A/N: I would just like to quickly remind everyone that this story is a Post-War AU. Thus, I took some liberties regarding which Akatsuki members are still alive and threw in some more stuff to justify Sasori's existence, lol. Anyways, I hope you continue to enjoy the story!

Chapter 3. Pillow Talk

It was still dark out when Sakura awoke the next morning, the only light coming from the pale moonlight peeking in through the sage green curtains of her bedroom. Cracking a tired eye open, the pink-haired medic shifted carefully on the mattress, hoping that she wouldn't wake her sleeping partner as she twisted to glance at the digital clock sitting on the bedside table. It was barely four-thirty in the morning, about the time she'd usually wake to get ready for her shift at the hospital. However, with Tsunade relieving her of all active duty and hospital obligations for the next week in order to give her time to pack and finish the preparations for the medical campaign, Sakura blissfully decided that the conscious world could wait another four or five hours.

And so, intent on spending the next several hours comfortably asleep and snuggled up with Sasori in her bed, Sakura burrowed deeper into the bed sheets and shifted closer to the warm body lying beside her. Unfortunately, when she felt the arm around her waist tighten and a soft chuckle rumble in the chest pressed against her back, she realized she wasn't the only one awake.

"I'm sorry," she said softly, rolling over to face him, "I didn't mean to wake you."

"It's fine," he replied, voice thick and gravelly from sleep. "What time is it?"

"About four-thirty."

Sasori hummed softly, not particularly surprised - or bothered - by the early hour since it was when Sakura usually got up to get ready for her hospital shifts. In fact, on most mornings, he would willing rise with her; they would make breakfast, have a cup of tea, and occasionally watch the sunrise together from the roof of her apartment building before she left for work. It was peaceful, some might even call it mundane, but it was special to them.

This morning, however, after returning late last night from his three-month long mission, his current desire to go back to sleep outweighed his fondness for early mornings spent in the company of his pretty companion. As such, he had no choice but to let her leave the bed alone. However, when he lifted his arm from around her waist to let her up, he was surprised to find her nestling closer instead.

"Don't you have work?" he asked lowly, cracking one eye open to look down at her as she curled herself into him, her soft hair tickling his chin and bare chest as she tried to get comfortable. He felt her shake her head.

"No," she said with a small yawn, "Tsunade-shishou put me on leave for this week to get ready for the medical campaign."

"Ah," he replied softly, closing his eyes again as he replaced his arms around her waist and rolled onto his back, pulling her on top of him before leaning down and pressing a soft kiss to her forehead. "Let's go back to sleep, then."

Sakura purred in agreement, burying her face in the side of his neck as she rested her palm over his heart and shut her eyes, simply enjoying the feeling of his skin on hers after being apart for so long.

It still surprised her sometimes how physically affectionate the puppet master could be, especially considering their history and his general dislike of touching other people. However, she supposed, after existing for years in a body that was unable to feel anything his touched, the return of tactile sensation that came with his human body was welcomed. A sentiment Sasori himself had reiterated to her when their relationship first began a little over a year ago.

And, contrary to common belief, especially because it involved Sasori, Sakura didn't mind her partner's need for skinship. Rather, she took comfort in his tangible attentions because they made her feel wanted, special, and cared for. They provided her with a sense of security she hadn't known she needed until he came along. From the brief brush of his fingers against her hand when he walked by her at work to the way he'd silently pull her into his arms the moment she returned home after a hard day at the hospital. His every action towards her, no matter how big or small, held meaning and purpose, conveying to her the words he'd never learned to say to another person.

And frankly, in a world where they were trained to seduce with their words and kill with their bare hands, actions really did speak louder than words; and Sasori's actions told her that she mattered, that she was important to him, and that he wanted to be there as much as she wanted him there, both physically and emotionally... and that was enough for her.

So, when Sakura felt Sasori gently squeeze her waist and looked up to find him watching her with calm, curious eyes, she felt her heart warm.

"I'm fine," she said gently, offering him a small smile before resting her head on his chest. When he didn't look convinced, she added, "I promise, it was nothing. I was just thinking..."

'Thinking' was never a simple matter with Sakura, but Sasori didn't press her for details. It was far too early in the morning and he was far too tired to delve into whatever metacognitive thoughts his companion was entertaining at the moment. If it was truly important, she'd tell him. So, instead of responding, he hummed softly and shut his eyes again, praying silently that he would fall asleep before Sakura decided to confess her thoughts.

Sakura, however, despite feeling the tempting tug of sleep pull at her consciousness, found her gaze fixed on the red ink scrawled across skin over Sasori's heart, the memory of the seal, kanji for "Scorpion," embedding itself there during his resurrection ceremony coming to the front of her mind.

Undisclosed Location - Three Years Ago

"First, draw on the remnants of infused chakra and kick-start his heart."

Taking a deep breath, Sakura forced herself to ignore the creeping sense of anxiety that accompanied the possibility of her failing to accomplish the first and most crucial component of this ceremony.

'If this fails, there's no point in continuing-'

"Shut up!" she snapped at the empty room before carefully plunging her chakra into crushed cylindrical remains of Sasori's 'core.'

For a few moments, she simply sat in silence as she allowed her chakra to naturally flow through the soft mass in search of any residual active chakra. Unsurprisingly, after laying untouched for nearly four years, she found none.

Letting out a frustrated sigh, the kunoichi pushed deeper through the complex network of old blood vessels and broken down chakra pathways.

"Come on, you stupid bastard!" She growled, "Do you want to stay dead?"

And then she felt it. A spark.

Eyes wide, Sakura could feel the excitement beginning to course through her veins as the faintest hint of chakra, located deep within Sasori's core, reacted to her own.

'Yes!'

Content smile faltering, Sakura reached over lean muscle and gently traced the tattoo as she recalled the procedure.

After she had finally gotten his core, his heart, beating again, she had moved to take her place beside the remains of Sasori's puppet body on top of a network of seals that allowed her to absorb chakra from the individuals who had volunteered to help her with the ceremony – the Akatsuki.

Snorting softly as she continued to trace the blood-red tattoo, Sakura recalled how stressful the experience had been. Despite having each of the members hidden behind fake walls in the room and forced to sit facing away from the ceremony – to ensure that she was the only person to know how to conduct the ritual, it had been hard not to feel intimidated by their mere presence.

On one hand, she had been trying to carefully monitor the chakra she was receiving from a few of the Akatsuki members and give them feedback about how much or how little to provide. While, on the other, she had been using the skills Yamato had taught her for Earth Release and wood style jutsu to convert the wooden fibers of Sasori's body into keratin, collagen, bone, and muscle fibers. All the while also trying to keep his damn heart beating.

"Kisame-san, please slow down your chakra, I can't control it." Sakura commanded from the center of the room before turning her attention back to half-constructed man before her.

"Time to reconstruct the blood vessels and chakra pathways."

Thankfully, with the building blocks located in Sasori's core, all Sakura had to do was repair the current framework and generate branches from there and allow the body to do the rest over the next few months of his recovery.

Once the blood vessels were rebuilt and layered alongside an extensive network of nerve pathways within the bones, muscles, skin and internal organs, Sakura called out to the assisting Akatsuki members. "Please redirect a slow, steady stream of chakra to Sasori to partial replenish his chakra."

After receiving confirmation of the order from each of the members present, Deidara, Kisame, and the newer Kumijiro and Hatsuko, she sat back for a moment to rest. Staring down at the nearly-human body laying beside her, she examined his body for any concerning signs or life-threatening indications of anything she might have missed. When she found none, she took another moment to admire his human form. Slender, but well-built with lean muscle as any long-distance fighter would be, but not so thin or frail that his body wouldn't be able to withstand the rest of the procedures needed to bring him back to the world of the living.

Resting a hand on the man's chest, over the kanji for 'Scorpion,' Sakura took a deep breath and let her chakra explore the now very familiar form and check for any inconsistencies with his internal functions. Relieved when she found nothing, she called out to Akatsuki members and moved on to the finally step.

When the flow of chakra came to halt, she leaned over the redhead and took a deep breath. She then pinched his nose and tilted his chin up with her free hand before sealing her lips over his and carefully pushing air into his lungs.

'Time to get you breathing.'

"What are you thinking so hard about?"

Tearing her gaze away from the only evidence of his previous life as a puppet, Sakura found sleepy steel gray eyes watching her with a mixture of curiosity and concern.

Smiling softly, she leaned up and gently kissed his lips before responding with an apologetic sigh, "Your resurrection ceremony."

Predictably, Sasori's eyes narrowed. It wasn't a topic they addressed often because, despite his insistence that he had every right to know how she had brought him back to life, Sakura refused to give him any details. Not because she didn't agree with him, but because she had sworn to the Kages that regardless of the results of the ceremony, she would destroy both her own research and that of his late grandmother's to ensure that no one would be able to replicate the process in the future. The only notes they had kept were those needed to develop the jutsus for innervating and vascularizing prosthetics limbs.

"Well, don't," he said grumpily as he tightened his grip around her waist and rolled them onto their sides. Then, as he let his hands fall to her hips, his thumbs rubbing soft circles into the skin above the waistband of her panties, he sighed. "Especially since you can't tell me about it."

Sakura sighed, "I'm sorry, Sasori."

Sasori shook his head, "It's fine. I understand."

And he did.

After all, like her, Sasori knew there was some information that they could never share with each other. The details surrounding his resurrection being one of them. Similarly, per the direction of Konoha's council members, he would never be able to tell her about the unsavory secondary objectives for many of the missions he was sent on.

That being said, they told each other what they could, and their mutual trust made the secret-keeping manageable and less isolating.

Although, as the topic of their recent history often brought forth more questions, Sakura found herself voicing a question she had wondered about for the past two years.

"Why did you come back, Sasori?"

Sasori hummed softly into his pillow, "You'll have to be more specific."

Quirking a small smile at him, Sakura gently reached out and brushed the bangs out of his eyes, forcing him to meet her gaze as she responded. "Two years ago, why did you come back to Konoha instead of returning to the Akatsuki?"

Stubbornly closing his eyes, Sasori sighed, "Being part of the Akatsuki was a means of survival, Sakura. It provided me with what I needed when I needed it. Nothing more, nothing less."

"Then, why didn't you travel instead? You could've gone anywhere you wanted... Ame, Tea Country, Snow..."

"Ame is boring and too wet, Tea Country has way too many tourists, and Snow is freaking cold."

Sakura blinked once, twice, and then once more as her partner's words sunk in. Then, like a dam had a broken, she started giggling, then, after seeing the look of mild irritation on her lover's face, laughing.

"Seriously?" she asked between breaths as she ducked her head and fought to contain her giggles, "That's so… so simple."

Sasori arched a brow at the trembling female. "Did you want a more complicated reason?"

Shaking her head, Sakura took a deep breath before raising her head to meet his perturbed gaze.

"No," she said, her eyes still glittering from the remnants of her laughter, "I just want to know what made you decide that Konoha was so interesting."

Burying his face in his pillow, Sasori groaned. "Are we really having this conversation now, at -" he lifted his head to spare a glance at the alarm clock sitting on her nightstand. "- five in the morning?"

"You're saying you'll actually tell me later?" Sakura asked doubtfully.

"Sure, during breakfast," he said with a yawn.

Frowning at him, because she knew he would find a way out to weasel of it later, Sakura continued to plead with him, "Please, Sasori? You'll just change the subject if I try to ask you later."

"And if you ask me again right now, I won't tell you anything at all," he threatened, fixing her with a stern look as she pouted.

"But, Saso-hrmff" Sakura glared at Sasori as he pressed his palm against her lips.

"Sleep, Sakura." He commanded lightly before removing his hand and reaching out to pull her closer again, only to have her scoot away stubbornly. "Sakura."

"No, not until you tell me why you wanted to stay here." She said firmly, her green eyes burning with curiosity and a determination. "Why didn't you just travel around like before? You signed the treaty, you're protected under it so long as you don't go back to Suna."

"I wouldn't go back there even if I could," Sasori retorted dryly.

Sakura rolled her eyes but persisted, "Soooo, why choose to stay here?"

Now he was scowling at her, but even without half his face being buried in a pillow she wouldn't have cared. Sakura wanted the truth and Sasori knew she wouldn't relent until he answered her.

Rolling onto his back, Sasori rubbed his eyes in frustration. "Kami, you're too curious for your own good, you know that?"

Sakura grinned, "Curiosity breeds knowledge."

"It also killed the cat," Sasori grumbled before turning back over to meet the excited pair of green eyes that were staring at him from across the bed. "I stayed because of you."

She blinked. "What?"

Giving up on his hopes of getting back to sleep, Sasori propped himself up onto an elbow and fixed his gaze on the pinkette laying a few feet away, watching carefully as the surprise played across her face before responding. He was only going to admit this once, so she had better be paying attention.

"At first, it was purely out of curiosity," he said slowly, choosing his words carefully as he recalled the decision. "I had found you interesting from the very beginning, to be honest. You were full of surprises... a medical ninja who was experienced in poisons and could fight... you didn't quite fit the mold. It fascinated me. For the first time, I had trouble understanding someone's motives - yours. So, I wanted to know why you were different." Sasori shrugged faintly, as if he were stating the obvious. "I died before I really had the chance to figure it out."

He frowned. "And then you made the decision to bring me, someone who had tried to kill you, back to life." Brow furrowing, as if he was still trying to understand her reasoning, he continued, "all because you felt a sense of duty to your friend and my grandmother."

Gaze focused on the kunoichi, Sasori paused, letting her digest the information before he continued. "And then, when you could have done anything you wanted to make me suffer, when others were determined to seek retribution against me for my crimes, you defended me."

"You were my patient and your health was crucial to our research," Sakura interjected firmly. "It was my professional duty to take care of you and help you recover."

Lips twisting into a small, almost bitter smile, Sasori sent Sakura a meaningful look before shaking his head. "Not many people would defend a known S-class criminal, valued patient or not, from a pack of blood-thirsty ANBU interrogators, Sakura. But you did."

Silently, Sasori reached across the space between to take one of her hands in his. "I came back to Konoha because I wanted to know what made you so different."

"And... ?" Sakura asked softly after a long moment of silence, her expression unreadable as it moved from their connected hands to meet his gaze.

"I stayed because I couldn't find a reason to leave," he said honestly, squeezing her hand reassuringly as he leaned across the mattress to press his forehead against hers. "I know you still have your doubts, Sakura. And I know that you still feel guilty for reviving me against my will, but I don't blame you. Nor have chosen I stayed here out of some sort obligation to you... I'm here because I want to be here."

Heart melting at his words, Sakura smiled, whispering softly to him as she closed her eyes and leaned in to kiss his lips. "Thank you, Sasori."

"You're welcome, Sakura," he replied before tugging on her hand impatiently, trying to pull her back across the bed and into his arms. "Now, will you come back over here so we can both go back to sleep?"

Giggling softly, Sakura obeyed and quickly found herself wrapped up in his warmth again. Closing her eyes, she took a deep breath and reveled in the smell of mahogany and leather that was uniquely Sasori as it lulled her back to sleep.

Hours later, bathed in the mid-morning sunlight, Sakura awoke to the absence of her bed companion. Frowning softly, the young medic reached out and gently patted the empty space beside her in hopes that some of his warmth had remained within the linens. The coolness of the sheets beneath her fingers, however, told her that Sasori had slipped away long before her second awakening.

Pouting grumpily, Sakura withdrew her hand and pushed herself up onto all fours. She then sat back on her heels and stretched her arms forward like a cat. When she thought about it, though, she really shouldn't have been surprised, since, in the two years that they had lived together, Sasori had never been the type to vocalize his departures. Although, he was known for leaving the occasional note if he was being sent out on a mission.

Yawning as she sat up, Sakura tucked her feet beneath her and carefully ran a hand through her long hair to check for any knots and tangles that may have formed while she slept. Relieved to find that she hadn't sprouted a rat's nest overnight, the kunoichi slipped a hair tie off her wrist and pulled the pastel locks up into a messy bun before crawling out of bed.

However, as she set a foot down on the hardwood floor, she paused. Looking down as the hem of her T-shirt brushed against her mid-thigh, Sakura raised a delicate pink brow. Then, taking a bit of the black fabric and rubbing it between her fingers, she snorted.

"Sneaky bastard," she mumbled softly before standing and walking over to her vanity.

Perhaps he wasn't the world's most romantic lover, but Sasori certainly had a way of marking his territory. If the love bite he'd left on her neck wasn't a clear enough sign that she was his, then the fact that he'd taken the liberty of dressing her in one of his black T-shirts before leaving left little room for argument.

Turning her head to get a better look at the dark red mark, Sakura rolled her eyes. He was a possessive lover, that was for sure, but she really didn't mind because she was the same. And, had it not been for her position at the hospital, she would have had no problem letting others see his efforts to mark her as his territory. However... she didn't have to go to the hospital today and since it was Sasori's first day back from his mission, she doubted that he'd be gone for long.

Smirking, Sakura dug a fresh pair of panties, shorts and a T-shirt out of her dresser and snatched-up her toiletries bag before heading across the hall for a quick shower.

Once she inside the bathroom, Sakura shut the door and set her small bundle down on the counter. She then stripped and stepped into the bathtub, grabbing the detachable shower-head and twisting the water dial. Shivering under the initial blast of cold water, Sakura sighed as the water pipes groaned and the water gradually warmed. When she was wet enough, she shut the water off and set the shower head aside in favor of her favorite lemon-scented bodywash and a loofa. As she lathered herself up with soap and bubbles, she couldn't help but think for a moment about how much everything had changed in the past two years.

'Who would have thought that reviving your enemy would lead to dating him.'

Chuckling to herself, Sakura wrung the loofa out and hung it back on its hook before taking the shower head and rinsing off. Clean of all suds and bubbles, Sakura turned off the water and hung the attachment back in its holder and stepped out of the bathtub. Grabbing a fresh bath towel from the mounted rack, she wrapped herself in the plush material before heading over to the sink.

After she had successfully revived Sasori and helped guide the man through about six months of physical therapy and chakra rehabilitation, she had honestly expected him to disappear from her life. However, he had thrown her for a loop when, after she had escorted him out of the village, he had accompanied her on part of her annual medical campaign to the surrounding civilian villages. At the time he had claimed it was to satisfy his curiosity and she had accepted it.

Catching a glimpse of the mark on her neck in the mirror, Sakura shook her head. Seven years ago, when their battle against the Akatsuki had started, had someone told her that she would go on to kill one its members, bring him back to life, and then fall in love with the very same man who had once threatened to turn her into one of his puppets, she would have laughed in their face before sending them through the nearest solid surface.

"And yet here you are." she said to her reflection before turning her attention to the small cosmetics bag and pulled out a mascara wand and a small tube of lipgloss.

As it was, she normally chose to forego make-up simply out of convenience. Sure, when she was younger, she'd given many of the cosmetic products Ino hoarded a try, but had quickly abandoned the practice after she found herself constantly worrying about her mascara running during training or her eyeliner getting smudged whenever she rubbed the sweat from her eyes or washed her face. Now, however, with her removal from the active duty list and her hospital shifts, she was willing to allow herself the luxury of wearing just a little for her afternoon of running errands around the village.

Once she was finished, Sakura zipped the small bag shut and changed into the clothes she'd brought into the bathroom with her. She was just about to put her arms through her clean T-shirt, when she heard the soft thump of the front door shutting. Glancing at the shirt she had left laying on the ground before her shower, Sakura grinned.

'Payback time.'

Leaving her fresh T-shirt and toiletries bag in the bathroom, Sakura snuck out of the bathroom as quietly as possible and crept towards the kitchen, where she could hear Sasori moving the teapot to the stove and preparing tea.

"Hey, where'd you go?" she began as she rounded the corner and stepped into the kitchen. "You should have woken me-"

Rinnegan and Sharingan met wide emerald eyes.

"Sasuke."

WOOT! BONUS CHAPTER UPDATE! (I literally never post two chapters so close together, so consider this a belated Christmas/Hanukah/Kwanza/Specific Holiday gift to you all)

Alsoooooo... DRAMA!

And yes, before anyone asks, Sakura and Sasori have done the DO, but as I mentioned before, I have no intentions of writing lemons into the story.

Finally... Yeah, yeah, I know it was a bit mushy and relatively OOC for Sasori, but let's just remember that he's human now. AND, I like to think that, given how sweet he was as a child before he became a homicidal psychopath, this is how he would be as a human with someone he truly cared about.

ANYWAYS, thanks again for everyone's support and to everyone else, review and enjoy!

~Smash41KMF

- 01.10.2021