Sasuke had returned to the station after dropping Sakura off, too restless to go home. The level of physical contact he had with her…had he pushed her too hard? Jumped the gun? It hadn't been his intention. He hadn't suggested sparring as a ploy to get her under him. He hadn't even fully grasped that he now thought of Sakura…that way. At the time, it just seemed like she really needed to blow off steam, the same way he and Naruto needed to earlier. He'd also been curious. He didn't disbelieve Naruto when he said Sakura could handle herself in a fight, having been trained by Tsunade. She was a lot tougher mentally and emotionally than when he'd known her and hearing that she was trained by their legendary prime minister seemed to fit. But he still wanted to see first hand, to understand her skill level so it wouldn't be a distracting concern to him if something should happen on the field. He understood that given his growing concern, awareness, and need for her, he might react recklessly in a fight if he didn't suss out the way Sakura fought, which would put them both at greater risk.
Needless to say, his concerns were abetted. He wouldn't have to worry about her even a little. Even if her opponent was far stronger physically, they'd never be able to touch her. He'd barely been able to touch her, never actually landed a single clean hit during their whole spar. It was such a far cry from the girl who used to get beat up badly or taken hostage in fights.
It also hadn't escaped his notice how beautiful her technique was. She'd mixed her gymnasts flexibility, grace, and reaction time with her unbelievably fast analytical skill. No matter how many times or how quickly he'd switched styles and tactics, her clear green eyes never left him, calculating his shifts and reacting with barely any delay. Her movements had been so hypnotic, the look in her eyes so breathtaking, that throughout the spar, he'd found himself just wanting to stop, hold her in place, and look at her. It had been that look when she had him pinned that had elicited such a surge or warmth through him, that he couldn't resist openly praising her skill. But then the weird thing happened…
For some reason, she relented, and his body had acted on battle instinct, flipping their positions and pinning her completely so he had the upper hand. And the look in her eyes shifted slightly. On top of the alert awareness, and calm calculation, her gaze also held determination, mild annoyance, shock, and openness. For the first time since that night he left, there was no guard up in the way she was looking at him, nor was there crumbling vulnerability. There was just an openness. He never wanted her to stop looking at him like that. It was unraveling him at the seams—heat like he'd never experienced before shot through his whole body. It wasn't the fire that burned through him with rage, nor the sunshine like warmth Sakura usually sparked in him. This was different—it was a heat that could be relieved, born of tension, and his body knew before he did exactly what it wanted to do to relieve it. His hand had slipped from her wrist to the space between it and her head, allowing him to feel the ends of her soft hair.
And then she'd started talking. About his eyes, his strange genetic ability. It wasn't common knowledge. There wasn't vast amounts of medical research on it. It wasn't taught about in schools. That meant she'd done that research herself. She'd studied what few case studies and materials existed about his families eyes. There weren't many—she must have had to work very hard to figure out anything about them…and this was all after he'd left. After he'd hurt her so deeply. Why had she bothered? And when he asked her, he thought he saw it. For the first time in three years and ten months, in that openness, he thought he saw the words she'd said to him that night, that feeling she had for him, that she still…he wasn't sure though, maybe he wasn't reading it right?
He hadn't had time to try and parse it out because then, she'd reached up and tapped him in the middle of his forehead. Everything in him had melted, memories surging through him of the gesture his family always used, his mother's kind smile, his father's proud eyes, Itachi—back when Sasuke loved him and wanted nothing more than to be like him. And then Sakura. Every time he saw her smile, heard her laugh, anytime they'd made any sort of physical contact ever, anytime she called his name…
The heat he'd been feeling remained but now it was weirdly battling and mixing with the warmth he usually associated with Sakura. Again his body seemed to know before he did that no matter which feeling won out, or whatever new temperature they mixed to create, he needed to be closer to her, to feel her against him.
When her phone went off, it had the same effect as an alarm clock waking him from a very vivid dream. He felt rattled and off balance. Whatever that feeling had been, he'd been very close to acting on it, and that was a huge problem if he didn't talk to her about everything first. He might have ended up hurting her even more, and nothing about it was fair to her.
He'd been even more unsettled to discover that the entire car ride to the hospital (she'd insisted on going there instead of home), that feeling hadn't really faded. The warm heat continued to linger, quietly, surging a little every time he looked at her, not overwhelming as it had been in the gym, but he'd expected it to have faded entirely when the moment broke—and it hadn't.
Even now, sitting at his desk staring at pictures of the crime scenes, hours after, nowhere near Sakura, the warm heat still lingered. Sasuke sighed, he'd wanted to take time to prove he was trust worthy, to allow her to warm up to him slowly before he admitted to her how his feelings for her had shifted. But he'd accelerated his timeline. After what just happened, he'd have to talk to her about it soon. Tomorrow, probably.
He turned his attention back to the crime scene photos. He didn't have the mental presents to dig more into the Akatsuki lead right now. And while he more or less had it confirmed that this was the work of Orochimaru and an accomplice, he didn't have enough evidence to say so just yet. That, and he didn't really want to explain Suigetsu to Naruto and Sakura. He didn't want them to know just how far he'd been willing to go to kill his brother.
The results of the experiments done on Suigetsu were that he had developed sentient control over his biological chemistry. He could activate his adrenalin at will, consciously increase his blood flow to his muscles, giving him extreme bursts of strength or energy. His lung capacity had been increased as well, and seemed to be able to stay under water for hours without an oxygen tank. These had seemed like useful enhancements to Sasuke. He'd thought about finding the scientist responsible and getting some enhancements himself. Thank god he never followed through, seeing what the failed experiments were. But the thought that he'd actually considered it sickened him. Just imagining the berating he'd have to deal with from Naruto gave him a headache. And he didn't want to see the look on her face if Sakura ever found out.
"You're here late." He looked up at the bored voice to see Shikamaru leaning against Naruto's desk.
"And you're not?" Shikamaru held a similar rank to Hinata as far as Sasuke's coworkers went. He'd rather talk to him than the vast majority. At least he was intelligent and fairly quiet—too lazy to talk to loud. But he was annoyingly reminded of how when Sakura had listed off her relationships with her predominantly male friends, Shikamaru had been one of the ones she'd mentioned. Shikamaru just shrugged.
"Temari's pissed at me."
"She lives in Suna." Sasuke returned blankly, not seeing how one related to the other.
"She's here as a delegate. We're thinking of joining our promotional exams. Better foreign relations or some shit like that."
"Wasn't she just here?" Sasuke asked, thinking back on the CCTV footage
"She was here on a short personal break. Now she's here for work. I think Gaara did it on purpose."
"Ah." He wasn't really sure what else to say. Shikamaru must have needed to talk though cause he continued on without prompting.
"He's never really cared much for the whole monarchy thing, and he really cares about his siblings. I think he just wants her to be happy, but she gets a lot of shit from the public for dating me and using personal days to see me." Sasuke could hear the undercurrent of guilt in his tone. It was weird, these kinds of conversations were Naruto's strong suit, not his. He felt the need to steer it in a different direction.
"Gaara's ok with it though? I would have pegged him and Kankuro for the protective brother type."
Shikamaru gave a dry laugh. "They know better than to get in that troublesome woman's way. Besides, Kankuro can't say too much, since he's pretty much in love with Sakura…I think Gaara might like her too actually."
It took everything in Sasuke to not react too obviously. All the same, his fist clenched so tightly around the pen he was holding he nearly snapped it in half.
"Since when?"
"While you were gone, Kankuro had been poisoned. No one in Suna knew what it was or how to help him. Tsunade sent Sakura there to try, and she pulled off some really difficult extraction to buy him some time and then figured out the cure no one else could. Saved his life, pretty sure that's what did it for him. Gaara cares a lot about his siblings and her saving Kankuro was a part of it but Temari said it was also about something that happened when he had his psychotic break."
"I was there for that. Those two never talked." His tone came out sharper than he'd meant it too.
"Yeah it wasn't talking. Remember how you found him first and he beat the shit out of you. You lost consciousness for a couple of minutes."
"I remember." The aftermath of that fight had been one of the things that made him feel like he needed to leave—like he was getting weaker instead of stronger.
"Well, he'd been about to kill you when Naruto and Sakura got there. She stepped in front of you to protect you. He told her to move or he'd kill her, but she just stared him down. He shot her, but the look in her eyes had thrown him off so he missed her vitals. She was still down for the count, though."
He remembered waking up and seeing her unconscious and bleeding, being so terrified that she was dead. Naruto had started pummeling Gaara, which gave Sasuke time to move her to a safer location and call an ambulance before running in to help with the fight again. Naruto had done most of the work by that point, but he held Gaara down while Sasuke cuffed him. No one had told him how Sakura got shot…He just figured it'd happened cause she hadn't moved fast enough.
"Temari says that he's never forgotten the look she gave him as he shot her. He mentions it a lot apparently. Don't see what's so special about a look though."
Sasuke could. The effects of the look Sakura gave him had yet to die down. He wondered what Gaara had seen in her eyes. Shikamaru was scrutinizing him, eyes narrowed. He decided it was time to change the conversation again before he admitted something he shouldn't.
"So why's she pissed?"
"If I knew, you think I'd be here?"
"Did you say something?"
"No. Everything was fine. We were leaving a meeting. Ino and Sai came up to us and after they left she got all pissy."
"Ino and Sai?"
"Yeah."
"What did you talk about?"
"We were just catching up. Then Ino made some joke and Sai said something about wanting to marry her and she got all flustered and they left."
Sasuke was trying to figure out how Shikamaru's intelligence worked. He had an IQ over 200, was the most tactical thinker ever to come through the KPD, headed several of the external affairs cases, and even served as an advisor to the prime minister on occasion, but he seemed well and truly unable to figure his own girlfriend out. Not that Sasuke could really criticize given how out of his depth he was with Sakura, but it seemed pretty obvious to him what was bothering Temari.
"When'd Ino and Sai meet?"
"Two years ago I think."
"When'd they start dating?"
"Half way through last year."
"When'd you and Temari meet?"
"Four and a half years ago."
"When'd you start dating?"
"Three years and two months ago." There was a long pause as the two stared at each other blankly.
"Oh Seriously? What a drag! Sai had to say he wanted to marry her in front of—Fuck. That troublesome woman! She really read into that?"
Sasuke just shrugged turning back to the crime scene photos. He still hadn't shaken the feeling that the second one was some sort of threat. The location was too personal to his team. He heard Shikamaru mutter another "troublesome" under his breath. There had to have been something he missed…
"Have you thought about the gender differences yet?"
"What do you mean? The first one escaped. She must have been the next incorrect experiment they needed to dump."
"Clearly they've got a bunch of experiments running, and they've been doing it for a while. There had to have been more failed cases. These are the first bodies ever found. They must have had a way of disposal that's worked so far. The first was an accident. The second should have never happened—"
"—unless it was intentional." Sasuke finished grimly. Shikamaru just confirmed his paranoia. But what did that have to do with gender?
"Why is the gender difference important?"
"They could have dumped anyone. Why her? Why there?"
Sasuke looked back down at the picture of Tatsuyu's body. A girl in their age range. Short slender build. Orange/red hair…
Shit! It was meant for Sakura. Shit! A girl with a short slender build and unusual hair coloring—pink not red, but technically pink was a shade of red. Posed in her old teams training ground. He felt his blood run cold, but he couldn't panic. It wouldn't be productive or useful and as of right now nothing had happened yet. It could have been a threat, a warning, or a message. No one had followed up on it yet, and so long as they all proceeded carefully, nothing bad would happen.
"These cases haven't been made public knowledge or hit the media," Shikamaru said grimly. "No one should know that any of you are on this case, least of all her since she hasn't been a public member of the force for three years."
"Which either means someone who knows her works with them, sold them information knowingly or unknowingly. Or she's got a stalker." Sasuke finished feeling sick. His phone buzzed, a quick glance telling him it was Sakura. He picked up immediately, panic surging. What if she was hurt or in trouble? What if someone was after her? Before he even got the chance to ask if she was ok, she spoke.
"We need to talk."
That stopped Sasuke short. Did she figure out that someone was after her? That couldn't be it—her tone would have been laced with at least a touch of fear or anger, and there was none in her voice. The warm heat that he'd almost forgotten in his icy panic (though it still hadn't faded from his system) gave another surge as he thought back on their time at the gym. Oh. That's what this was about. He'd figured he'd be the one to say those words. That he'd have to force a conversation she wasn't ready for. She kept doing things that shocked him. How she could be so emotionally strong and mature was beyond him. He was so emotionally fragile that thinking back on it, it wasn't that surprising that he'd defected and nearly lost himself in a brutal quest for revenge.
"Be there soon." He knew she was still at the hospital. He packed up quickly and headed for the door. Shikamaru fell in step next to him.
"You gonna tell her?"
"Yeah…Thanks."
"That case is troublesome. Let me know if there's anything I can do…Talking to Temari's gonna be a drag."
Sakura had been waiting for him outside. She seemed surprised that he'd arrived so quickly. Maybe she thought he'd gone home after dropping her off. It would have been a further drive. The second he saw her he felt another surge of the warm heat. It only intensified when she slid into his passenger seat. This would be a very difficult conversation if he kept getting distracted by it. The silence around them was charged as they pulled out of the parking lot. He wasn't sure if he should say something or wait for her. He steeled himself and figured he owed it to her to be the one to begin.
"Sakura—"
"Sasuke-kun—"
There was a pause, not sure how to proceed now that they both tried at the same time. She recovered faster than he did.
"I was the one who called, so I should go first. Just hear me out before you say anything, ok?"
"Ok." Something like fear shot through him. What if she shot him down before he could even try? A part of him felt nauseated, knowing that what he was worried about was what he'd done to her every single time she'd tried—regardless of whether her interest was in the shallow stages or deeper.
Sakura was silent for a minute, staring straight out at the road.
"One of the hardest things after you left, was that no one knew there was something between us. I know there was—we never talked about it, never kissed or anything, maybe you weren't even fully aware of it. But what we were was something more than just platonic. And no one knew about it. After you left, no one understood why I was so upset, and tried to rush me to move on. They didn't get that you essentially broke up with me—in a really brutal way. That's the problem with friends-who-are-more-than-friends breakups. No one thinks you need time to grieve." She stopped for a second, took a deep breath and turned to him. "I can't go through that again. I can't deal with people telling me I'm overreacting and being crazy because you left again."
Sasuke felt something in him sink. It was fair. He deserved it, and he couldn't blame her…what would it have been like, if after his family's deaths, everyone called him crazy for shutting down? There hadn't been much support for him after it happened, but no one wrote him off as crazy and overreacting for his grief and betrayal. In fact, he got a lot of passes for his rude attitude.
Still, he'd been hoping desperately for something he knew he didn't deserve from her, and he felt the disappointment, sadness, and guilt resonate through his bones. He opened his mouth to say something—anything, he wasn't sure what. But Sakura surprised him. Again.
"So if we keep going with this, you have to be willing to admit that I'm someone who matters to you. That I'm more than just a teammate or friend. I know you're a private person, and I respect that. I also get that if you do acknowledge this, and something were to happen to me, it'd make it that much harder for you to handle after everything else you've lost. But I'm strong, as are you, and between the two of us, the likelihood of someone hurting me physically is pretty low. And I need others to understand that there's something here, so that when you leave again, they allow me the time to grieve."
Sasuke was struck dumb. That really had not been what he had expected…she was right, that if he truly followed through on this, if he truly were to dive into the warm heat, losing her would shatter him beyond repair. The thought terrified him. The hard knot in his stomach since realizing Sakura might be in danger would only grow bigger and bigger. But she was also right that between his protective nature, and her own level headedness and skill he'd just verified for himself today, the likelihood of anyone successfully killing or injuring Sakura was very slim. And fear aside, a part of him was already willing to take that leap with her if it meant she'd smile at him more, and look at him with that captivating openness. If he could touch her more, hold her, be close to her all the time, it felt like it was worth the risk. But there was something in her statements that he found deeply troubling.
"When I leave again?"
"It's not possible for me to trust that you won't. Maybe if he wasn't still out there. But he is. And I know what that means to you. You may not want to leave again, you may not leave with the intention of never coming back again, but I can't bring myself to trust that you won't go. If I did, and you left, I don't think I'd ever recover."
"If you're so sure I'll go, then why take the chance?" He wasn't accusing, or angry. Everything she said felt like a mini knife to the chest because it was true, fair, and valid. Her strength was beyond him for even entertaining the notion of entering into this with a fear like that.
"Because Sasuke-kun, it's so frustrating but everything I said that night is still true. I still—"
It was the first time that she hesitated the entire car ride. Sasuke watched as she seemed to keep trying to finish the thought but was unable. She didn't need to though. He knew. He thought he'd seen it earlier and this entire conversation proved he'd been right. The warm heat was surging through him, fast as his accelerated pulse. And when she turned to look at him, despite how her words had failed her, with that same openness he'd seen in her mirror clear eyes earlier, his body erupted in tingles. She'd said her piece. It was his turn now.
"You're…so annoying."
Why? Why was that his default when he couldn't find the words he really meant and needed. He could tell her guard was slowly raising, he couldn't blame her after that shining piece of eloquence. He had to try again. And actually say something useful this time.
"I don't understand…how you know so well what you're feeling…I…I never know. It's always so muddy and confusing."
Sakura watched him unblinkingly, still on her guard preparing for the worst. She didn't say anything, just waiting for him to continue.
"I think…I might…I think I feel the same as you but…I'm not sure what that's supposed to feel like in this context. The last time I…you're right that I'm scared of losing you…of what that would do to me." How come everything was so hard to say? She'd made this look easy. She was better at talking, always, and he was always silent by nature but this was just stupid.
"I don't know what it means to be with someone…but with you…I want to try. I feel like I'm gonna screw everything up…you deserve way better than me and it's not fair to you but…if you can be patient with me, tell me what it is I'm supposed to do…Cause I'm not sure…but I want to do that for you." Good lord that was hard. And there was still more he had to say to her.
"I don't like other people in my business, but I won't hide things between us or distance myself when others are around anymore. It's not in my nature to be very public about things though—so I hope that's not what you meant."
"It's not." She whispered. He looked at her for the first time since he started talking, her eyes were wide, shocked, she was blushing faintly. To him it seemed like she was glowing.
"There's nothing I can say that will make you trust me and believe that I won't leave again…that's fine. I brought that on myself. But…I promise if it crosses my mind…if I start to think I might, I'll talk to you about it first. I won't just disappear one day or…leave you knocked out in your car…I'm sorry…I don't think I'll leave again. But I won't promise you something you can't trust."
The silence was deafening for ten whole seconds and then Sakura burst our laughing. It was a sound full of warmth and relief, Sasuke felt the warm heat thunder through him.
"That was like talking through a mine field for you, huh?" She asked amusement dancing through her tone.
Sasuke felt himself relaxing for the first time the whole car ride. A tingly ease replaced the earlier tension.
"So, fragile and delicate. What's the difference?"
"Delicate is something beautiful and precious you want to protect. Fragile is something you keep safe just so it doesn't break."
"I'm positive that's not the dictionary definition."
"So? Who gave a book the right to decide what words mean."
"The authors. I happen to like your definition better though."
"Thought you might."
"And you didn't tell me this sooner because?"
"You're working very hard to get me to say I was in denial."
"Not that hard since you just admitted it."
"Right. And you researched my eyes because?"
"Oh come on—there was no big secret in that."
"Say that after someone avoids you for four months and glares at you every chance they get."
"Eh, It was warranted."
"Didn't say it wasn't."
This. This was their rhythm, the one they'd maintained despite everything. But this was fuller, it wasn't that strange empty pacing they'd shared for the past couple days. This was what it used to be. Better even.
When he pulled up to her shitty apartment, it was 3:15am. It had been a very long day but Sasuke felt no traces of exhaustion. He didn't want her to leave. He eyed the building with distaste. He heard her seatbelt unbuckle, but he really didn't want to see her leave, so he kept his eyes on the building.
"Sasuke-kun."
He turned to her, staring into her clear green irises for one second before she leaned forward and her lips were on his. Again his body reacted before he did, his hands cupping her face, fingers blanketed by her silky hair. The warm heat exploded through him, making him hungry for more and never wanting this to end. The kiss was deep, long, and searing. Sasuke didn't do anything by halves. He had no clue how to.
It was Sakura who pulled away first. Breathless and beet red. Sasuke immediately missed the contact but he couldn't help thinking that she looked really pretty like this. She was looking at him with that openness again making his blood run through him like pure electricity.
"I need you to tell me I can do this. This case I mean."
"What?"
"I read Orochimaru's file earlier and I—He's something else Sasuke-kun and I don't know if—"
"He's got nothing on you." He said fiercely, looking into her doubt filled eyes.
"But what he's done…"
"Sakura. You correctly diagnosed a migraine from seeing me wince once after three years and ten months of no contact. You figured out what happens to eyes like mine from practically no available data. Whatever abominations he creates are nothing to compared to what you can do."
She stared at him unblinkingly for a couple of seconds and then he saw the light in her eyes shift from doubt to determination.
"Thank you, Sasuke-kun. I'm gonna create a full psych profile based on this and have Ino check it. Then I'll brief everyone."
"It's definitely him then." He already knew it was.
"There's no concrete evidence but ideologically it's a dead ringer. A profile will help us figure out his next steps."
"Sakura. I think the second body dump was for you. A message, or threat."
Sakura stared at him. He expected her to show some sign of fear, but he didn't detect any.
"The body—"
She held a finger to his lips, silencing him. He watched as her eyes calculated, working this piece of information into her puzzle. Then she looked up, catching him in her calm and grounded gaze.
"My working on this case hasn't been made public yet, which if you're right, means that there's a leak or someone's been watching me. I can't think of anyone around me seeming suspicious. But I'll be careful. Don't tell me what makes you say this yet because it might influence my profile. Share it at the briefing."
Sasuke nodded. He eye'd her apartment building with distaste again. "You sure you'll be ok here alone?"
"I'll keep my firearm on or near me at all times, and I have a knife in my nightstand. I have several security systems installed. No ones made a move against me yet. If it's a warning, then there's time. It hasn't even been 24 hours yet. They would have factored in time for me to figure out the warning, otherwise the threat wouldn't land. So I should still have time. Pick me up in four hours. I should be fine no matter what at the station and so long as I'm not commuting, the window of opportunity for someone to nab me is narrow." Her logic was hard to argue with and the smile she sent him calmed him instantly.
"Four hours? When exactly were you planning to sleep?"
"You really think I'd be able to get to sleep after everything that's happened today?"
Nope. He was certainly on a high, it must have been even bigger for her—she'd wanted this longer.
"Hn."
She smiled again, "Good night, Sasuke-kun."
He had to fight the urge to grab onto her to stop her from leaving. The second his car door shut he felt her absence. Like a hole that shouldn't have been there. He watched her disappear into the rundown building and waited until he saw the light from her window turn on before he put the car in drive. His phone pinged, and he saw Sakura had texted him.
Text me when you get home.
He smiled softly. How long had it been since she asked him to do that?
Four hours later, Sasuke watched Sakura step out of her building and make her way towards his car. Sasuke had learned long ago that the amount of effort Sakura put into her appearance was directly proportional to how exhausted she was. He'd noticed it the first time right after the Underground case when she'd cut her hair short to free herself from Kin. After it happened, despite the drop in the initial shallowness Sasuke had perceived in her, she started putting more effort into her appearance, though only on days where she was tired or under extreme stress. It was only on those days she'd bother with makeup or particularly appealing outfits. Today, she looked amazing, which meant she was exhausted.
Her silky pink hair looked extra glossy, her clear green eyes brought out all the more by the dusting of gold eye shadow and framed by a very thin strip of black making her long dark eyelashes appear even darker. Her outfit choice was simple business casual, but it also managed to be form fitting, practical, and elegant all at once. She looked a notch above capable and skilled. The warm heat, which he was beginning to realize might never go away, surged with almost as much force as it had the previous night. The door opened and she slid into the passenger seat.
"You really are dead on your feet."
"Shit, I thought I hid it really well." She muttered aggressively, checking her reflection in the sun visor's tiny mirror.
"You did."
"Then how'd you know?"
"You only used to wear makeup after all nighters, or when you didn't sleep well."
"Didn't realized you noticed."
"Was I supposed to comment?"
"Probably better you didn't." She laughed.
"I wasn't sure if you still did. You looked exhausted a couple days ago."
"Yeah, I never felt the need to while working at the hospital."
"Why?"
"Never felt like things were out of my control there."
"That's why you do it?"
Sakura gave a casual shrug. "I was barely helpful on cases, the least I could do was not look pathetic."
He'd known about her lack of confidence and inferiority back then—he'd been a contributing factor for a while. But he hadn't realized how deep it had ran. While she hadn't been the most helpful on cases, she'd been useful in ways she didn't even see, which was fair since he and Naruto hadn't seen it either until Kakashi made them aware. Sakura had been the glue, the scaffolding that helped structure and hold their close knit dynamic in place.
"You don't really think you're not contributing on this case?"
"Nope. I'm the most useful member on the team right now." A playful light danced in her clear eyes, an amused smile curled on her lips. "Old habits die hard I guess…and you picking me up may have been a contributing factor."
Sasuke shook his head. Gentle fire spread from his chest through his body. It wasn't that the effort wasn't appreciated but she really didn't have to work that hard. The only girl he'd ever noticed in any sort of capacity was Sakura. He was just a moron for having taken so long to realize that.
He handed her a cup of coffee and a bag with two rice balls, an anko bread roll, and a bottle of caffeinated tea.
"You certainly came prepared."
"Figured you'd need as much caffeine as you could get."
"Good guess."
Sakura sipped her coffee, her fingers drumming absently against a folder on her lap.
"That the profile."
Her eyes clouded a little as she looked away. "Yeah. I still have to check it over with Ino to see if there's anything I misread though."
Sasuke couldn't resist the urge to reach out to her. His hand bridged the gap between them, his fingers intertwining with hers. She looked up at him, her meadow green eyes softening, a soft smile blooming on lips.
"Don't worry, Sasuke-kun. I'll be fine so long as you keep your promise."
He took one look at her and knew bone deep that he'd rather go to the deepest layer of hell than break that promise.
"I will."
Sakura went to track down Ino the second they arrived at the station, and Sasuke found himself following her. It wasn't just because of their…attachment now. He needed to ask Shikamaru to sit in on todays briefing and help explain their hypothesis for Sakura being in danger. Coming from him alone it would be too easy to write off as paranoia and Shikamaru was rarely wrong about these kinds of things.
Ino and Shikamaru were on the same squad. They were a tactical devision, usually called in for a wide variety of very specific cases. Any hostage situations, jumpers, or cases in need of deescalation usually fell on them. They also handled several white collar and organized crime cases, Shikamaru coming up with the plans, Ino and their other teammate, Chouji, doing undercover work. All three were called in to consult or help out on other cases as need. Which was exactly what Sakura and Sasuke were about to ask them to do. They wove their way around the maze of desks until they reached the cluster belonging to Tactical.
"Ino!" Sakura called, her blond haired friend's eyes snapping to her.
Sasuke didn't miss the steely glare she sent his way initially before her gaze landed back on Sakura.
"Mornin' Forehead. You look hot." She observed. Sasuke wondered if she knew about Sakura's habit of hiding her exhaustion or stress behind increased effort on her appearance. Sakura had mentioned that Sasuke could tell when she was lying even more than Ino could. Was this an example of that?
"If I didn't know any better I'd say you had a hot date." Ino continued casually.
"If you didn't—"
"She does." Two sets of shocked eyes snapped to him. This was uncomfortable and part of him regretted speaking. But another part knew he'd make the same choice again. He promised her he wouldn't hide what was between them or pull away from her in public. He had no intention on going back on that promise the second it was put to the test. He glanced down at her, his stomach bubbling with anxiety—this was what she meant, right? Had he made a mistake?
He took in her flushed cheeks, small smile, and the open wonder, surprise, and warmth in her mint eyes, and decided he most definitely hadn't made a mistake and that he would make the same choice again and again if he got that small warm smile in return.
It took conscious effort to look elsewhere but he finally managed to tear his gaze away and back to Ino, who's eyes were jumping between the two like she was following a ping pong match.
"Huh, guess we've got a lot to talk about Forehead."
"That we do, Pig." Sakura replied casually, strolling over and handing her the file. "I need to go over this with you, see if I missed anything or if any of my conclusions are wrong."
Ino cast one last glance at Sasuke before dropping her eyes to the file in her hands. She scanned a page, her eyebrows drawing together. Ino abruptly stood up, closing the folder with a snap.
"Alright, come on. I'm gonna need coffee and a fuck ton of pudding if I'm looking at someone this fucked up this early in the morning." She threw her an arm over Sakura's shoulder, marching her towards the door.
Sasuke glanced over at Shikamaru, who had his head in his arms, eyes closed.
"So did you chicken out, or did you actually talk to her?"
Shikamaru's opened a bored eye and glanced up at Sasuke.
"So you and Sakura, huh? Took you long enough."
"You engaged yet?" Sasuke shot back annoyed. If there was anyone who lost the right to lecture him on how slow he was with his relationship, it was Shikamaru. Even the Dead last held a higher ground on that front in Sasuke's mind.
"I did actually talk to her. Didn't think the troublesome woman even wanted to get married. Turns out she's been thinking about it for a while. I told her marriage is a drag but I'd do it if it really mattered to her that much. Seemed to make her happy enough."
"You're a real Tokubei." Sasuke drawled.
"Did you tell her about the threat?" Shikamaru had sat up now, eyes serious and focused.
"Yeah…I started to but she didn't want to hear the evidence incase it skewed her profile. It's why I'm over here."
"You want me there for today's briefing."
"Coming from me alone it might sound too paranoid."
"Especially now that you two are involved."
"Even if we weren't."
"Yeah, I get it. You're prone to paranoia and your credibility's a bit lacking thanks to your three year break with reason."
Sasuke sent a withering glare at the lazy genius, who simply shrugged in response.
"I already told you this case is troublesome, so I'll help out however I can. Besides, she's my friend too."
He was surprised by two things—the mild tick of annoyance he felt at how Shikamaru and Sakura were apparently close shogi buddies, but also by how mild that tick really was. Sasuke was by nature territorial and incredibly protective of those close to him. On top of that Sakura was someone he had a strong bond and rapidly skyrocketing attraction to. The idea of other males being close to her did annoy him. However, Sasuke trusted her. Unconditionally and indefinitely. He always had since the Zaku incident. Last night, she'd told him she still felt the same for him as she had the night he left—that she always had. Just because they were now…dating—a concept he still couldn't wrap his head around—didn't give him the right to control her. Nor would he want to. He trusted that if she said a male and her were friends, then that was all there was to it. Didn't mean he trusted the male. Far from it actually, but the laws of Konoha were innocent until proven guilty and he'd do his best to apply it to these situations as well. Of course, in this case Shikamaru was well clear of suspicion or ulterior motives. He already had a girlfriend—one that came with a strong personality and a complicated situation, and if someone as lazy as Shikamaru was actually willing to work through the anxiety and trouble of Temari's political status, there's no way he'd cheat on her. Besides, that'd be too much effort for him.
The briefing room felt more full with the inclusion of Ino and Shikamaru. The two female best friends seemed to have decided to tag team their profile presentation.
"It's a bit strange working a profile backwards like this, normally the point would be to help identify an unsub, not tie a known entity to a crime, but it's worth a shot I guess…Really, when you know who your looking at, it's more of a diagnosis than a profile…" Ino trailed off, still unsure if this was the right way to go about this. Sakura took over with the subject history.
"Kageyurei Orochimaru. Born to Kageyurei Hideyo and Kageyurei Kenji. His mother died in child birth, and his father, a brilliant scientist, committed suicide out of grief four years later. According to the police reports, Orochimaru witnessed it. It's likely that his father blamed him for the death of his wife and rejected him over the years leading up to his suicide. He grew up in the custody of the state, as Konoha's foster system was still in development. From a young age he demonstrated superior intelligence, and lauded as nothing short of a genius. He entered the Konoha medical program at 16, focusing in depth on researching genetic engineering, evolutionary development, biomechanics, anatomy, cellular biology and neurobiology. He was kicked out of the program due to Laboratory and Experimental Misconduct, and left Konoha, with no record of anyone seeing or hearing from him since."
"Around the age of five there were alleged reports from other children that he began displaying two of three traits of the Macdonald triad, though adults could never confirm them." Ino took over.
"What's the Macdonald triad?" Naruto cut in.
"The three signs believed to indicate whether a child will grow up to be a serial killer: bed wetting, cruelty to animals, and small acts of arson." Ino answered, frustrated by the interruption. "Children started reporting they'd come across dead or brutally injured animals around the orphanage. They began experiencing several small fires which would break out in the kitchen or outside on particularly hot days. All of it was carefully done though. Orochimaru was never caught or reported for the events. Other kids were scared of him and would accuse him, but there was no evidence, and adults found him too intelligent and charming to consider a suspect. He excelled at his studies, charming every authority figure he met, but he had no friends, turning away from every offer that was extended throughout the years. "
"Look at his essays—he doesn't view humans as individuals with their own complex identities and lives. His use of the word 'mate' instead of lover or even companion—he never once formed any sort of bond to another human. He lists 'soldier' first when talking about genetic engineering—he's power hungry with violent inclinations. His first thought is offensive: to build weapons, armies. He next goes to sex workers, indicating sex is a priority for him, though largely as a power trip. Sex workers are at the mercy of the client paying them. Since it's about power first and foremost, he's likely a dom and very likely into the BDSM community."
"Everything is about power and control for him," Sakura picked up, "his ideology on the whole is about not being a slave to genetics. By controlling the genetics, you control the person."
It was more disturbing than Sasuke had initially thought. Was it something in Itachi's genetics that made him snap and murder their whole family? Sasuke shared his DNA…would he end up killing everyone he cared about as well? The knot in his stomach, the fear of losing Sakura, grew tighter and tighter. "Is that actually possible?" His voice sounded rather strained, even to his own ears.
Sakura and Ino exchanged a glance.
"The science of personality, identity, and brain behavior is still in its early stages…" Ino began, "some of it is dictated by genes, but it's still not clear just how big of a role they play. That's the question of nature vs. nurture. But it's misguided to discount nurture. The brain forms neural pathways based on the information it receives from its environment. It's those neural pathways that play the biggest role in shaping personality."
"Even genetic identical's, when raised in different environments will develop different strengths and weaknesses," Sakura continued, her eyes softening as she looked at him—like she somehow knew the exact direction his mind had taken. "Identical twins, raised in the same environment often display different personalities. There's still a lot of research to be done, but identity can't be written up to just genetics."
"If he's such a genius, how's he overlooking this fact?" Shikamaru spoke for the first time in the meeting.
"At the time, he may have discounted it because he himself didn't see any results that would suggest its validity. Using himself as a case study, he had no mother, his father likely neglected and abused him prior to death, placed in a crappy orphanage that sent the kids to the worst school…nurture should have dictated he'd be unintelligent and depressed. Instead he was relatively unaffected and a genius, scholastically smart, able to get away with terrible acts, able to manipulate and charm those around him. Thriving. His nurture should have made him the opposite, so he may not have taken it to mean much at the time."
"At the time?" Shikamaru further questioned his teammate.
"He must have come to realize that genetics alone aren't enough to control a body. His experiments include several neurochemical blockers, boosters, enzymes, all aimed at bringing the brains emotional response in line with the biological changes." Sakura answered.
"Anyway, his motivations ultimately boil down to desire for power, control, and to combat boredom. He's smart. Scary smart. And he's been gone a while. It's highly unlikely these were his first experiments. He certainly wouldn't have been so careless as to let the bodies be discovered."
Sasuke and Shikamaru exchanged glances. It was the same conclusion they'd reached last night.
"Do you think he's had any…successful experiments?" Kakashi asked.
"It's hard to say. Probably not for this particular experiment…but others, maybe."
"He has." Sasuke answered. All eyes shot to him. He knew he could no longer hide it from them. It would be an obstruction of their investigation. And his biggest fear had been assuaged, he wouldn't completely lose Sakura by revealing the people he'd worked with while he was away.
"How do you know?" Kakashi questioned, eyes observing him carefully.
"In the time I was gone, I…crossed paths with some interesting people." He crossed to the smart board computer and after a couple seconds of hacking, pulled up a file. "This is Hozuki Suigetsu. A mercenary, originally from Kirigakure. I…I briefly worked with him to track my brother. He had undergone certain biological changes through experimentation, which increased his lung capacity, sped up his healing when submerged in water, and allowed him full conscious control over his biochemistry."
"What's that last part mean?" Naruto, ever the idiot, cut in boldly. Apparently it was totally lost on him why this might be an uncomfortable subject for him.
"He could activate his adrenaline at will, consciously choose how it would effect him, increase his blood flow to his muscles…stuff like that, Moron."
"Watch it Bastard—"
"It means he could choose when and how to give himself a speed or strength boost." Sakura cut in helpfully, attempting to diffuse their fight before really started in front of Ino and Shikamaru.
"Coulda just said that from the start. So what's the deal?"
"The experiments done to him were conducted by Orochimaru and an accomplice. He never got a good look at the second person. The experiments on him seemed to have been successful. So if he was a success, there had to have been other success as well."
"Why didn't you share this earlier?" Kakashi questioned, his voice low.
He wasn't sure how to answer. He'd been ashamed…that he hadn't drawn the connection sooner, that he'd known someone who went through that torture and never reported it, that he'd considered seeking it out for himself…he couldn't admit any of that, especially not in front of two people who weren't even on his team. He was saved by the person he feared looking at the most right now.
"Fascinating that he was a success. Conscious biochemical regulation—I wonder if that informed his process for his current experiments. Whatever procedure he went through must have aided in the development of the chemical he's using for the genetic mutation now—it includes an increase in the production of cortisol, I bet the two are related!"
It took all of his effort not to openly gape at her. He could tell from the lively far-away look in her eyes that her mind was currently racing to place these new puzzle pieces he'd just handed her, but he didn't miss the reassurance they held in them either. The deep gratitude he felt sent a shock of the warm heat through his system, making him relax a little, despite the tense environment and case that just kept getting more fucked up.
"So we've got a witness then, yeah?" The blond moron's loud voice cut in, filling Sasuke with even more relief. The two people he cared about the most weren't absolutely disgusted with him.
"Seems so. Hard to believe Orochimaru would just let him go though." Kakashi said, dropping his line of questioning, which Sasuke was also grateful for because ultimately, he also cared about Kakashi.
"Actually it's not." Ino answered swiftly, drawing the attention back to her. "He's sadistic and has no compunction about murder, killing or torture, but that's not the purpose of his experiments. He's a narcissist, a scientist, and very Darwinian. He believes in survival of the fittest and wants to see how 'fit' he can make humans. If one of his experiments is a success, he wouldn't kill them cause their existence strokes his ego. He has no direct purpose for them once the experiment's complete—releasing them may prove more useful than holding them. Especially if there's some way to monitor. He'd get more useful data on how they're able to exist in the world, and if they impregnate someone or get pregnant, he can see if his edits successfully pass on to a child. He gets more use out of letting them go. In a way, it continues the experiment. Besides, he's easily bored. Seeing his experiments on the loose may actually give him some much desired entertainment."
"Easily bored…Would he be the kind to play games?" Shikamaru asked, exchanging a meaningful glance with Sasuke.
"With victims of his experiments? No. They're test subjects. Nothing more, nothing less to him."
"Suigetsu mentioned that power hungry delinquents come to him for power and agree to be experimented on, which make up many of his test subjects. The rest are trafficked to him through the Akatsuki." Sasuke added.
"So he wouldn't with his subjects, but what about someone else?"
"If he were to target someone specifically, then yes. He's a bored genius. If he's targeting someone it's because they've done something to peak his interest…in which case he'd definitely toy or play games with them. It'd be fun for him."
Sasuke's eyes found Shikamaru's instantly. He hated the grimness and worry he saw in them, because if a threat was enough to rattle the lazy genius, it was really fucking serious. He felt the knot of fear in his stomach grow and tighten painfully.
"You're asking very specific questions Shikamaru. What has you concerned?" He needed to give Ino more credit. That woman could read people scary well. It also made him wonder just how good of a liar Sakura was to get anything past her.
Shikamaru met his eyes again, understanding passing between them. Shikamaru gave a small nod, his meaning clear. He'd back Sasuke up.
"We think he's leaving you a message, Sakura." He could feel the ripples of his statement hit the others like a bomb.
"Why would you think that?" Kakashi murmured, clearly less than thrilled at the implications.
"The first body was an accident. Never meant to happen. Someone got careless and he escaped before succumbing to the experiments. But we've already established, he's smart and been doing this a while which means—"
"The second body shouldn't have happened. We should have never found it. Unless it was intentional." Kakashi finished.
"Why do you think it's a message for me though?" Sakura's voice was shockingly calm. He had given her warning of his suspicions last night, So maybe that helped prep her. But when he took a closer look at her, behind how well she was hiding it, he could see just how rattled she was. It was Shikamaru who answered her.
"The body dump was your team's old practice ground. That's not random. So that could be a message for any one of squad 7. We've established that he's got a pool of test subjects to choose from, so why the one he chose? If he were trying to misdirect, he'd have picked someone similar to the first body, to make you think there was a type. He picked a female, in a fairly recognizable state comparatively. One with a body type and coloring similar to yours, Sakura."
It was dead silent for a few long seconds, and then all hell broke loose in the surprising form of Ino. Her hand slammed down on the table loudly, her body positioned in front of Sakura as if to shield her, her voice several decimals above safe. Her glare at Shikamaru positively lethal.
"WHAT THE FUCK DOES THAT PSYCHO BASTARD WANT WITH SAKURA?"
"Why are you asking me?!" Shikamaru shot back alarmed.
"CAUSE YOU'RE THE ONE WHO SAID IT! THE FUCK DOES THAT SADIST WANT WITH HER?"
"How the hell should I know?!"
"YOU'RE THE GENIUS!"
"AND YOU'RE THE MIND READER!" Apparently team 7 wasn't the only squad prone to fighting. It was fascinating to see Shikamaru devolve into yelling—Sasuke figured Ino and Temari were probably the only two who could get him to that point.
Squad 10 had been something of a legacy. The three families just worked well together—their skills complimented each other. It had been a tradition for the Yamanaka, Nara, and Akimichi to serve on a squad together. Team 10 had proven to be just as skilled and cohesive a squad as their parents before them—better even. Ino, Shikamaru and Choji had grown up together. They were like siblings to each other. And apparently, like normal siblings, they fought loud.
Sasuke was more surprised that Naruto hadn't been the one to explode first. His blond best friend was staring between pictures of the second crime scene and Sakura, uncharacteristically quiet and surprisingly deep in thought. Kakashi sat looking grim. Sakura, again, had put on a surprisingly calm front, though he could see the tension of her muscles, and the minute tightening of her lips. She had a far away, troubled look in her eyes, and as if she felt his stare, her eyes locked on to his. He saw the cloudiness clear, replaced by a determined light.
"IT'S NOT MIND READING IT'S—"
"Ino-chan." The blond whipped around to her pink haired best friend, only to be sent a completely disarming smile, Sakura's medically worn hand rested reassuringly on her shoulder. The blonds anger seemed to dissipate, leaving just a very obvious concern.
"Nobody knows Sakura-chan's a part of this though," Naruto spoke, his voice lacking any of its usual joviality, "do you think there's a leak?" The dead last could be smart when he wanted to be.
"If there is, we need to inform the prime minister." Sasuke answered.
"We should inform her regardless," Kakashi said, "she'll kill us if we withheld that her favorite student was being threatened. The question is how to proceed if there is a leak."
"Well, on the bright side, this actually gives us a couple new angles to work." Sakura stated, her voice surprisingly bright. Five sets of eyes shot to her, with varying degrees of incredulity. "What? Because of the profile, we know his motives and reasoning—science—and that he's bored. So however he found out about me, he's probably excited because I could present a challenge, and there's nothing more appealing than that when you're bored. That means that now he's playing a game, which he hasn't done before, and will likely inadvertently give us openings to catch him. Now we've got the Suigetsu lead, and going through everyone I know for someone suspicious. That's a lot more than we've had to work with the last two days."
"Well, I mean, yeah—when you put it that way…but aren't you worried Sakura-chan?"
She gave a half hearted shrug. "I can take care of myself. Besides, I'll be here most of the time anyways." Her voice had that barely audible rasp to it. Sasuke knew she was lying, she was far more worried than she was letting on. No one else seemed to realize that though.
"But you live on your own, Forehead!"
"So? I can take care of—"
"It's not that we don't think you can handle it. But it's better to be cautious. In this case living by your self is a risk not worth taking." Kakashi cut in smoothly. It seemed this had swayed her cause she didn't try arguing further.
"You can crash at my place, Sakura-chan!" Naruto proclaimed loudly.
"Absolutely not. You and Hinata-chan just started living together, the last thing she needs is another girl crashing on her couch! You made her wait long enough Naruto—no way am I gate crashing!" Sakura growled somewhat viciously.
"You can stay on my couch, Forehead!" Ino supplied cheerily. Sakura simply sighed.
"Did you forget you also live with your boyfriend, Pig? He'll say something stupid and I'll break him and probably some of your furniture by accident."
"Right. Good point."
"You can stay with me." He murmured. Now all five sets of eyes snapped to him and fuck was it uncomfortable. He said he wouldn't run away from their relationship and he intended on keeping his word, but it truly went against his nature. What was the big deal anyways? It wasn't like they'd never crashed at each other's places before. When he used to get really drunk, he'd wake up the next morning on Sakura's couch. After really late nights, she'd crash on his. But no one had known about it. Those were only for one or two days most, never some long, indefinite period of time. It also wasn't lost on him that the connotations were different now. They were together, but he understood that they still needed to take it slow and learn exactly what that meant. Her staying with him—living with him, that was faster than they should be going. But what was the alternative?
Ino and Naruto were both unabashedly gaping at him like idiots. Kakashi's one visible eye had initially widened in shock but was now regarding him curiously. Shikamaru had a mild look of surprise painted across his bored features. The only one he cared about though was Sakura, who he could see was calculating everything in her head now that the shock faded. When she finally spoke, her voice was perfectly even.
"Yeah, I think that makes the most sense. Thank you, Sasuke-kun." He caught how her hand quickly swiped across the back of her head—an old nervous gesture. He wanted to give her some reassurance that this would be ok, but he felt like his stomach was going through a small series of electric shocks—which he recognized as nerves. He was just as uncomfortable as her and in no place to offer reassurance.
"Right. Well now that that's taken care of," Kakashi broke in, thankfully redirecting the groups focus back to the task at hand, "Shikamaru and I will go inform Lady Tsunade about the potential leak. Sakura, you and the boys should go over everyone you know and see if anyone's shady. Ino, it'd be great if you could help as well, although they might be needing you in interrogation, so no worries if you can't. Sasuke, get Suigetsu here."
"He won't come willingly."
"Sure he will! You said he's a mercenary, right bastard? Pay him to cooperate and he'll come. Granny said we had full access to KPD resources." Naruto supplied.
"Hn. Keep having ideas like that and the city might not blow up when you're prime minister."
"Not blowing up's a pretty good policy. Think I should campaign with that?"
"If you do, I'm moving to Suna."
Kakashi gave an exasperated chuckle. "Alright enough of that now, get to work."
Everyone filed out, but Sakura's hand stopped him before he could exit the room.
"Are you alright?" He asked immediately, making no effort to hide his concern—he didn't have to anymore.
"I'm…no, I'm not. It's…well, unsettling's an understatement. But that aside," she cleared her throat a little, "thank you. For offering to let me stay with you Sasuke-kun. But I don't want you to feel like you have too. Or were pressured into it. It's ok. I can probably stay with TenTen-chan, or Shizune-senpai." She shifted her weight a little, her eyes glancing up and away nervously. It took him a second to process what her words meant. She thought he'd only offered because he felt pressured into it. She was worried about his comfort. Even in this situation. Warmth surged through him.
"I didn't offer because I felt pressured too."
"Oh—you didn't?" Sasuke shook his head.
"Wait you don't want to have sex already, do you?" Sakura whispered looking rather startled.
Sasuke pointedly ignored the way heat now surged through him, pooling into his lower body. He crossed his arms over his chest and glared down at her, biting out a terse "No."
"Then why—" She stared at him with such openness and confusion that his guard immediately dropped.
"Is it that hard to believe I actually want you there?"
Sakura blinked at him for a second. "I guess after what we talked about yesterday, not so much. It's more peace of mind for you if I'm with you right? So you'll know nothing'll happen and you won't lose me?"
He paused, thrown off by how easily she seemed to get to the route his mind had taken earlier. He slowly nodded. The smile that bloomed on her face blew away all his unease like a gust of spring wind.
"I'm sorry. I overreacted. I didn't think you'd be comfortable with making a move like that so fast…even under these circumstances."
"I'm not. And I didn't think you'd want it either. But in this situation…If you want to stay somewhere else, you can. Just…don't think I'm not an option."
"You're right. On both fronts. Rushing things makes me feel like we're trying to squeeze things into a time frame, like—"
"—I'm going to leave again."
"Yeah…I'll stay with you Sasuke-kun. It's not like I've never crashed at your place before. I just wanted to make sure it was actually ok."
He was actually very relieved that she'd agreed. He knew she could take care of herself. But if something happened he wouldn't know. And thinking about that would drive him insane. If she was with him, at least he'd know if something happened, and be able to back her up. Odds were that she'd be fine no matter where she was, so long as she wasn't alone, but there was only one place she could stay that would keep his mental sanity in check.
She was giving him that smile again, and he found his eyes focusing in on her lips. Memories of the night before rushed him: the feel of those lips brushing against his own, her fingers tangling in his hair, him pulling her closer, kissing her deeper…never mind. Her proximity was as bad for his mental sanity as her distance. But he figured he rather feel this kind of crazy, than the worry/paranoia kind. He had to mentally slap himself out of it. They were at work, with an important job to do.
"Come on. Let's go run background checks on everyone you know."
Author's note: For those who don't know, Tokubei (who Sasuke makes refference to with Shikamaru) is a character from The Love Suicides at Sonezaki By Chikamatsu Monzaemon, a play written for a Japanese style of puppet theater called Bunraku. Kishimoto makes reference to Chikamatsu in the battle with Sasori-Chiyo's ten puppets were from the first puppet master, Chikamatsu Monzaemon.
I'm really proud of this chapter. Sasuke and Sakura's conversation has been one that's been rattling around in my head for a while. I've always felt that there's a lot of breaks in Sasuke's speech when it comes to voicing his feelings and that things come out a bit mixed up or clumsy, like they do in the Retsuden novel. I also feel like all of Sasuke's emotions are felt viscerally and physically. Sakura has more mental understanding of hers, and can put names and connections to what she's feeling, but for Sasuke, things like attraction, affection, lust and love are things he doesn't know how to place so they express themselves through temprature, electricity, or magnetic pull.
Anyways, I hope you liked it! Thank you so so much for all the favs, follows, and most of all, reviews. I love seeing them and they provide me with a lot of motivation and ideas so please keep 'em coming! :)