you."
"Thanks Tsunade-sama, I'm going to wait a week before I leave though, I don't want to take everyone's attention off of them." She said, jerking her head to the right at the happycouple sitting at a gigantictable. Black tux and a stunningly white dress. The couple was a pair of contrasting colors in every aspect;personality wise and even in their hair color.
"That's very thoughtful." Tsunade nodded and then stood. "Well, I better get Jiraiyah away from those poor women." Tsunade said, stomping off towards her fellow sannin.
Sakura grinned. It was finally happening.
"So you are going then..." Genma mumbled, coming over and sitting down.
"Yeah." She replied. "I have some unresolved issues I need to take care of."
Genma nodded.
"So... how was your mission?" Sakura asked softly, afraid that she'd hurt him by not telling him what kind of issues.
He'd come home just before the wedding, and had changed hurredly on a quick run home,and hadbeen only present at the reception.
"Ah, something stupid, as usual. Oh, but I did get this..." Genma said, obviously proud that he'd gotten whatever it was. He reached into his pocket and pulled out a silver chain with an emerald pendant.
"Oh Genma, it's... beautiful! Where'd you get it?" She aked aghast as he stepped around behind her to clasp it around her slender neck.
"Funny story..." He said, sitting back down. "We caught this bandit, and he had this big bag of jewelry with him. We looked through it and when I saw this... it was the same color as your eyes."
"Oh Genma! You didn't steal it?"
"Of course not, I asked, and the owner gladly gave it to me." The shinobi smirked. "After all, I am such a great shinobi."
"Eh? You're okay... I've seen better." She said, giving him a serious look, before giggling. "Thank you Genma." She grinned, fidgeting with it.
"Maybe I should take it and give it to some one else..." He said, standing.
"Awwww. Don't be like that, I was only teasing." She whined, walking over to him and hugging him.
She jumped with a squeal stepping back from him. "What the hell!" He had just let his hand roam too far.
Genma grinned.
"You're only getting away with that this one time." She scowled, yanking the sebon from between his teeth and then pulling her hair back into a messybun with it.
"Wait up Sakura!"
This man knew her way too well. Every once in a while, he would chance things that she'd normally get mad at him for, but they were always done at precise moments when she didn't get as irritated by it, for some reason. It was almost as if he could read her, like a book.
XXXXXXX
Sakura collapsed tiredly onto the down blankets on her soft matress. As soon as her head hit the pillows, she was out like a light.
Genma paused as he stepped into the dimly lit room. To his amusement, the kunoichi was curled up on her bed, snoring softly. What had it been? Two minutes since they'd gotten home? And here she was, laying on her bed, in a dress and heels, the senbon she'd taken from him earlier still in her hair.
He took a seat at the end of her bed and gently removed her two and a half inch heels from her feet. How she could stand in them was beyond his imagination. Despite his efforts to keep her asleep, her head lifted slightly to watch him.
"What?"
"Thanks." She said, letting her head fall back onto the pillow. "I think I had one too many..." She groaned.
"Or five, perhaps?"
"Yeah... or five too many." She said as she buried her head deeper into the pillow. He watched in amusement as she yanked the senbon from her hair and threw it, pinning the curtain on the other side of the room, to the wall.
XXXXXXXXX
Sakura sighed. Well, at least she didn't have to go to work this morning. Haruka would be there, and she really wasn't in the mood to deal with her today. Haruka never bothered her, not externally of course, but the woman would sit there, and stare at her. It was creepy.
With a yawn, she sat up and stumbled into the kitchen, grabbing a banana. Then, on a second thought, she grabbed another one, and strode over to the couch. Her friend was lying there, sleeping silently. A smile spread across her face as she noticed that he was sleeping in that weird way again, he always did... and then she plopped onto his back, causing his lower half to sink down onto the couch.
He groaned.
"What do you want?" He asked, his face burried into a pillow. It always irked him how she woke up and she rarely had the symptoms of a hangover... If anything, she was in a better mood than usual on these days.
"Well, lets start with a question." She said perkily. "You didn't take advantage of me last night, did you?"
"No... why?"
"Well, I remember falling asleep in my dress, and then today..." She said, pulling her legs up so that she was now sitting indian-style on his back. "I wake up to find that I'm in pajamas..." Indeed she was in her pajama shorts." And ironically enough, they're the ones I wore that night we went on a date..."
"Oh, yeah. That." He said, his hands coming around to the back of his head as he ran his fingers through his chestnut locks. Then, turning his head he said softly, "You kinda... I guess you were uncomfortable, but you started pulling your dress off, which woke me up. You know me, I thought I was dreaming, but... yeah. " Asuma trailed off, he undoubtably felt awkward telling her of what he'd done, probably because he'd never resisted a woman before...
"Ah, so you dressed me?" She asked in a skeptical tone.
"Yeah." He said, turning his face back into the pillow.
"Well, aren't you the unexpected gentleman?" She teased, knowing that he'd never do anything to take advantage of her. Besides, she'd been known to tear off her clothes in her sleep before, unfortunately the last time had been at a sleep over.
She stood, and told him to flip over, and he did. She then took her seat, this time on his chest, indian style, with her back against the cushion. "Here, good morning." She said, stuffing the banana in his face.
"Thanks."
"Mh-hm. So..." She said as she swallowed the bit of banana she'd just taken a bite of, "What do you wanna do today?"
"That's right, you don't have to work..." He said, and then sat up, and she slid into his lap. "I know what I wanna do..." He said in his tone used only for flirting.
"No." She said, standing up.
"Awwww... you don't even know what I was going to say."
"Okay, what were you going to say?" She asked, skeptical.
"I was going to say, I'm meeting Kakashi for drinks at two, do you want to come?" He lied smoothly.
"Liar. But yes I would." She grinned, stepping into her bedroom and shutting the door behind herself.
Okayses. I'm sorry if this part of the story is kinda weird, I'm in a really hyper mood and, well, I kinda deleted the original of this chapter, so... yeah
-Nods-
So yeah, Read and Review! Please? I'll loveyou forever and ever!
