Summary/Disclaimer: Time for another chapter of the Merc and the Medic. Enjoy the 1500-word chapter. I don't own Naruto, Masashi Kishimoto and a few others do.

(Sakura's Home)

Marmora wasn't so useless and untrained that he couldn't tend to his wounds.

An ANBI agent confirmed Kuma's death. He wasn't someone who had ever learned a substitution Jutsu. He had nothing but confidence in his abilities. He had never used a Jutsu to fight Marmora.

Marmora thought it was arrogance, maybe it was, it could have also been the fact that Kuma was a low rung. Marmora finished up a bandage on his chest and hummed before Sakura walked into the room.

"Are you ok?" Sakura asked before Marmora blushed and quickly slipped his shirt on, Sakura blushed not realizing that Marmora was busy dealing with his wounds.

"Sorry, I didn't hear you walk in." Marmora stated, Sakura nodded and slowly walked over before she started to make sure Marmora's wounds would heal correctly.

"Trust me, their fine… I think, I've been looking around to make sure that every single wound is healing ok. I've been making sure that Kuma was dead. The ANBI agents I talked to confirmed his death… I've fought him twice or thrice? He won't be the only rung on the ladder. Hell, I don't think we've done more than cut off a branch who had given me trouble because of my arrogance, my inexperience. You killed him, but you know this is one battle." Marmora said while Sakura traced over a scar on his arm.

"I've won a war before. We're be ready for it when we get to it. You need rest, you promised me on the way back that you'd get rest. I'd rather not have to knock you out." Sakura said, Marmora chuckled and held up his hands.

"I have a bum leg and I've been fading in and out. I'm not going to take on the Hokage's student, a Jonin at that." Marmora said and he slowly laid down to sleep.

"I'm going to make food when you wake up… I do want to point out that we're still doing things by my rules…" Sakura stated, Marmora nodded and he slowly started to rub his eyes.

"You're the boss, I'm going to sleep…. I'll wake up when you wake up or when I get up. I'm going to think of who that syndicate will send next; they won't send a mere assassin with no skill besides some tricky words and some dirty tricks." Marmora said while his eyes slowly started to close.

Sakura walked towards the kitchen to start working on food before she heard the sound of Marmora clearing his throat again.

"Sakura?" Marmora asked before she turned to look at him and blinked.

"Yeah?" She asked, taking a step towards him.

"Thanks for… Things. You've let me live here, you heal me up after Kuma breaks me in half and leaves me to die. You don't get mad when I do something stupid. My team mates would have screamed at me, docked my pay. We were family, but they didn't value a loose end in their midst, anything that was a loose end? They cut them off, or they leave the person, they kill them by letting them die, or they take what's left and mold it." Marmora said before Sakura sighed and smiled.

"You're my friend, new or not, you're a good person, Marmora. I might have lashed out at people as a girl, but not now." Sakura said before she turned back to the kitchen.

"We're talk when you wake up. I'll make soup or something… NOW rest, I want you to rest." Sakura stated, Marmora nodded and slowly closed his eyes again.

He yawned and started to sleep while Sakura began to look through the kitchen for food to cook.

She looked back at the former mercenary and smiled. Dagger could bury his entire life under work and money, but she saw someone realistic. She some someone with ideals and a kind soul.

That reminded her of team Seven… She wondered how Naruto and Kakashi were now. She knew Sasuke was out somewhere, fighting, making sure the village was safe.

"If you love something… You let it go, I still care about him… But after all the degrading, the insults, the use as a weapon or a tool? Ino is right, we would never work, he's too focused on his goals to settle down… And our relationship is too toxic to have been more…" Sakura muttered to herself, it still hurt, but she knew that she loved Sasuke enough to let him handle his own war.

Besides, it wasn't like she wasn't happy. She was the director of a medical facility, she made decent money, enough to support herself. She also made sure that she didn't regret her life choices. She was a warrior and a doctor. She grabbed a bowl and decided on soup. She would get groceries and not go off on her own.

Marmora might have gotten herself ambushed, but she hadn't gone to make sure that Marmora didn't go alone. A single warrior alone was a vulnerable target, they were dangerous but they were alone, they could be hurt, they were vulnerable.

"Hmm…" Sakura hummed to herself and started to make sure that she was ready to make sure that she was ready when Marmora woke up, she would be ready to talk.

But she needed to rest, to think. She doubted Kuma's boss would take the death of an assassin lying down. He would send backup, his men, someone more confident and less arrogant who wouldn't make so many mistakes like using Marmora as a warning. She knew that... And she would be ready.

(Amegakure)

The home of Danuja Eguchi was silent, there was nothing any of the assembled criminals, assassins, and mercenaries could say.

"Does anyone want to bring up how I send an entire squad of mercenaries and one of my oldest assassins to the Hidden Leaf… To kill a little problem… You know, just someone working for our little buddy Dagger?" He asked, reclining his chair slightly.

"Well? We heard from one of our spies that he was dead. He got gutted and fell into the river. I lost him and that entire group in a few days…" Danuja said before he slammed a gauntleted hand into the desk, leaving an indent on the oak desk.

"WHY DO YOU IDIOTS FAIL TO KILL A FORMER BRAT AND A DOCTOR!? WE'VE RULED THIS CITY AND I CAN'T GET YOU TO KILL A SINGLE APPRENTICE!" Danuja screamed as he turned, his scared face contorted into a snarl, his greying hair showing signs of age. He had a black and sliver suit with a crocodile on it, black boots, sliver gloves made him look all the more inhuman.

The men and women assembled cowered at their boss while he smoothed back his hair.

"Find him, and kill him… The kid might be in the village of the Hokage, but he's still close with the doctor… With Haruno… Kill him, if he gets the chance, his evidence will bring down all of us… You all know he has those papers that mean the end for all of us." Danuja ordered before the group fled out the door.

Danuja turned back to the painting before he realized that he might have to get his own hands dirty.

(Sakura's home)

Marmora slowly started to grunt and wake up as he rubbed his head in frustration, he yawned and slowly started to wake up.

He rolled out of bed and rubbed at his eyes before he noticed that Sakura was passed out in her chair. Sakura got tapped on the shoulder by Marmora who was shaking his head.

"Marmora? Your up?" Sakura asked herself while she yawned and then looked around before Marmora yawned and looked around the house.

"Yeah, I slept like a rock, I'm good now… I think… Ugh, I feel like crap." Marmora muttered before he turned to look at the kitchen and noted that the soup was sitting on the counter and he hummed.

"Soup?" Marmora said while Sakura walked barefoot towards the kitchen and then grabbed the soup.

"Yeah, I was going to make soup… You ok?" Sakura asked while Marmora nodded and yawned while walking over.

"I want to help. I'm going to make soup." Marmora stated before Sakura rolled her eyes and flicked Marmora on the head. She hummed and started to make soup and she smiled and looked at Marmora with a sarcastic look.

Both smiled in amusement.

Author Notes

Phew, another chapter! I want to point out that Sasuke will not show up, Naruto will, so will Kakashi also will appear. Next chapter will be on next Tuesday or so and will show Sakura and Marmora planning and bonding while also showing more of Marmora fitting into the village and Sakura's village life. Until then, Lighting Wolf out!