Hello! I'm back after realizing that I haven't updated this story since October. School still sucks, but I'll try to upload more often than every four months!

-BB

The Reassurance

Sakura woke up feeling like shit. Her abdomen was throbbing, and the very marrow of her bones ached. But she didn't understand why. Then it hit her like a freight train: going to bed, only to have to dodge a senbon thrown by Jugo, of all fucking people. She didn't even have time to really process what was happening before she realized that she couldn't really use brute strength. There was no chance of her not demolishing this building and killing everyone in it if she did. So, she did what she'd accused Naruto of less than a week ago; pulled punches. But even Sakura's pulled punches hurt like a bitch, which caused to Jugo pull an obviously poisoned kunai from his robe. She cursed, knowing that they were nowhere near an antidote for that shit. But in a quick flash, she saw one on Jugo. That reassured her, and she put a little more into her punches. That seemed to just piss him off, and he activated his curse mark. Only… that curse mark looked completely different that it did originally. Fuck, he's evolved that damn mark, Sakura thought as she back flipped over her couch towards the front door. And she'd just replaced her damn coffee table! She'd gotten him outside, but he had his back to her apartment building. He knew that if she vaulted him through the building, others would be injured, and that was something Sakura wanted to avoid completely. Sakura was also suspicious of why Jugo hadn't attacked her with his full force. Shit. He was planning to kidnap her, not kill her. Orochimaru had found out about Kakashi and her. When Sakura heard Sauske, she knew she had to at least incapacitate Jugo before she got poisoned. Or try to anyway. So, she ran away from the building, stopped dead, pivoted, and put full strength into a right hook. Jugo almost gutted her, but she'd been prepared and had put protective chakra around her vital organs. She pushed chakra to the wound until she passed out. She'd already stopped the internal bleeding before she lost consciousness in Sauske's arms. Tsunade or Shizune would just have to keep her alive long enough to have someone bring them that antidote on Jugo. Since she was alive, it seems like her life-threatening plan worked. Her mouth was incredibly dry, and she shuffled to sit up on the bed.

"Stop moving, girl. Shizune! Bring me a glass of water and a straw." Sakura was relieved to hear the commanding voice of her master.

"Lady Tsun-"

"Shut up, Sakura! Shizune! Water, now!"

"Here I am! Sakura, you know the drill. Drink slowly." Sakura did her best not to inhale the water after the first sip and her master's warning look.

"Looks like you had us worried for nothing. You'd pretty much taken care of business before you lost consciousness. I don't need to tell you that plans like that only work if medics your grade or better are in the area?" Tsunade asked Sakura with a raised eyebrow.

"Of course not. I knew that either you or Shizune would be available."

"I'm assuming you figured out exactly what Jugo wanted during that fight, and you saw the antidote." Sakura froze at that voice and heard rather than felt her heart rate speed up.

"Kakashi. I will put you out if you are here to cause problems."

"It's okay, Lady Tsunade. I just hadn't realized anyone else was in the room." Sakura turned to really look at the love of her life. His mask hid it well, but Kakashi looked like shit. His eyes looked bruised from lack of sleep, and his clothes looked majorly lived in.

"How long have I been out?"

"Two and a half weeks." Sakura's eyes widened to saucers.

"Seriously?"

"The antidote needed to be replicated and spread to the others who were poisoned. It can also only be given intravenously. Leave it to Orochimaru to make it as difficult as possible to administer an antidote. What Jugo had on him would have kept you alive long enough to get you to Orochimaru's new hideout." Sakura revolted at the thought of Orochimaru having her in his-

"Wait, new hideout?" Kakashi got up and moved to sit on the other side of her hospital bed.

"We found him. He's currently in our custody. We will archive all his memories, then he will be executed. Karin, Suiegetsu, and Jugo will be moved maximum security prisons once the sensory ninja are done with them. Even with Ino's abilities that mirror Inojin's, it will take months, maybe even a year before we get all we need. Sakura closed her eyes and thanked the universe that Orochimaru was finally where he deserved to be.

"Was anybody hurt, other than me?"

"No, everyone is fine, thanks to you." Kakashi smiled his fake smile at her, and she knew she needed to get Tsunade and Shizune out of the room before he lost it.

"Lady Tsunade… Shizune…" Tsunade smiled sadly and patted Sakura's hand before she and Shizune took leave. Sakura and Kakashi noticed that Tsunade put a chakra lock on the door and soundproofed it before walking away. Kakashi chuckled and lowered his head.

"Guess I'm not as secretive as I thought, huh?" Sakura held out her arms to him, and he immediately wrapped her up tightly knowing that she was just really sore right now.

"Sakura…"

"Shh, I know. I'm sorry." Sakura ran her hand through his tangled hair and rubbed the other hand down his back soothingly. She almost hissed at the pain from being so sore, but she suffered quietly, knowing that Kakashi needed to know she was still here.