He was restless.
The meetings hadn't gone as planned. He thought the purpose of the meeting was to warn his fellow clansmen to be cautious the next few months, but that topic wasn't even touched on. They chose instead to focus on the fact none of the applicants had made it into the city council. The elders claiming bias, instead of focusing on the faults of the applicants that needed to be worked on. Itachi hadn't liked any of the applicants. The shinobis were to narrow minded and lacked involvement in the village. Council men were not selected to advocate for their clans. That was something the Uchiha Clan had yet to understand.
After the elders had finished complaining about the unfairness of it all they had turned their attention to him. In reality Itachi should have seen this coming. His talk with his father had been the warning sign, but with everything that happened with Shisui and the added threat level to Sasuke, it had slipped to the back of his mind. It was always a real possibility that Itachi could be killed during any of his missions. His anbu team was known for being assigned suicidal missions. Shisui being taken out so easily had shaken him. If it hadn't been for Sakura, he would have lost his best friend.
The elders were all too happy to point all of this out. They declared he pick a wife. They had given him a deadline in front of the upper rank. Itachi had six months to pick a wife. If by that time he had yet to choose the clan was to pick one for him. He knew even if he followed through with their plan, they wouldn't be happy until the next generation of Uchihas were born. If his first born was a daughter, they would push and push until he produced a son. But he wasn't sure if he even wanted children. Why would he want to bring children into this broken clan?
The clan still held hatred for the village. Maybe not the younger generations, but both his father's and grandfather's generation held such a deep hatred, he wasn't sure if it could ever be resolved. Plus, his future children would become targets. If Orochimaru was still out there he would set his sights on his children. Another nation would look at them as a way to wage war against the Leaf. Then there was the Akatsuki. The terrorist group had been quiet the last couple of months, but something was coming. There was only three tailed beasts left. Whatever their organization's goal was they were closer to it now than ever before. It didn't sit well with him that his younger brother's best friend was the nine tails, not because of what Naruto was, but because Sasuke was likely to get wrapped up in whatever happened. Sasuke had already proven he would react before thinking things through. His head was already aching just thinking about the problems that laid ahead.
"I can hear you thinking." Shisui's voice called into the darkness of his hospital room. "Out with it."
Itachi just took in a deep breath and glanced over at the sleeping beauty in the room. He had been restless and ended up at the hospital. He had initially gone to the room Shisui had been in this afternoon, but it had been emptied. A night nurse had informed him Shisui's condition had improved so greatly that he no longer needed to be in the ICU. When he found Shisui's new room he was surprised to find he wasn't alone.
There was Sakura curled up in a reclining chair. She looked so tired even in her sleep. He wonder how much sleep she had actually gotten the last few nights. Itachi had asked a passing nurse for a spare blanket and covered the sleeping medic. But something felt different about the whole situation. The clothes she was wearing were very similar to the clothes she had worn when he dragged her out of bed the night they returned to the village. There was no pile of medical books or any material that could have been working on while watching over Shisui. Perhaps something had happened? It look as if the girl had come straight from her home. But why?
"How do you know Sakura-san? Earlier you two where very familiar with one another, yet you have never mentioned her before." There was only curiously in his tone. Surely there was a good reason Shisui had never mentioned the pink haired shinobi before.
Even though his eyes were still wrapped, and the room kept dark, Shisui turned his head toward Sakura. "Do you remember the night of the bombings five years ago?"
"Yeah." He remember that horrible night. After Orochimaru's attack during the chunin exam the shinobi forces had taken a hit, but the civilian district had been left mostly untouched. That was until that night. Someone had planted paper bombs on all the buildings within a sixteen-mile radius. Homes, grocery stores, restaurants and shops were all destroyed. Almost a hundred civilians were killed, with so many more injured. The attack had happened around eight at night when people were drawn most to that area. All the bombs went off at the same time. There was no way for anyone inside the strike zoon to react.
Shinobi had responded to the scene immediately, but the damage had been done. Itachi had read the anbu report, they had found nothing. No groups ever claimed responsibility for the attack. Many suggested that Orochimaru was to blame. Claiming one of his shinobi's must have snuck past village security. At the time it had made sense. With the civilians targeted it created even more tension between the citizens of the leaf and the ninja that served the village. The Hokage was forced to turn down missions in order to keep a certain level of shinobi within the village for safety. The village had taken another hit inside her own walls, making it look weak to the neighboring nations. It had made Tsunade look like an incompetent Hokage.
"Sakura comes from a civilian family. Her parents' home was in that district. When I responded to the scene, I found her trying to dig through a pile of rubble." Shisui explained his voice tight as he recalled the first night they meet.
The attack came out of nowhere. He had been picking up a special weapons order when the entire village shuck followed by the sound of explosives going off. The village alarms boomed across the village as civilians and ninjas reacted to the attack. Shinobi were running toward the blast site, but he had always been quicker than everyone else. He felt the adrenalin build within him as he prepared himself to face whatever threat laid ahead. Smoke, dirt and ash were quickly filling the air as he made his way into the civilian district, making it harder to breathe and see. His sharingan glowed as he tried to pick up on any form of life as he passed collapsed and burning buildings. The further he went into the district the more damage he saw. A flower shop his mother liked to stop by was completely shattered. The windows were blown out, the door was missing, and flowers were scattered all around. The small dessert stand he and Itachi liked to stop at was left in ruins.
When he came across the first body, he felt himself grow cold. A hand was sticking out from a pile of rubble, a pool of blood seeping through the cracks. The further he progressed the more carnage he found. He stopped counting the number of bodies after he reached twenty. The stench of blood and death mixed in the air and left a fowl taste in his mouth. His blood limit spun dangerously as he looked for enemy ninja. How could something like this happen? Shisui desperately searched for any sign of life. When finally, he heard someone yelling.
He flashed stepped until he reached the voice, and when he did that's when he found her. A young girl, with pink hair, was on her hands and knees digging through a pile of roofing and plaster. A little voice in the back of his mind reminds him, he has met this girl before. But the adrenalin isn't allowing him to pinpoint exactly when or how.
"No! No! No! No!" The girl is repeating over and over again. Shisui hasn't closed the distance between them yet. He knows she is from the Leaf. He knows she isn't the enemy. But his training is kicking in. Ensure no threat is in the immediate area before rushing in to help. In the academy one of the first battle tactic that is covered is to set off a trap that injuries or kills and then wait until people rush into help before sending off a second.
But he senses no one in the area but her and between one heartbeat and the next, he is by her side. The girl doesn't even notice in her frantic state. Not that he can blame her once he gets a good look at her. She's covered head to toe in blood, dirt and ash and she is injured…badly.
Even though the girl is digging through the rubble he notes her right arm is broken and twisted at a painful angle. But the girl pays it no mind. He can see the glow of charka around her hands as she shifts through the mess searching for something. He moves closer and sees a piece of bone sticking out through her thigh. Blood was seeping into her red qipao and running down her leg. She's barefoot, and it appears her ankle is broken as well. Her forehead was split open, the blood mixed with her tears. The girl's clothing was torn, and she was covered in glass.
"No! No! No! Mom! Dad!" She screamed and Shisui felt his heart twist at her words. "Just hang on! I'm coming!" She screamed as she increased her speed. His eyes searched the area in front of him, but he could sense nothing. It felt like a punch in the gut. This wasn't supposed to happen…not in his village.
His hands gently catches hers and she reacts immediately. He barely dodges the medical scalpel she tries to send his way. He flips backwards, putting several feet between the two of them. When he lands on his feet, he sees that the girl is somehow standing. He can feel her killing intent start to build within her and her charka scalpel flares in warning. But her eyes are unfocused.
Shisui can tell she is a ninja, most likely a genin or beginning chunin. He doesn't flare his charka or try to drawl a weapon. This wasn't a second attack. This was a little girl who was scared and injured and confused. "Hey, it's okay" he says raising his hands up. "My name is Shisui Uchiha. I'm here to help you."
"Uchiha?" She whispers and he sees understanding fill her features. The medical scalpel disappears, and she collapses on her hands and knees, the fight in her gone. He is back at her side in an instant. "My parents they're civilian they need help" she starts to explain, turning to start re-digging.
"I'm sorry" he says softly, gently placing a hand on her back.
He can feel her body to begin to shake violently. "No…no…no…" She says in-between sobs. "They can't be gone! They can't! Your sharingan senses nothing?" She turns and looks at him.
"No. If your parents were inside the house…I'm sorry."
Shisui felt the poor girl cave in on herself before she let out a heartbroken scream that was filled with so much pain, his own heart broke for her grief. Then she threw herself at him. Wrapping her arms around him and buried her face in his vest. He carefully enclosed her in an embrace. She clung to him for sixty seconds before she pulled away, wiping away her tears with her left hand.
"We're under attack?" She asks her eyes looking around her broken neighborhood.
"Yes" was the short answer. He didn't know what the hell happened, but he knew this wasn't an accident. "We need to move it's not safe here." She glances once more at what used to be her house before shutting her eyes and nodding. He scoops her up in his arms and she hisses in pain. But she says nothing as they travel to the hospital, clinging to Shisui the entire way.
"I found out later that Sakura had been upstairs in her bedroom when the bombs went off. The blast sent her flying through her window and into the street. That's probably the only thing that saved her. Then I learned who she was. Sasuke's teammate. The little girl that used to try and follow him around back before they were even in the academy." He stopped and took a deep breath. "I can still see her clear as day in my mind. We've seen terrible things Itachi, but to see a child…a small girl in our own village in that kind of state shock me to my very core. It could have very easily been our home destroyed. It could have been Sasuke instead of Sakura."
Itachi remembered crossing paths with his cousin that night at the hospital. Shisui's vest was covered in blood and his eyes were unfocused. The two cousins only had enough time to see if the other were injured before they disappeared back into the night.
"She was the only one for several blocks to have survived. I transported her to hospital, and she clung to me the entire way. But when I returned to the hospital with another victim there she was, wrapping a wound of another patient in the makeshift emergency room. Sakura had gauze wrapped around her head, her arm in a sling and her leg in some type of makeshift cast but she was treating other people. A thirteen-year-old, a genin who had just lost her parents, and been caught in the middle of an explosion was as focused as a seasoned jounin."
"Why haven't you mentioned her before?" Itachi's eyes bounced between Shisui and Sakura. The way Shisui had reached out for her when he realized she was the medic that was treating him spoke volumes. She had seen him naked, he joked about it. Surely, they weren't lovers?
"I wasn't trying to hide her from you. It was just…I was trying to be to her what you are to Sasuke. She was a genin without a team, without parents or a guardian. The Hokage was training her, but I could tell she needed more. And I didn't realize it at the time, but I needed it to."
"Needed her?" He question almost a little hurt. Shisui was his best friend, had been for over a decade. To have Shisui hide something this big from him stung.
"I…I liked how it felt being around her. She never looked at me as this Uchiha prodigy. Sakura didn't see me as a shinobi. She only ever saw me for me. If that makes any sense. My entire life has been surrounded by darkness. Being around her reminded me of our earlier days. Back before the clan almost turned against the village and Sasuke became a target. She...it helped keep me grounded. Brought back a little bit of light and innocence." Shisui's voice held strong, even if he hesitated with his words. Maye he should have told Itachi about her sooner, but he refused to feel guilty about their relationship. It had kept him from going over the edge more than once.
"She almost passed out from charka depletion after healing you" Itachi said switching his entire focus to his cousin. He didn't miss the way his cousin recoiled at his words "It seems she has stayed with you every night since. Even went as far to put a seal on you to feed you constant medical ninjutsu." He could see Shisui processing his words. His heartrate spiking slightly as Itachi saw understanding and something else flash across his face, making Itachi wonder just how close the two shinobi really were.
The village was already dark by the time he returned home. He had been off following leads when he received Tsunade's note. It was time to take Naruto out on another training session. His godson would need something to focus on and teaching him a new technique always distracted him from a while. It seemed that the council was no longer willing to ignore his situation. Though legally they had no claims over what the Hokage did with her shinobi, the elders were sneaky. All they would have to do is go over Tsunade's head. They could get the Fire Daimyo involved.
Hi no Kuni was a weak man. His decisions were easily swayed and biased by external influences. Jiraiya didn't even know if the man was capable of thinking on his own. His advisers did most of the work. The elders could easily sway the Daimyo to order Naruto be kept in a secure location or inside the village. It would be a dirty move by the council members. But if they wanted to fight dirty that was fine by him. Tsunade had an ace up her sleeve if she really needed to use it. The ace just wasn't going to be happy about it. Their ace wasn't going to be happy about a lot of things.
When he finally made it to her office he didn't bother to knock. He opened the door without hesitation or permission. His long-time love stood by the windows looking out over the village. She didn't even turn to look at him, as he shut the door and closed the distance between the two of them. The fact she hadn't even tried to reprimand him for the lack of respect for her position or the fact there was no alcohol in sight was a clear sign something was very, very wrong.
He stood beside her, his eyes roaming up and down her body. Her shoulders were tense, and she looked like she had lost weight since their last meeting. Her eyes lacked some of the spark they always had. Even with her appearance jutsu in effect, her age was showing through. Jiraiya could see the weight of the responsibilities, duties and lies that she had to carry daily. Last time he had been in the village they had talked about her retiring when everything was finished.
Tsunade never wanted this position. This was never the path she would have chosen if it hadn't been shoved down her throat. The hospitals had improved remarkably since her return and the Leaf's hospital was the best in the five hidden villages. Her dream when she was a young jounin was finally a reachable goal. His love had overcome so much. He could see the love her people and shinobi held for her. But she was going on her sixth year as being Hokage. Shizune was ready to take over the hospital. Sakura was to, if she wanted a more permanent role inside the village. Kakashi would make an excellent Hokage. Sakura would be there to help Kakashi in the same way she learned to help Tsunade. Kakashi could help groom Naruto to take over the position when the blonde was finally ready.
Pieces were finally falling into place. The game just wasn't finished yet.
"When will you be leaving?" She finally speaks after several minutes. Her eyes still trained on something in the distance, what she is looking at Jiraiya isn't sure.
"Tomorrow. I'm sure once I speak with him, he will be eager to start his training." He pauses waiting for her to say more, but when she doesn't speak right away, he feels a pit growing in his gut. "You said we needed to discuss personally matters. What is going on Tsunade?" It hadn't gone unnoticed that there was extra security around the village at the moment.
"Do you still believe Naruto is the Child of Prophecy the Great Toad Sage told you about?" She asked turning toward him. "Do you still think that dream of yours is possible?"
Being completely caught off by her words he struggled to respond right away. Confused as why she was asking. She had seen something special in Naruto, the young ninja had been the reason she had agreed to come back to the village and become Hokage. "The Toad Sage said my student would either grow up to save or destroy the world. The only student that could even be applied to is Naruto. Nagato, Yahiko, Konan and Minato are gone. Naruto is the only student I have left."
"You have complete faith in Naruto?" Tsunade asks stepping closer to him. Her eyes cold and hard as they lock onto his.
"Of course, I do!" He shouts. "Where is this coming from?" He questions harshly. Naruto had never given either of them any reason not to trust him. So why now? What has changed?
"She's looked at his Tetragram seal. She thinks there is a way to protect Naruto from the nail tails while still drawling power from it."
He can feel his mouth open in shock, but he can't help. "How?"
Tsunade takes a deep breath before stepping back and holding her arms under her chest. Her eyes leave his and lock onto the picture of her and Sakura on her desk. "She's had free range of the archives, not only ours but his as well. Sakura found an old journal of Minato's. Sometimes I think that girl is more hardheaded and stubborn than Naruto."
He can feel some of his anger melt at her words. "You're letting her paint a massive target on her back."
"The girl is willing to do whatever necessary to protect her precious people. You of all people understand that." She stared a few moments longer at the photo before giving him her full attention. "Regardless, that's not the only reason why I called you here. We need to discuss what needs to be done about Orochimaru."
The pit in his stomach only grew at the mention of his former teammate.
Players were making moves in their game. If they wanted to keep control, they would have to change their strategy to keep the upper hand.
Itachi had expected the walk to the tower to have a certain level of awkwardness, but just like before it was filled with comfortable silence. An anbu had come to Shisui's room as soon as the clock stuck 9am to retrieve both him and Sakura. They were to report to the Hokage in thirty minutes. Itachi gently woke the sleeping medic, and noted she wasn't all that surprised to see him there. Perhaps she had sensed him entering the room last night and didn't deem him a threat or was truly to tried to care. Either way she didn't question his presence or how she ended up with a blanket. She simply stated she would be ready in five minutes and disappeared into the bathroom.
Sakura must have had a scroll with her because she walked out completely dressed. She wore the same uniform from several nights ago, though there was no mistaking how much fuller her weapons pouch looked or that even with the vest closed he could see several more scrolls within the pockets. It seemed Sakura was taking the threat level being raised very seriously. She hadn't bother to pull her hair up. It flowed in lose curls down her back, but her forehead protector kept the hair pushed back from her face. Very much in the same style he remembered seeing her doing when she was still just a fresh faced genin out of the academy.
His first impression of her had been very wrong. He hadn't seen the hidden potential within her. He had written her off. Perfect charka control meant nothing if you didn't have the charka reserves or stamina to do something with it. He had seen Kakashi do it to. When Team Seven was first formed it was obvious the sliver haired elite put more attention on the males of the team. Though after learning what happened to Kakashi's female genin teammate he couldn't blame him. But the dynamics between Kakashi and Sakura had changed. He could tell just how they had interacted the night of the meeting. Kakashi knew about Shisui. Sakura had to have told him. Neither reacted to the fact Orochimaru was within fire country. It spoke to the level of trust she held for her old genin sensei to have shared that sensitive information. He wonder what happened to make their relationship change so much.
He wondered a lot of things about the young women standing next to him.
Before they could even knock on the door the anbu guard is opening it. It seems the Hokage was wanting to speed whatever this was along. They weren't the only ones in the room either. Tsunade was sitting behind her desk with Master Jiraiya standing next to her, leaning against the window seal. Ibiki Morino and Genma Shiranui were also present to the left of the door.
"M'Lady" Sakura greeted with a deep bow. Itachi gave one of his own and when he straightened, he noticed there was large file placed on the Hokage's desk. Her words from the meeting several nights ago come rushing back and he knew exactly why he was called to the office. However, before anyone else could talk Shikamaru Nara comes walking in, and as soon as he sees Sakura, he takes a deep breath.
"Damnit Haruno what did you drag me into this time?" He wines as he comes to stand next to the pink shinobi. But all Sakura does is smile and gestures toward her Kage.
"Shikamaru, you were not at the meeting last week, Sakura will fill you in. But in summary the Akatsuki have increased their activity. They are planning something. I am forming a team to figure out what and how to stop them." Tsunade explains. Shikamaru's demeanor completely changes. It was no secret that the young shinobi held a great hatred for the terrorist organization. "Ibiki will be your immediate supervisor for this assignment. There is a room reserved for your team in the upper floor of the tower. This is of the upmost importance. Consider this an S level mission given the threat level to the village and one of our own."
Both Tsunade and Jiraiya had on poker faces giving nothing away. Though if the toad sage was here then the threat level on Naruto had been increased. Sakura just kept her eyes locked on Tsunade. Some kind of silent understanding passing between the two of them.
"When do we start?" Genma asked speaking for the first time. It made sense why the elite senbon chewing ninja was chosen. He had fought in the third ninja war. He was close friends with Kakashi. He had been trusted to be a part of the elite guard not only for Tsunade but for Minato as well. He could be trusted with sensitive information on Naruto.
"How soon could you have your files ready Sakura?" Tsunade asks as she tosses Sakura the mission scroll.
"At most fifteen minutes. Same room?" Sakura inquired, already opening up the scroll and skimming through the details. Tsunade nodded. Sakura then turned toward the head of T&I. "Badger is also assigned to this team?" Her tone challenging slightly.
Ibiki doesn't responded to her challenge. He simply turns to walk out of the room, but not before yelling over his shoulder "Badger is second point. He will be checking in occasionally."
"Just great." She mutters under her breathe to quiet for anyone besides him and Shikamaru to hear. He can see the young shinobi fight back a laugh as he eyes Sakura.
"Everyone will meet in room 606 in an hour. By tonight I want everyone briefed on anything and everything even slightly associated with the Akatsuki. Time is not on our side."
She was trying really hard to push down her frustration. Badger being added to the mission brought on certain difficulties that she didn't think were needed. But if Ibiki pushed for Badger to be added then there was a serious reason behind it. Once they were dismissed, they agreed to meet back in the room in an hour, prepared to spend most of the day locked away in the office. It would give her plenty of time to make copies of certain files and make sure her white boards were organized in such a way the other three could understand.
The office was one of the bigger ones on the top floor. There was a table that sat ten with plenty of space to work. Sakura had claimed this office as her own after her altercation with Sasori. The information she had gained during that battle had been a game changer. Her only regret was the fact she hadn't been able to seal his body. She only had enough time to seal his heart before feeling Naruto's nine tail charka rolling off of him in waves. When she had returned home Tsunade had agreed that the time to start investigating the Akatsuki had come. Deidara had made it clear that Naruto would be his next target. The Leaf had already taken down three of its members, but the other six were still out there and still very much dangerous.
It hadn't escaped Sakura's notice that Tsunade had failed to mention that Kakuzu had been killed by Kakashi. The only reason Sakura could think why she had been because of the jutsu Naruto had used to incapacitate Kakuzu. During the autopsies the only medics that had been authorized to examine the body had been Tsunade, Shizune and Sakura. The amount of power behind Naruto's attack had been unbelievable. If Sakura had not seen the body herself, she would have never believed that one attack could server every single cell from the chakra circulatory system. That type of attack would render the target unable to create and mold chakra. An injure like that at the cellular level would be impossible to treat.
Naruto's Wind Release Rasenshuriken had fascinated Sakura. Even through the jutsu had flaws, it still had massive potential. Tsunade had banned Naruto from ever using it again because of the damage it had done to his arm. Some of his cells had been damage, Tsunade had been able to repair it but there was no guarantee next time she could. But Sakura had already seen Naruto perform the jutsu once and that was all she needed. Sakura didn't have the endless reserves Naruto had thanks to the nine tails but that doesn't mean she couldn't get to that level. The book she found written by Hashirama was proving to be helpful in more ways than one.
But that was beside the point. She was getting distracted from the point at hand.
She glanced at the ten white boards scattered throughout the room wondering where the best place to start would be. Each of the Akatsuki members had a board dedicated just to them. While some had a lot of information like Deidara, Sasori and Kisame, others had little to none like Tobi, the blue haired female and black and white plant looking monster. One board just had the word "leader" written on it with nothing else. A gut feeling told her they had yet to cross path with the leader of the origination. Another feeling told her the only female of the team was a high ranking, trusted member. Sakura had never read a report of her being teamed with any of the other members for any kind of mission. All she had to go on was a photo taken of her entering Rain country wearing the robe.
The paper flower in her hair seemed special. In the photo it had been raining. If it had been normal paper the paper would have wilted, but it seemed perfect in the photo. Maybe a kekkei genkai? Maybe she had found a way to lace it with charka to prevent it from becoming ruined by the rain. But if that was the reason why?
Then there was Tobi. The man seemed to have come out of thin air. There were several pictures of him with Deidara and Sasori, but in those photos he wasn't using any of their trademark rings. If he wasn't wearing a ring was not yet a full-blown member? One of her contacts had provide her a recent photo and it seemed that Tobi was now Deidara's new teammate. Not only that but the orange masked man was now wearing Sasori's ring. Why wasn't he given a new ring?
Did the rings play a key part in the tailed beast extraction?
At one-point Orochimaru had been a member of their organization. She highly doubted if they had given him a ring that he had given it back. Then there was Jūzō. He had been from Mist, one of the legendary swordsmen like Kisame. Jūzō was killed by the Fourth Mizukage during an assassination attempt. Had the Akatsuki had time to take his ring back? Or had it been left behind?
Was the organization supposed to have ten members? If it did, how were they able to extract the tailed beasts missing members? Missing rings?
"Urggggg!" She let out a sound of frustration. It was always one step forward, and two steps back when it came to the Akatsuki. But maybe now that would be different. She didn't like working on teams anymore, didn't like having to trust others, but for Naruto she would do whatever necessary to protect him. At any cost, by any means.
He was beginning to question if the medic that healed his leg ever checked to see if he had suffered from a concussion. Ever since that night something had changed. Whenever he had a moment to himself his mind always wandered to her. If Shisui had not fallen asleep so quickly after he disclosed the condition Sakura had been left in, he would have asked him several questions about the medic. Itachi had stared at the young women for over an hour last night, thinking if he just looked hard enough, he would understand the mystery behind her.
Yesterday he had checked the mission logs. Sakura's name was no where to be found on the jounin mission logs, meaning one of two things, either she was assigned a mission off the record or the mission was anbu level. He wonder what solo mission would have lasted almost a week. Any high-ranking mission that showed promise of combat should have been assigned to at least two shinobi. Sakura had been in multiple fights. The bruises on her back were healing in different stages.
Itachi only felt slightly out of place as he walked down the hall holding a bag of food in one hand and balancing a cup holder in the other. He had no earthy idea what had possessed him to get breakfast for the two of them. He could explain that time in her office, she had wiped herself out after saving Shisui and he could almost reason the dango was a way to bribe her into breaking patient confidentiality and give him an update on Shisui's condition. But this? He couldn't even begin to justify his action to himself.
He open the door to the office only to discover she was alone, leaning against the conference table, staring at the board labeled Tobi. The door shut quietly behind him, his eyes scanning the room quickly. Ten white boards were scattered throughout the room, along with a map with colorful pins poked throughout it. It seemed Sakura had already selected four chairs at the table, placing large neatly staked files around each one.
How long had she been working on this?
"I brought breakfast if you are hungry" he said setting the food carefully down on the table. Sakura is so engrossed with the information in front of her she just nodes her head in a greeting. He doesn't take offense; he can see the wheels spinning behind her eyes as she examines the information on the board. Itachi can't say he isn't enjoying the scene in front of him. Sakura is frustrated, that much is easy to see. She's slightly biting the corner of her bottom lip. Her arms are crossed in front of her. Her eyes are hard as they bounce all over the board. But this side of her excites him, and he isn't completely sure why. Maybe its because he knows her frustration is linked to her need to keep her blonde teammate safe. She had the same look in her eyes the other night when she told Itachi the snake wouldn't be able to touch his younger brother.
Itachi can't see what she is trying to understand on the board when he comes to stand beside her, a drink in each of his hands. "Here." He says softly as he passes the pink drink toward her. This time she does turn to give him her attention. Her eyes quickly losing their hardness and replacing them with surprise. A slight blush staining her cheeks.
"How did you know…?" She asks with hesitation.
"Is this the same one Sasuke got you the other day?" He asks his amusement at her embarrassment clear. She can only nod her head yes. "You spent another night in Shisui's room. Caffeine has always helped me focus."
"Thank you" she says looking away from him.
"This is quite impressive. How long have you been working on this?" He leaves her side and starts walking around the room. His sharingan flickering on as he quickly absorbs the data. He stops in front of the map, taking note of all the different marked spaces. There were nine colors on the map, perhaps one for every member of the organization. Next to the map was a list of sightings in chronological order, dating as far back as six years.
"I've been working on this on and off for about a year. Every time I'm in the village I try and expand our intel." She gives up looking at the board labeled Tobi and takes her seat at the table. Itachi watches as she pulls her headband off and runs her hands through her hair, several strands falling in front of her face. The sudden desire to push the hair out of her face hits him out of nowhere. He wants to know if her hair is as soft as it looks.
"How often are you out of the village?" He asks as he takes the seat next to her, reaching for one of the breakfast sandwiches inside the bag.
"Lately, it seems every other week. Depending on the need of the hospital and the missions coming in." She answers vaguely. He can see some of the sharpness return to her eyes. Itachi can see the first wall of her guard go up. But he can't help himself. He wants answers. He wants to understand the ninja in front of him. He wants to understand this sudden curiosity.
"Why is Sasuke unaware that you are in anbu?" He asks before he can think his question through. He has no right in asking her. She is under no obligation to answer his question. The look she sends him makes him think she is going to tell him as such, but instead she just takes a deep breath.
"How well did your younger brother react to being passed up for the Jounin Exams?" She askes with almost a ghost of a smile touching her lips. He doesn't answer. They both know just how badly he reacted. "How well do you think my two knuckleheads of teammates would have reacted to the fact not only am I a jounin but an anbu as well? The only team member of team seven that didn't even make it into the final stage of the chunin exams the first time we took it." There is something in her tone that he doesn't like, it almost sounds like self-doubt. "Besides you know as well as I do, Weasel, that some things you don't adversity to others."
So, she already knows about me…interesting.
"Any reason for the twenty questions?" She asks, reaching for the other sandwich. He just looks at her as he takes another bite of his food, shrugging his shoulders slightly. "Well we still have time to kill if you had anything else you wanted to ask."
"Who is your jounin partner?" He asks and she reacts instantly. Itachi watches as her guard goes completely up. When she doesn't answer right away, he continues. "Sasuke said you left the team to have more flexibility between missions and your hospital work."
"I did." She answers simply, completely ignoring his first question.
"Some would question why a member would leave a team so quickly after reforming for the first time in years. Especially when the members fought to stay together in the past." He challenges wanting to see if she would take the bait.
"Some would say curiosity kill the cat." She countered.
"Others would say satisfaction brought it back." Itachi likes the way she is challenging him. Her pulse never once rising. Sakura's only tell had been the shift in her eyes and posture. Sakura went to say more but quickly shut her mouth when the door opened.
Shikamaru walks in, a cup of coffee in his hand. The young Nara just glanced between the two of them before shaking his head. "If you two were in the middle of something I can step outside." He could feel some type of tension in the air and it was to early in the morning to try and deal with any additional shit.
"Nonsense. Take a seat Shika and I'll give you the basic run down before Genma gets here."
Itachi just watches as her as she explains in detail what the meeting had been about. He was assumed by her behavior. Others would have fidgeted under his stare and line of questioning. But she never once rose to the bait. He liked challenges and the fact he knew almost nothing of the young women sitting next to him, but she seemed to know very highly classified information on him made this challenge all the more interesting.
Naruto, Sasuke and Sai looked almost like they were dancing in the middle of the training fields. Each moving and twisting their bodies in different directions trying to avoid the other's punch or kick. None of the three men were using chakra. It seemed like this was a taijutsu session. Jiraiya couldn't help but chuckle as he came to stand next to Kakashi and Yamato, watching as Naruto tripped on Sasuke's foot and ended up falling on his ass, almost brining Sasuke down with him. His godson quickly standing, promising Sasuke a world of pain for making his looked like an idiot.
"How long have they been like this?" Jiraiya asks as Yamato just shakes his head.
"About two hours." Kakashi replies his eyes his buried in his dirty book. "If you need to speak with Naruto, we can end it now."
"No, let him get some of that energy out of his system. Once I tell him I want to take him out for a training session, he isn't going to leave me alone." Besides he likes watching his godson interacting with his team. The frog Sannin knew the young Uchiha was not good at expressing himself, but Naruto seemed to always understand him. Naruto had made an offhanded comment one day that him and Sasuke best communicated through their fists.
"How long with you be away this time?" Kakashi asked putting away his book.
"Two, three weeks tops. I don't want to keep him away for to long. I think it's about time I introduce Naruto to collaboration ninjutsu. That should keep him distracted long enough."
"Dose Naruto process the focus for that?" Yamato questions. The young blonde had come far in just the short time the former anbu had joined the team, but Yamato still held some doubts if Naruto was truly ready. He had lost control twice. If he had not been there or if Jiraiya hadn't passed on his sealing tags who knows how bad it could have gotten.
Last time Sakura had gotten hurt. When they came across Orochimaru and Kabuto on the bridge he lost it. All it took was the snake Sannin to make a comment about going after Sasuke and finishing what he started. Words were all it took to rial Naruto up. Sakura had tried to calm him down. She had been fighting against Kabuto when Naruto had screamed out in pain. He already had four tails and the longer he was in that state the more damage his body sustained. She had rushed past Kabuto and made a beeline toward him.
Sakura had been screaming at him to calm down. That she was there, and he wasn't alone. That he didn't have to protect Sasuke all by himself. That they were a team, and teams protect one other. Yamato had tried to stop her, but she had reacted so quickly even Kabuto could do nothing but watch. Her pleads didn't work. Naruto had reacted as if she was an enemy and sent a tail flying toward her. Sakura had barely been able to dodge it, but she was still trying to correct her footing when the second tail came, catching her across her arm, sending her flying backwards.
After that mission was over, she had come to Yamato and apologized. She had apologized for getting in the way and endangering the welfare of the mission. Sakura said she had reacted on her emotions and it was unbecoming of a jounin. When he talked with Kakashi about it later he had just shook his head, a sad expression filling his features. Apparently when Sasuke had been first marked by Orochimaru he had a melt down in the forest of death. The only thing that had calmed Sasuke down was Sakura. She had done the same thing she had done with Naruto; ran toward her teammate with no regard for her own safety.
"I think the boy has matured greatly these last few months." Jiraiya answered. "Mastering this technique will only further his ability to control his power. Minato never had any interested in the combined acts. But I have a feeling Naruto will thrive with the connection between the toads."
"Prevy Sage!" Naruto screams from the middle of the training flied. Kakashi lets out a breath knowing his student was only going to get louder. "Are you here to show me another really cool jutsu so I can wipe the floor with Sasuke-teme?!" Naruto doesn't even give his master a chance to answer. He bolts toward the three jounin, leaving Sasuke and Sai behind.
When he finally stands in front of Jiraiya he has a wide smile plastered on his face. He's covered head to toe in mud and dirt, but he pays it no mind. One glance across the field and Jiraiya can tell he is the dirtiest of the three males. "Well actually I'm heading out on another research trip, you wanna tag along?" He asks smiling as Naruto just looks up at him with wide eyes. "How about it. You think you can handle the rigors of my tutelage again?"
"You bet!" He answers shoving his one hand up in the air. "Wait has granny already cleared this?"
"I talked with her this morning; we're all set."
"So where are we gonna be going?" Naruto asks. He can already feel the excitement in him building. Whenever they go out on research trips, he always comes back with a super cool new jutsu.
"First I've been traveling for days. So, I think we need to stop and soak in a hot spring." He says already turning and walking away, knowing Naruto would follow.
"Huh? What do you mean hot spring?! You think I don't know what you're going there for, Pervy Sage!?" He screams as he follows after his master.
"This hot spring is special. Its good for healing and strengthening the body. And there will be plenty of pretty ladies."
"See it's just like I said, isn't it!?"
"It's too bad you're not interested, cause I was thinking about asking Sakura to join us." The toad sage lies, knowing the next time the pink haired beauty left the village it would be with a very different partner. But the white lie does the trick and with a quick goodbye to everyone Naruto is leaving with him to prep for their journey tomorrow.
"Urgh! Baby girl why did you have to so much information on the Akatsuki? We are going to be stuck here forever." Genma complained as he closed his last packet. The sun had long ago set. It was nearing ten o clock and they had only taken two breaks. Not that he truly cared, he would do whatever was necessary to stop this threat. They had killed one of his close friends and they were after one of his senpai's child.
"I'm sorry. In all honestly this team should have been formed six months ago." Sakura said somewhat deflated. She had spent the better part of the day explaining in great detail the information and data she had personally gathered. This was one of the reasons why she had bothered Tsunade about forming a team to deal with the Akatsuki after her encounter with Sasori. But her master had been unwilling to commit to the idea. At the time there were still five of the tailed beasts left and the village hadn't been in a position where it could spare extra high-ranking shinobi to work on this assignment.
"Yet even without a team, you have established a great foundation. How on Earth did you collect all of this information Sakura?" Shikamaru asked, his attention moving from the map to her.
"Many people owe me personal favors. Majority of those favors I have turned into confidential informants. Some of this information has come from Master Jiraiya, some of it is from Badger." She stifles a yawn. It was becoming harder for her to focus. She was going off very little sleep. Her last mission and week busy nights were catching up with her. It didn't help that this was information she had already memorized.
"You believe the rings are connected somehow." Itachi states pulling out the paper with the different rings they had managed to see drawn on it. Sakura just nodes searching for the same paper in her own file.
"Discussing different ideas might be best to wait until tomorrow. No matter how troublesome this is, we need time to process the basic information we know to be true before we can attempt to drawl conclusions or make assumptions." Shikamaru argued. The three males had just been given a lot of information; data Sakura had spent over a year gathering. And unlike Itachi he didn't have the sharingan. He needed time to reread and absorb the information.
"That might be for the best. I still think their next target will be the three tails. If we can figure out where the three tails is and find some way to seal it or keep it guarded, we stop whatever it is they are planning. Take away one of the links and everything should start falling apart." Sakura says standing, starting to collect her paperwork.
"Thank god!" Genma sighed as he too stood, collecting his file in his hands. "Any longer and I thought my eyes were going to fall out from overuse."
His comment freezes Sakura in her tracks. Itachi can see the wheels spinning behind her eyes before a small smile forms. She turns quickly towards Genma. "You're a genius!" She claims with clear excitement in her tone. "Not just a pretty face." She turns back toward the table, scooping up the rest of her files. "I have to go. Ten sound okay for meeting back up in the morning?"
They all agree and then she disappears out of the room.
"What the hell was that about?" Genma asks still looking at the spot Sakura had been standing seconds ago, but neither Itachi nor Shikamaru could give him an answer.
He awoke slowly. A warm tingly sensation pulling him away from his dream. He tries to blink away the fogginess, forgetting his eyes are still wrapped. It takes a few moments before he makes the connection that the warm feeling that woke him is medical ninjutsu.
"Sakura?" He calls softy into the room. Shisui can feel her besides him, her hands hovering above his eyes. He doesn't think he could ever forget the feel of her charka. Its warm and inviting and soft. How many times has she healed him in the pass? He could almost recall the feel of her charka as good as his own.
"Shh I'm almost done" she replies quietly.
Shisui has no idea what day or time it is. Since waking up the first time he quickly fades in and out of consciousness, his body still too weak to stay awake for long periods of time. But he doesn't make a sound, just lets Sakura continue her work. He knows when she is done whatever questions he has she will answer. They sit in silence a while longer. He was almost asleep again when he feels her withdraw from him.
"What time is it?' He asks first.
"Around four in the morning" she answers sharply. The sharpness doesn't sit well with him. He had seen Sakura angry plenty of times before, but never once had he been on the receiving side of it.
"What's wrong Sakura-chan?"
"How could you?" She asks, her voice so small.
Confusion hits him full force and he struggles to sit up straighter in his bed. He can hear the hurt behind her words but doesn't understand why. He wishes so desperately to be able to see her so he can read the emotion in her eyes, but he settles for reaching out for her. His hand landing gently on her face. "I don't understand blossom."
"How could you not tell me something was wrong with your eyes?" She almost hisses at him. "All this time I've been trying to figure how to repair the damage to your sharingans because I believed all the damage had been from the fight. Never once did I even think to consider the damage had occurred over any length of time."
"I-" he starts to explain but she pulls away from him.
"After all these years together, you didn't think to come to me for help. That kind of damage had to have taken years to get to this stage. Did you not trust me enough to look at your blood limit?"
"Sakura that's not what happened. I..I…its complicated. My eyes were already deteriorating back when we first meet." He tried to explain. It was never a question about her ability.
"You went out into the field injured. How many missions have you almost not come back from because you couldn't fucking see properly!?" She all but screams at him.
But Shisui doesn't get angry, he doesn't even yell back. Because even though she is mad, the hurt is so much clearer in her voice and it kills him. He reaches for her again, both hands cupping her face, and his heart twists when he feels her tears. "I'm sorry" is the only thing he can think to say. Carefully he moves closer to the right side of his hospital bed. "Come here blossom."
Sakura hesitates for a few seconds before finally lying on her side next to Shisui on the bed. Her head leaning against his shoulder as she curls around him, careful not to touch any of his injuries. Shisui feels her take a deep breath as he slowly wraps his arms around her.
"I thought I lost you" she says barely above a whisper. "I did lose you twice. I just barely managed to get you back."
He can only hold her tighter against him. He had yet to be informed the extent of his injuries, but if Sakura had almost passed out from charka depletion, he knew it had to be bad. She had brought him back from death's door. "I'm so sorry. I should have come to you." Sakura doesn't respond, she just pushes further into him. She had spent every night with him. He had no doubt she had dumped every available ounce of charka she could into him every healing session. Even now he could feel just how low her charka reserves were.
"You had me so scared you damn idiot."
Carefully he moves his head to the side and kiss the top of her forehead. "I'm sorry blossom. You're exhausted, finish yelling at me in the morning. For now, just rest, I promise I'm not going anywhere."
Sakura takes a deep breath and releases it slowly. Shisui can feel her whole body begin to relax against his. He doesn't dare let go of her. They stayed wrapped in each other's arms. Half an hour passes and Shisui is on the verge of falling back asleep when he feels tears hit his neck.
"I can't lose you Shisui…not you too. I promise I will do better to protect you." She whispers into the night. Shisui doesn't respond. He can feel her body finally fully relax as sleep claims her.
He can do nothing but pull her closer to him, thanking whatever god was listening for allowing him to cross paths with this extraordinary woman, and ask for guidance on how he could repair his fuck up.
