Welcome one, welcome all to the first chapter of my sequel to 'Sweet, Sweet Devil'! I'm really excited to intro you all to this unexpected second leg to a story I seriously thought would only be a dozen or so chapters, but here we are 25 chapters and 185K words later... Anywho, I'm so glad you to see you here and hope to catch you at the end. :)

CH 1

It was that time of day when it just doesn't matter how high you blast the A.C. or how many fans you crowd the already limited floor space with; it's just going to be insufferably hot. The two off-the-clock women sprawled out, Sakura in the antique armchair and Ino across the velvet sofa. Heavy canvas shades pulled down to block the relentless afternoon sun while the projector overhead played a rerun from one of the countless cooking shows the pair had been watching for hours. Both dressed down to loose shorts and tank tops with matching coats of sweat from head to toe.

"Can you stop? You're making me anxious," Ino complained.

Sakura dropped her phone to her lap and threw her head back against the chair. "It's not like I want to be like this, I can't help it."

The blonde's face fell at the sight of her friend weighed down by despair. She really couldn't blame her, but she also couldn't say she was all that surprised. "He's an idiot, you know."

The medic was despondent and only nodded in response.

A week had passed since Sakura and Sasuke had finally slept together. It was an all-consuming event for her, both physically and emotionally, but mostly the latter. The orgasms lasted seconds, but the plaguing second guesses and mental replays were nonstop.

"That was work calling," Sasuke told her as he walked back into the bedroom. He reclined onto the sheets next to her, the chords of muscles down his whole form, jumping as he did. Thanks to his coy smirk, she knew he noticed her wandering eyes admiring him. When it started to fade, she grew wary. "They need me on a flight first thing in the morning."

An account manager had fallen ill and wasn't going to be able to make it to a critical client negotiation meeting on the West Coast, and the client had become furious over the proposed deal. On top of sending another account manager to manage the mess, they also wanted to send a higher standing colleague - a director - to be safe. That director was Sasuke. For reasons his company couldn't know, he had been less present over the previous weeks while he managed his personal affairs. If he didn't want to be bothered with finding another company to wiggle his way into, he had to bite the bullet and give in to the last-minute request.

When she took a step outside her experience and looked in, she knew it wasn't a big deal for him to be away for a few days. She'd blink, and he'd be back. Easy. No big deal at all.

"Let me kiss those lips good night."

But she couldn't keep looking at it from the outside. She was looking at it from the perspective of someone who had been battling her conflicted feelings for this human embodiment of her deepest, darkest, most salacious desires for months while her ex was burning in Hell until said devilman freed the fool. And then, only then, was she ready for them to have sex.

Mind-numbing, earth-shattering, cinema-worthy, incredible sex.

And the next morning he was leaving..? Not so easy. Not easy at all.

"I'll text you, baby. I'll be back Monday."

She had wanted to experience the morning after with him. Maybe share a cup of coffee in bed with him. Kiss him goodbye before she went back to her apartment to get ready for work. But when she woke up, he was gone. The vacant bedside was cold under her reaching fingers. He had told her he was going to leave early and let her wake up in her own time to leave, but she had quietly been hoping he'd still wake her up for a kiss goodbye. She had cocooned herself in the sheets and filled her lungs with his warm scent as a consolation prize.

'Have a safe flight,' she wrote in a text as she had sat up in the bed by herself.

'There's coffee in the pantry, help yourself to the fridge as well.' She did.

So there she was that next Tuesday, deflated and uncertain, sweating like a pig in Ino's apartment, still waiting for that damn devil to text her. Precisely the thing she didn't want to happen was her reality - she was becoming consumed by the start of this new relationship with Sasuke. She jammed her tongue into her cheek at the term 'relationship.' She was attracted to him and had sex with him, but her more definitive commitment to him was in the form of a deal with the devil. In exchange for her safe passage out of Hell, she was to act as Sasuke's personal physician to help him adjust to his new mortality.

Bzzt bzz -

She scooped up her phone before it could even finish vibrating. 'Dinner?'

Ino raised a brow at Sakura's sudden scoff. "Is it him?"

There was some heavy-handed tapping on her phone as she replied before she looked up. 'Sure.' "Yes, he just asked about dinner."

Her friend who knew the satanic man for many years more than she didn't say anything, but she chose not to overanalyze that. It was a safe bet Ino would eventually speak her mind.

Sakura let out a pent up breath and with it the bulk of the anxiety she had been harboring for days. They hadn't spoken since that night, so she wasn't sure where they stood or how this escalated intimacy changed their dynamic. She didn't do well with unknowns. They kept her up at night, drove her to pick apart her cuticles, and impulsively buy snacks that she didn't even like. So when Sasuke said he'd text her, she assumed he would write while he was away. But he didn't. When he said he would be back Monday, she thought at the very latest she'd hear from him Monday. She didn't. It was Tuesday. And that's how she ended up with a bag of hot dill pickle potato chips.

Another text came through. '8 at The Mermaid Inn, want me to call you a car?'

'No, I'll meet you there.'

"I'm going to get home so I can shower and get ready to meet him in the city," she said as she peeled herself off the chair, she had melted into the minute they got there after work. A few chip crumbs fell to the floor, but Ino wasn't paying attention. She seemed lost in her head. "You okay, Ino?"

The Witch shook her head to come back to reality. "Yeah," she hesitated. Sakura tilted her head in question, and Ino sighed. "Sakura, you know I think the world of you, so please don't get upset by what I'm about to say."

Sakura readied herself for what she knew could not possibly be good news before her friend and co-worker continued. Ino sat up and planted her hands on her thighs with her dark blue eyes cast down on them. "Sasuke is without question infatuated with you, but I don't want you to get your hopes too high about a future with him."

Her words were like a dagger to the gut. Sakura did her best to maintain her composure. "What do you mean?"

Ino leaned back against the couch before looking up. "I know you didn't forget that he used to be the Devil, right?" Sakura was about to deliver a snarky response before Ino continued. "For centuries, he has been a creature of carnal pleasure and selfish fulfillment. You were the key for him to learn that he needs love to be happy, and selflessness was the device to prove he was capable of it, but…"

As she trailed off, Sakura stepped towards her. "But what, Ino?"

"He's not obligated to find true love with you."

She bristled at that. "I never said I was looking for that in Sasuke."

Ino gave her a look that told Sakura she wasn't fooling anyone, much less herself. "I don't want to see you hurt," she added, grabbing the woman's hands that were clenching at her sides. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to come off so harsh."

"I know what I'm getting myself into, Ino. I'm not a schoolgirl chasing a crush." Sakura offered a soft smile to mask her embarrassment. "I still need to get going, so I'll see you at the clinic tomorrow."

As Ino closed the door behind her, she couldn't help but grin. "I'll be expecting a full debrief!"

She took a deep breath and scraped a lock of soft pink hair from her face as her chunky sandal heels click-clacked against the sidewalk. The warm summer breeze brought welcomed relief, skimming her bare shoulders and fluttering through her ivory sundress. The day cooled down as the sun was starting to set behind the clusters of buildings behind her. At the very least, it helped clear her mind at the moment. The seafood spot was at the end of the block, and she straightened her back as she grew closer.

While in the shower back at her apartment, she had listed all the questions she was going to ask Sasuke so she could get a clearer picture of what was what between them. It was a brilliant line-up. Concise, direct, and all-encompassing. But when she saw his unmistakable mess of raven hair and a towering figure standing on the curb, her mind opened the emergency hatch and tossed that entire list into the abyss.

He appeared caught up in whatever conversation he was having on the phone and didn't notice her right away as she approached him. Sakura slowed, taking advantage of this opportunity to admire this specimen of a man that she hadn't seen in a few days. He was wearing a simple white linen button-up, black stone-washed pants, a dark grey linen jacket, and black sneakers to finish the effortlessly sophisticated look. He looked frustratingly modelesque, leaving her glad she decided to wear her summer heels instead of flat sandals.

When he glanced her way and saw her out of the corner of his eye, she watched him rake his onyx eyes down her body with unfiltered lust. She had missed that desire and felt a shiver run down her spine before he wrapped up the call. She smiled as he turned to face her fully.

"You look beautiful," he commented while holding her hostage with his deep stare.

"I showered," she quipped in an attempt to counter her nerves. She saw the corner of Sasuke's mouth twitch, but he didn't offer to share whatever thought crossed his mind then.

"Let's have a seat, this table up front is ours."

The restaurant was tight like most New York establishments but had the incredible perk of outdoor seating right out front to give the illusion of space from the other packed in diners around them. His hand ghosted at the small of her back as he guided her to their chairs. She couldn't help but want more when he removed it to let her sit across from him.

"How was your trip?" She asked after he ordered a bottle of white wine for the table.

He leaned back and straightened his jacket. "Fine, went as expected." His expression soured a tinge as he picked off a piece of lint from the linen. "I was able to smooth over all the issues, so I shouldn't hear any more complaints from the executives."

Sakura nodded. She wondered how he felt reporting to others in this way but didn't feel bullish enough to deep dive into such a topic. The waiter came back with the wine and filled their glasses with a generous pour. They put their orders in, and he disappeared back into the restaurant. Just as Sasuke went to lift his drink, he caught her clearing her throat and paused. Suddenly on the spot, she flushed. "I wish you had texted me while you were gone," she said while trying to keep an even, calm tone.

He sat still for a moment. His hand then retreated and formed a bridge with the other as his lips rested behind them. She felt anxiety kick in when she attempted and failed to read his stoic face. "I'll remember that for next time." Her shoulders dropped with relief and his eyes narrowed. "You're unusually nervous."

She perked and stumbled over her thoughts for a moment while Sasuke remained locked on her. There was no point in lying. Instead of trying to maintain eye contact, she trained her focus on the crisp cloth napkin on the table. "I guess I'm just confused where we stand now after everything," she shrugged.

He shifted to rest his chiseled chin on his fist. The wine glasses began to sweat. "After we had sex."

Looking up to see his coy grin, she knew he was just trying to get a rise out of her. "Yes, after we had sex, but also considering our deal." His long fingers came to passively stroke his chin as he thought it over. "I just feel like being your 'doctor' and being intimate at the same time feels weird. Like we're back at square one, and I don't know what to make of this," she added, gesturing between them.

It felt good to put that out there instead of attempting to sit through dinner with that cluster of thoughts, but the challenge then took the form of a waiting game while Sasuke processed everything.

"You feel our relationship is too undefined and conflicting," he finally said and let her nod to confirm.

He let another moment of silence settle between them while she sank her front teeth deep into her lip. She started to wonder if maybe she should have kept the thought to herself for a while longer.

"Should I be considered your boyfriend?"

She choked on her spit and started coughing violently. "That, um," she started saying between coughs. "That's a little sudden, don't you think?" He smirked, and she felt like she had said something stupid. "What?"

He extended his arm across the table with his palm open for her place hers. Not knowing what else to do, she gave him her hand and felt a little calmer when his fingers enclosed around hers. "Sakura," her name rolled off his tongue. "How long have we known each other?"

As he stroked the top of her hand, she struggled to measure the time. Looking back at the first night they met in the fall, she found herself surprised by how long it had been. Or short? She wasn't sure. "Almost a year."

"I might not be the best person to ask, but I think the popular opinion would be that a year with some intimacy mixed in is a proper set up to be a couple. Also, a trip to Hell and back."

Her mouth was open to respond, but she couldn't find the right words. Sasuke waited. "It's not that I haven't known you long enough or well enough," she started saying.

Sasuke pulled his hand back. Hers felt bare without it. "I don't see the issue, then."

What she wanted to tell him was that she wanted nothing more than to have him commit to her as her boyfriend. She imagined them finally sharing that coffee in bed, going on more dates, getting flowers sent to the clinic -

"He's not obligated to find true love with you."

Sakura looked up with a clear resolve in her eye. "If you want to be my boyfriend, I want to do this right and without mixed reasoning. In case you didn't already know this, I take my relationships very seriously. I don't want to be your girlfriend while I'm serving you."

He observed her at that moment, letting her assertion take space at the table. Sakura stood by her words and didn't let herself even consider amending her stance to please him.

"You always find a way to drive me mad, you know that?" He remarked. She could hear a hint of frustration in his voice despite the grin. "But I would be a fool if I wasn't open to negotiating this. How about…" He moved to pick up his neglected wine glass again. "I consult the Lower powers and see for how long we must stay in our contract before I can safely free you? My bias might skew my judgment."

Sakura tilted her head. "You're going to talk to your brother?"

"Through a summons," he clarified. "Will that satisfy you, Dr. Haruno?"

She blushed. "It will."

She watched his hand flex on the table. Her hips shifted at the memory of his palm, spanking her across his bed. He lifted his wine glass, and she followed suit. "To our satisfaction," he toasted. "And our deepest hearts' desires."

"You want to summon your brother?"

"Yes."

"The reigning Satan?"

"Yes."

"You just came back from Hell literally less than ten days ago, couldn't you have thought to have the conversation there?"

"Clearly not, Ino.

"You can, and I cannot stress this enough, fuck off."

Sasuke glowered at the Witch from where he stood beside her while she sucked down her iced coffee. A woman walked by them to enter the clinic. A chain of car horns blared as typical afternoon traffic clogged the street. Ino ignored the death glare targeted at her and jutted a hip out as if to dare him to say anything back. Not in the mood for a headache, he put his centuries of wisdom to use and chose not to take the bait. Anyone with half a brain would know better than to argue with her unnecessarily. She was as stubborn as they came and violent without much of a push. She considered it part of her charm, but he shared a similar opinion as to her boyfriend and saw it as a troublesome trait at best.

"It's funny," he started saying while gazing out at the stream of people passing on the sidewalk. "I thought we had a pretty good friendship." He stepped towards her, closer than just a friend would. She cut her eyes at him, unsure where he was going with this.

His eyes trailed down to her lips. "We've shared an assortment of niche hobbies, wouldn't you say, Ino?" Her breath hitched, and she knew he could see he unnerved her. "Since we're not as close as I thought we were, I suppose I should call all those clubs and let them know you and Shikamaru won't need to be on their lists any longer."

Ino's jaw dropped. "Your solution to getting your way is to cut me off from the sex clubs you originally asked me to go to with you?" Her arms crossed over her chest. "That's a low blow, Sasuke. Even for you."

"Thank you." He took a step back and straightened the watch on his wrist. "So, do we have a deal?"

Sakura had just wrapped up the last of her appointments before her break when she spotted the unmistakable back of Sasuke's head outside the clinic. She stopped where she was in the hall before shifting to a slow advance towards the front desk. When she saw Ino and her scowl, she decided not to go any further.

"They've been out there for a while," the receptionist commented. Sakura was startled by her, too focused on the pair to notice her sitting there. "Looks a bit scandalous, don't you think?"

She didn't say anything, mostly because she didn't know what to say. The recent college grad was a temp they hired, so she didn't think it was worth explaining that she was close with Ino and that Sasuke was her…

She chewed at her cheek.

Despite their supernatural arrangement, she didn't feel like he was her master, but she also didn't want to label him as her boyfriend under the circumstances. Was he her lover, then..? She hated the term. The undefined and unknown ate at her, just as they did in every other aspect of her life. Having grown frustrated with her internal dialogue, she turned on her heel and retreated to the back office. At least there she could focus on something she knew inside and out - paperwork.

In doing so, however, she missed the dark and longing gaze fixated on her back until she fell out of sight.

But Ino didn't. She sighed. "For the last time, for her, deal."

He turned his focus to her again, and she recognized the feral glint in his eye from that fated night years before when she first agreed to be bound to him as his Witch. This time, she knew it was in anticipation of possessing another. Possibly, she hoped, to possess love.

"Come to my apartment tonight; we'll summon Itachi then."

Ino grabbed his arm as he turned to walk away. "Can we wait until at least tomorrow? I was going to-"

"No." He pulled his arm from her, and his eyes only intensified. "I've waited long enough. I don't want to wait a minute more than I have to so I can have what I've been waiting for."

Her hand recoiled, and her mouth soured with skepticism. Was Sasuke honestly just trying to get to a point where he and Sakura could be together after all this time or was this something more provisional?

"He's not obligated to find true love with you."

Her own biting words to Sakura came back to haunt her.

"Okay," she responded quietly. "See you tonight."

As he took his leave down the street, Ino lingered for a moment to gather herself before heading back inside. The receptionist was shooting her a smug grin, but she paid it no mind. Her thoughts were too muddled with hypotheticals and knotted with worry for Sakura, and even for Sasuke - but mostly for Sakura.

At first glance, Sakura could be quickly perceived as a delicate woman in both mind and body, but Ino had come to learn this couldn't be farther from the truth. Despite being the newest and least experienced in the clinic, Sakura put more hours and compassion into her day than anyone else. No matter how routine an appointment was, Ino would watch in awe as Sakura would pour over a patient's medical history before an appointment and then leave no stone unturned when it came to investigating any adverse symptoms. There would be days she would come in hours before the clinic even opened to properly prepare herself and nights when she'd order takeout to the office because she planned on spending the even after closing completing research. On top of all that, she survived a fucking trip to Hell and walked away with barely a mental scar to agonize over. She was unlike anyone Ino had ever met before.

And Sasuke… Well, she was afraid he was a bit of the opposite. He was the former Lord of Darkness, the Ruler of Hell, and King of Sin, but Ino knew he was a novice when it came to love. Anything even remotely related to lust he had in the bag, but matters of the heart? Not so much. So when she heard him so impatiently trying to reach what he perceived to be a finish line with his happy ending on the other side, Ino was afraid for him.

What if they went through all these extra steps and jumped all the hurdles, only to find that they didn't truly love each other? What if Sakura grew to love him and he came to realize it was just an infatuation? Or worse, what if Sakura was the one to fizzle out of their romance and he was the one stranded in his heartbreak? She knew how dangerous and destructive the Devil could be when he was mad, but she had no idea how he would behave with a broken heart.

Weighed down with the burden of the future that was yet to unfold, she followed the narrow hall to the office where she knew her always working colleague was holed up.

"Knock, knock," she announced herself as she approached the woman with her nose turned to her morning's stack of papers.

"Hey," she replied, glancing up at Ino just for a moment. She was in the middle of scribbling a note. "How is Sasuke?"

The blonde smirked at the seemingly nonchalant question. "Fine," she inspected her nails. "Impatient."

Sakura gave her full attention then. "Impatient? About what?"

"You, of course." She stepped closer to sit at the desk beside her. "He wants to talk to Itachi to confirm when your side of the deal has been appropriately fulfilled."

"I see," was the only response Sakura gave.

Ino stood there a moment longer after Sakura turned her attention back to her papers. Just as she was about to say something to break the silence, the woman jerked her head up and slammed her hands on the table, startling the blonde. "How is he going to talk to Itachi?"

With a light snort, Ino took a seat across from the woman with the worst poker face. "We're going to summon him tonight." When the shocked set of green eyes widened, Ino added, "You should come. That way, you'll hear the truth straight from the Devil himself."

Her expression faltered and those same sharp eyes so full of surprise suddenly fell to the table. Ino became confused as she withdrew then. "What's wrong? Don't you want to get some clarity?"

When she looked up, Ino could only feel sorrow for her friend. "I don't think I can handle seeing into Hell again, Ino."

"Oh, Sakura…" She grasped her hands in her own tightly. "No one will ever let that happen to you again. This isn't that. It's just a line of communication between our worlds, nothing more."

Sakura sighed with what could only be unadulterated relief. She wouldn't admit it to anyone, but after she returned to her body, she had been haunted by nightmares of that terrifying, thought-gouging place. For the last week or so she had confidently denied having any issues so as not to become anyone's burden or concern, but this falter in her facade was enough for Ino to see the truth.

"Let's wrap up here and we can get something to eat before we go to Sasuke's," Ino exclaimed as she stood from the table. "Maybe a drink, too."

As they stood shoulder to shoulder in the elevator hauling them to the top floor, Sakura focused on the aggressive smell of citrus cleaner assaulting her senses. She wondered if it always smelled that strong or if she only then was forcing her otherwise preoccupied mind to muzzle itself. With all the willpower she could muster, she forced down any thoughts of blood-curdling screams, gory creatures, rotting fangs, festering flesh -

Ding!

They jerked to a stop, pulling Sakura out of her thoughts just in time for the brassy doors to pull apart. Ino's shoes clicked on the hard tile of the hallway as they made their way to Sasuke's door.

Ino knocked before letting herself in right after. Sakura followed her in, her stomach fluttering at the sight of Sasuke at his bar cart in his slacks and an untucked button-down. "Mixing some fresh drinks for us? How sweet," Ino cooed.

Sasuke flicked his eyes up only long enough to see not just Ino but the pink-haired medic as well. "Do you hate spending alone time with me so much you had to subject Sakura to this?"

The Witch grinned. "You mean you aren't happy to see your very own personal doctor?"

Sakura wandered over to the windows while the two bickered. She missed Sasuke shooting a glare at her friend as he walked up behind her. The warm notes of sandalwood and musk enveloped her before a tumbler of dark liquor was presented by the arm wrapping around her.

"Are you here because you missed me or my brother?" Sakura smiled as she accepted the drink. His rumbling voice calmed her nerves and encouraged her to lean back into his hard chest.

"Can it be both?"

He smirked and gave her neck a warm kiss. "I didn't know you had such a naughty inclination for that type of fun."

Ino had finished throwing together her own drink before making her way into the second bedroom where their last ritual was held. "I'm going to start setting up, don't mind me!"

The sarcasm was evident, but that didn't phase Sasuke in the slightest. Suddenly, Sakura found herself spun around so fast she drink sloshed onto the polished concrete floor just as her back was pressed hard into the glass that was behind her a second earlier.

"Sa-mhm!" His mouth was on hers with a ravenous hunger that stunned her long enough for him to lift her up to his hips by the backs of her thighs. At first, her arms were left flailing but the rhythmic strokes of his lips on hers coaxed her to wrap her arms over his broad shoulders. "Please," she whispered breathlessly against him.

"Please what?" He replied with a stern but playful edge.

As he continued to mold their bodies together and let his tongue explore her parted lips, she found herself drawing a blank. "I..I don't know," she admitted.

"Hn," he grunted. He pulled back just enough to penetrate her with his dark leer. "I guess I'll have to give you something to beg for." Her feet found their way to the ground as he lowered her back down. "But that will have to be another time."

She found her legs a bit wobbly and her heart pounding with unexpected excitement from the ambush. "I'm going to go see if Ino needs any help," she said through her lustful haze to excuse herself from him. As she disappeared around the corner, he made his way back to the bar cart to get himself another drink. With what he knew was coming, he figured he could use it.

"Need any help?" Sakura asked, walking in on her friend as she drew a series of shapes and sigils on the wood floor in chalk. At that moment, she was finishing a spiraling snake around her.

"You can grab the candles from my bag and put one in each pentagram for me," Ino decided. She sat up on her knees to assess her work and sighed. It wasn't that she had a bad feeling about summoning Itachi, but that she was anticipating the emotional labor ahead that she would inevitably be impacted by. Hadn't she paid her dues already?

"Hey, Ino?" Sakura asked, breaking the soft silence. She looked up and saw the pink-haired woman gripping the last black candle while her brow creased with whatever thoughts were burdening her. "Do you think I'm being unreasonable?"

Ino blinked at her a few times. "By asking how long you need to live in servitude?"

She chewed on her inner cheek. "By expecting Sasuke to hold off on any intimacy until this is done."

Unable to stop herself, Ino let out a squawk of a laugh. "Does he know those are your terms?"

Sakura sheepishly looked up. "Not yet," she admitted. "I was going to tell him once-"

Ino held up her hand, effectively stopping Sakura mid-sentence. "Haven't you played this out a few times already? It doesn't have to be an 'all or nothing' situation, does it?" Sakura didn't know what to say, but Ino wasn't done. "I know you have a lot of feelings, but so does he. At this point, the damage has been done. You two like each other, you might as well get a good fuck while you're at it."

Sakura blushed and Ino took the candle from her, holding a lighter to its base so it could be melted in place at the top of the circle in the Triangle of Solomon. "Sasuke, get in here!"

The devil in question appeared in the doorway a moment later. "Are we ready?"

The Witch nodded. "Just need your offering and we're set."

Sasuke stepped further into the room, the angles of his features accentuated by the assortment of candles as Ino went around the room to light them in each pentagram. Sakura noticed his eyes appeared a bit colder than before, but figured this wasn't a moment for much levity or anything like that. His fingertips grazed her hair as he stepped past her to stand in the circle next to Ino. "Come stand in the circle, Sakura."

She scrambled to her feet and positioned herself behind the two others just as Ino finished lighting the last candle in the triangle in front of them. Peering between them, she caught a glint of reflecting light from Sasuke's hand and saw he had a small knife in his hand. Before she could even think to ask about it, he slid the blade through the inside of his closed palm, the metal emerging with a slick trail of deep red on it. The stoic man stepped forward to drip his blood inside the triangle just in front of the candle.

"Let's begin," he then said.

Ino unfolded a sheet of paper she had in her pocket and cleared her throat before they began the incantation:

"In nomine dei nostri Satanas Luciferi excelsi

In the name of Satan, the ruler of the Earth, the king of the world, I command the forces of darkness to bestow their infernal power upon me.

Open wide the gates of Hell and come forth from the abyss to greet me as your brother/sister and friend.

Grant me the indulgences of which I speak.

I have taken thy name as part of myself.

I live as the beasts of the field, rejoicing in the fleshly life.

I favor the just and curse the rotten.

By all the gods of the pit, I command that these things of which I speak shall come to pass.

Come forth and answer to your names by manifesting my desires."

The room was so quiet they could hear the soft plops of Sasuke's dripping hand on the floor. Sakura's heart was racing and she could feel her hands and feet tingling in anticipation of whatever was to come. Something was coming. She held her breath as just the candle in front of them flickered like a whip while the others remained as still as the air.

"He's here," Ino whispered. Sakura swallowed hard.

"Brother, I summon you for your guidance." Sasuke's voice boomed with authoritative power. "I am looking for your judgment on the deal I have bound Sakura to me with. How long must we remain in our arrangement until she has satisfied your Darkness?"

The trio stared in heavy anticipation at the flame as they waited for a response. At first, it seemed as though Itachi's presence may have dissipated, but Sakura noticed something moving on the floor. "Look," she gasped. The blood droplets had combined to form a 'C'.

"A hundred," Sasuke mumbled. "A hundred days? Is that your will?"

The flame whipped around violently once more and then suddenly all the candles around them snuffed out. Ino sighed and began folding up the scribbled out incantation while Sasuke pinched the bridge of his nose.

"So…" Sakura began awkwardly. "Was that it?"

"Mhm," Ino sounded as she moved to collect the candles. "Pretty casual visit if you ask me."

Sasuke turned to face Sakura who was trying not to stare at his bleeding hand. "One hundred days and you're free," he commented. He mulled over the concept of such a short period of time that by his standards would come and go in a blink of an eye. In one hundred days she would no longer have to sit in his service. And from she told him at their last dinner, she'd then be ready to be with him… As a couple. A committed couple. There was a lump in his throat he suddenly found hard to swallow.

While he was deep in thought, Sakura spotted a paper towel roll across the room Ino must have brought in to help clean up and grabbed a few sheets to hold on the thick cut. Sasuke's gaze softened at the gesture.

"As long as you don't make slitting your hand an everyday practice, should be easy enough." He watched her under a careful eye as she pressed into the wound with a gentle hand. She could feel his stare and looked up to meet those onyx orbs focused on her. "Should we… Talk about some rules of engagement?"

The corner of his mouth twitched. "Rules of engagement?" Ino looked up from where she was wiping up the chalk marks for a moment before looking back down. Sasuke knew she was eavesdropping and saw Sakura squirm awkwardly in front of him. "Let's go sit in the living room so you can explain this to me in some detail."

As they exited the room, Ino scoffed. "Yep, all good in here. Thanks for offering a hand."

Sasuke picked up his previously abandoned glass and refreshed his drink before taking a seat next to Sakura on the sunken sofa. She sat with a straight back and perched her hands in her lap, a stark contrast to Sasuke's relaxed recline and arm strewn across the back of the couch.

"Tell me about these rules of yours," he prompted her as he took a sip of his drink.

"So at first," she started by saying, "I was going to suggest we just hold off on any intimacy until this is all done."

As expected, Sasuke narrowed his eyes at her. "And then you realized how terrible of an idea that would be, I assume."

Sakura flushed, seeing for herself how right Ino really had been. "Something like that." She cleared her throat. "When you offered to be my boyfriend the other day, did you mean it?"

The devilman was careful to keep his face neutral as he watched her look back at him behind a guarded expression. The truth was that he did mean it when he said it, but he didn't feel it was as big of a deal as Sakura did. This whole concept of a committed relationship was still foreign to him, but the position he was in then made the commitment that much more...tangible.

After he didn't respond right away, Sakura continued talking. "I realize you never had a partner before, and I'm choosing to be extra careful before committing to another one myself. I think this hundred-day situation could be a good trial for us to see if we're a good match. What do you think?"

He pursed his lips as he considered her words. "And if either of us feels we aren't a proper match?"

She made sure not to break eye contact as he waited for her to answer. "Then we can walk away, no strings attached."

He grinned. He could tell this was a dangerous game to play and he was all in. "If this doctor thing doesn't work out for you, maybe you have some interest in underwriting deals for a few devils?"

Sakura laughed. "I think I've had more than my fair share of experience with those to get me through a few lifetimes." She wondered when that glimmer in his eye would stop flustering her like it always seemed to do.

He gestured for her to keep going. "Devil's in the details, let's have it."

The woman collected her thoughts, pulling herself from his captivating face that he must have known was distracting her. "So I'm thinking three rules: One - maximum of three date nights a week."

"Fine."

"Two - maximum of two sleepovers a week."

He shot a glare in her direction. "I suppose we can make that work."

"Three - complete honesty."

This last one raised an eyebrow. "What do you mean by that? What are you looking for honesty on?"

Sakura sighed and shrugged. "I don't want either of us to hold back what we're feeling, for better or worse. And…" She chewed on her words for a moment while her cheeks heated. "I want to know more about what you want."

That perked his curiosity. He cocked his head at her. "What I want," he echoed.

She pushed her hair behind her ears and braved straight eye contact with him to show how serious she was. "I want to explore more with you."

Her heart began to beat faster when he sat up to put his unfinished drink on the coffee table and leaned forward over his knees. She could smell the expensive bourbon on his breath, intoxicating her by proxy. "You've got yourself a deal."

And so we begin again! What'd you think? As with the last story, I so deeply appreciate your ideas and feedback to help shape the journey ahead. Thank you in advance for sending your review and I can't wait until I have the next chapter ready for you. xoxo