Sakura thought she was crazy. Or at the very least, going crazy with the desperation she felt in regards to wanting Sasuke to come back.

She knew she was desperate. Like Naruto, she clung to the memory of a broken boy who still put his life-- his revenge-- on the line for them both. The one that normally declined ramen stops after training, but sometimes yielded to their blonde friends insistence. The one that also attended festivals upon her request, though not before he'd flatly refuse. He still made small exceptions for her and Naruto.

That was the boy she was fighting to get back. The one who, despite everyone around her telling her to do so, she could simply not forget. She wasn't sure when she fell in love with the memory of the boy who scowled at all times and rarely smiled. But, the feelings crept up on her, only solidified when she saw him for the first time in three years.

Sasuke was still utterly handsome, embodying the Uchiha beauty she always heard rumors of-- before he left, of course. No one talked about them anymore. It was practically taboo to mention the sole survivor or the massacre, whether they referred to him as a broken boy or missing-non. When they met again, she saw that he mastered the cool nonchalance he was known for as a child.

But he was still broken. Sakura knew that and saw it plain as day. She may not be able to read him like Naruto, who understood loneliness better than anyone, but Sakura knew Sasuke. She knew the emotions that bubbled within him, seldom showing on the exterior. She didn't understand them, but she knew of the emotions that constantly burdened him.

Which is why she thought she was crazy this time around. She felt the pained, powerful, and familiar chakra within the vicinity. Sakura was no sensor type, but she could recognize the majority of Konoha's 11 and Sasuke's chakra with ease if they were close enough.

And there it was, less than fifty feet from her now.

Sakura turned to her left, tempting fate as she drew closer to the signature with caution. She wasn't one to stray from her mission normally, but he was too close. She couldn't pass up the chance if he was actually there.

Besides, what were the odds she happened upon Sasuke in the middle of the woods, near the border of the Land of Fire?

When she was only 30 feet away, she sensed other signatures. If it was Sasuke, he wasn't alone.

It couldn't be Kabuto, right? Sasuke killed Orochimaru and that nauseating excuse of a medic was loyal to the snake to a fault.

And it wasn't, she confirmed as she slowly maneuvered herself to see the group. One did have white hair similar to Kabuto's gray strands, but it wasn't that horrible so-called medic.

At least, that was a plus.

Sakura halted in her steps, attempting to keep her chakra under wraps. She couldn't afford to be attacked, not on this mission. And she saw the white haired man was only 1 of 4. There was a red head, who's loud voice carried through the trees and a man with ginger hair. Her eyes landed on the origin of the familiar chakra that drew her there in the first place.

She felt pain strike her heart as she recognized the black spikes and the emotionless expression on his features. His eyes were closed, from the side she could see, the tips of his lips turning downwards at the slightest of angles.

She felt her breath catch in her throat as she saw his eyes open, looking thoughtfully at the trees in front of him before he vanished from his spot.

His chakra blinked out of existence too, for only a moment before she felt it move behind her, only a few feet from her. She continued to hold her breath, the familiarity of this interaction still too painful to remember, yet alone relive. There was a startled cry from his group-- probably the red head based on the high pitch-- as his disappearance was noted.

"Sakura." He said, not allowing a trace of emotion to leak into her name.

She let out the breath she had been holding, turning around slowly and hoping her voice didn't waver. "Sasuke-kun."

Once she turned, she was faced with the boy she loved with her entire heart. The same heart he broke over three years ago. The one still clinging to him.

"What are you doing here?" He asked, his gaze locked with hers.

She took in a deep breath, vaguely aware of his group making their way toward them.

"As much as I'd like to tell you, that information is classified," She responded, her shaking words betraying the confident composure she was attempting to show.

By now, the group found them, the white haired one reaching up to grasp the hilt of his sword, the ginger regarding her curiously, and the redhead frowning as she looked her up and down.

"Sasuke-kun, who's this?" The latter questioned, crossing her arms.

"Classified," Sasuke echoed instead, ignoring his group.

"Only Konoha shinobi of Chuunin level or higher can be briefed of my mission," She answered, steeling her voice as best as she could. "And you're still a missing-nin, Sasuke-kun. Even if you weren't, you're still a genin."

The white haired one stifled a snort, clearly amused with the idea of Sasuke only being a genin-- officially of course.

The red-head, on the other hand, wasn't as pleased with the remark. "Sasuke-kun is one of the most powerful ninja! Let's just knock her out or kill her and get going!"

"Oh, now you want to continue?" The white hair man retorted. "Weren't you asking to take a break for the past three hours?"

"That was you, you slimy, watery abomination!" The girl shot back immediately.

"Slippery, not slimy," The guy corrected.

"Are you one of Sasuke-san's old teammates?" The ginger asked her, his tone much more gentle and a complete contrast to the bickering two beside him.

Sakura looked back to Sasuke, his gaze unreadable. "Though I will always consider him my teammate, yes, I was one of his old comrades."

"See? You're already at a disadvantage, Karin, they have history," The white haired man told the redhead, who's name was apparently Karin. "Might as well quit while your already last."

"What are you doing here?" Sasuke repeated himself.

Sakura sighed, letting some of the tension that was undoubtedly filling her body out. "I sensed you and wanted to make sure I wasn't going crazy."

"Where's Naruto?" He asked, now sounding a tad impatient.

"The only other chakra signature in the area is about a mile north," Karin quickly answered, a hand sign already formed. The guy beside her made a joke about not sensing the pinkette in front of them earlier.

Sakura frowned for a moment before she looked back to Sasuke. "How'd you know he was with me?"

"Wherever you are, Naruto is bound to follow," He stated, the faintest hint of a smile following his words.

Sakura almost grinned at that fact; it was utterly true, especially when Sasuke was involved. She always found him first. Whether it was catching him that night before he left, only for Naruto to chase after him the following morning or at Orochimaru's where the blonde ran to see what Sakura was staring at.

Naruto would always be there for her. Even if he wasn't by her side, she knew he'd always come back to her.

"Well, the obnoxious one is right," The white haired man said with an frown. "We do need to start heading out-- my fluids are refilled so I'm good for another few hours. We could make it before night falls."

"Let's go then," Karin nodded eagerly, casting her a suspicious look. "Just knock her out or whatever if you don't want to kill her. Her friend will find her eventually. Sui, you do it so Sasuke-kun doesn't have to bother."

Sasuke flashed the white haired man a dark glare, halting any step towards her.

"Not going to knock me out this time, Sasuke-kun?" she asked, totally pushing her luck if his narrowed gaze on her was any indication.

"This time?" The white haired man repeated, nudging his elbow into Karin's side. "Oooh, what did I tell you? History and drama. You said she was a medic based on her chakra, right Karin? We should ditch you and let the pretty one join us."

"Shut up, Suigestu." Karin snapped. Their bickering faded to the background for a moment as Sakura realized Sasuke still had his sole attention on her. Most likely trying to assess her danger level and trying to figure out what to do with her.

"You aren't a threat," Sasuke replied, though his tone wasn't as condescending as his words. "Unless you charge towards me again; I might have to take precaution then."

The memory of Orochimaru's hideout popped up in her mind. When she decided to not step aside but rather step up and fight if that's what it meant to bring Sasuke home. He already stated his intent to kill Naruto-- and that was something Sakura could never stand for. She would rather die herself than let either of her boys kill the other.

They never did get the chance to fight one another, though. Yamato stepped in and took the brunt of the sword for her. He told her later on that the effect of a single cut from Sasuke's blade would temporarily paralyze anyone.

Sakura tried not to fixate on the fact that she was the only one who went home without an injury from the encounter and had never been targeted with the intent to kill.

Sasuke may have wanted to kill Naruto, but he only meant to temporarily disable her. It was a fact Naruto loudly complained about the entire trip home.

"Why can't that prick make up his mind about how he shows he cares about us? I get a death threat and he avoids harming you at all even when you're channeling one hell of a punch? Pft, the bastard sure knows how to pick favorites. Should have figured since you're the only one he said goodbye too. Though, you're my favorite too, so I guess I can't judge him too much."

Granted, she refused to acknowledge that he said goodbye to her but Naruto didn't know what happened that night. Something about it, it felt a little too personal to share with anyone. Sasuke still left. That's all that mattered about that night.

She also pointed out the fact that to him, she wasn't a threat worth his time. Naruto scoffed and muttered something darkly that she couldn't quite make out.

"Are you going to threaten to kill Naruto again?" She questioned, trying to hold some acidity to her words but only managing the complete opposite. Soft, joking and almost lighthearted could describe her tone, as though they were discussing the unhealthy ramen obsession their shared best friend had rather than him being murdered.

Naruto explained why Sasuke was hell bent on killing him, but they both knew Sasuke wouldn't in the end. He had the chance-- back in that valley where he abandoned his headband with an unconscious Naruto.

Sasuke thought about it for a moment. "Not today. I've got better things to do than entertain that idiot. You should leave."

Sakura couldn't help the quiet laughter that bubbled up. "It's been a few years, Sasuke-kun, but even you know I'd never walk away from you. At the very least, that hasn't changed."

At her little admittance, she sensed the fact that the other alternative running through his mind would make this entire encounter too hard for her bear. He knocked her unconscious once. She couldn't let him do that again, at least, not here in front of all these strangers.

He locked eyes with his group, not even needing to jerk his head into the direction of their little camp.

"See ya around, Pinky," Suigestu said brightly, winking as he waved towards her. Karin simply swatted his moving arm before stomping away. The ginger bid her a goodbye, his voice timid but she appreciated the gentle honesty in his words nonetheless.

"I'm a Konoha shinobi, Sasuke-kun," She continued slowly, as his team walked out of earshot. "My mission right now takes priority over taking you in."

Actually, it didn't. Should she have the chance, she was supposed to seize it and force him back through the gates of their home. But that wasn't the only thing wrong about her statement. The fact that they both knew she would never be able to force Sasuke to come back left unsaid between them.

That was Naruto's role in the twisted thing that had the audacity to call it their fates. Naruto would bring him back to them. She would make it his home once again.

"I know nothing I say will make you come back," She confessed. "And that you are fully capable of knocking me out and leaving me for Naruto to find in a bit. It would be really inconvenient to be unconscious today, too. I just. . . I just want you to know, that even after everything, you'll still have a home to go back to."

"I'm all alone," He shook his head adamantly. "Konoha stopped being my home years ago."

Sakura held her hand up, but stopped herself before she even started to reach towards him. He didn't even react to the movement-- either trusting her enough to not do anything or figuring it wasn't worth any attention.

"Home isn't always a place, Sasuke-kun," She said softly. "Home can just be people who love you. And you still have people who love you. I still love you. But I'm not naive enough to think that love will fix everything. You need to deal with your demons, even if I disagree with how you've gone about it."

"We would have helped you, you know," She continued. "But we're willing to wait for you, anyway. I'll always wait for you no matter how many times you leave me behind."

Sasuke's expression turned unreadable, his mind apparently made up when he turned away from her. She was content to watch him head back to his camp and depart, but then he turned halfway.

"You're still. . . really annoying," He told her, quietly. "Thank you."

Sakura stood numbly in her spot as he flickered from her sight, reappearing among his group before they set off.

Naruto would save him from his hatred, Sakura thought again. And she, she would fill his broken life with light and love.

Together, they'd save Sasuke. In different way, maybe, but they would both play a part to accomplish their goal.