It would unwise for them to continue camping out in Itachi's office, however, their respective homes were far from secure. In the end, their options were limited. One choice was to quickly find a new apartment or rental home that would be classified information from the public. Problem: Orochimaru's people were cunning. It would take hardly a day for them to ascertain their location. Choice two was using one of the secure safe houses used by officers who were working undercover or were otherwise being hunted. The problem with that laid in their isolation. Those safe houses tended to be removed from the city and well hidden. However, if they frequently came and went, then the safety of their housing would be immediately put at risk.

Itachi mulled over his options before finally sighing. "I must reluctantly conclude that our best housing option at the moment would be my estate." It irked him to imagine press flooding the front gates of his childhood home, but at the same time, he knew the ins and outs of that place best. There was also private security and privacy in general. The Uchiha estate staff were not to be underestimated. They would provide the highest level of protection and secrecy available in their current predicament.

"Yes!" Naruto cheered, punching the air excitedly. He turned to Sakura who was merely watching him, exasperated. "You're not excited, Sakura-chan? We used to play there all the time as kids! And I bet teme would be thrilled for you to use his bedroom." The blonde winked.

Sakura flushed, aiming a straight punch at his gut. Naruto dodged with a snicker, hopping around as she tried to land punch after punch. "I'm sure there are plenty of rooms. There's no need for me to use Sasuke-kun's quarters."

Itachi cleared his throat, grabbing their collective attention. "Although I would normally agree with your logic, Sakura, it is actually as Naruto says."

"What?" Naruto blinked. "I was just kidding."

"The inner quarters of the estate are intimate. There are only three furnished bedrooms. The rest of the rooms were converted into storage after it was decided that Sasuke would be the last child my mother gave birth to." Itachi's expression stayed impassive as Kakashi cocked a brow, Sakura paled, and Naruto tried not to burst out laughing. "I will undoubtedly be using my own bedroom. My parents' room was converted into a guest room that sleeps two, so Naruto and Kakashi will be sharing that space. That leaves Sasuke's room for you, Sakura."

Naruto guffawed, tears pricking his eyes as he held his stomach. "Oh this is great! Wait 'til teme gets back. I'm gonna tease him every chance I get."

"Grow up. It's not even that funny," Sakura growled, shoving him.

"Don't stay up too late hugging his pillow—"

"—will you shut up?" she interrupted, bright red. "I'm just using his room. Why is your head always in the gutter? And besides, what sort of terrible T.V. dramas are you watching? That sounds like a soap opera."

Naruto huffed. "It's not terrible. There's some really heart wrenching stuff in those shows. Just last week I watched one where the female lead was pushed down a steep hill and got amnesia. She had just confessed her love after like 20 episodes, too!" He clicked his tongue. "It was so frustrating. Hinata almost cried."

Sakura leered. "Oh, I see. So you watch this stuff so you can cuddle up to Hinata and comfort her? How sly."

He didn't even have the decency to blush, instead he smirked. "It works."

"You're terrible," she giggled, unable to help herself.

Kakashi wanted to reprimand them softly for their behavior, but at the same time, it was better to see them lively than grim. It had been a hectic 24 hours. Any reprieve from that tension was welcome—even if it took the form of Naruto and Sakura bantering about the most useless of things. He glanced down at Itachi who observed the young pair curiously. "See something interesting?" Kakashi murmured.

Itachi's eyes flitted over to him. The corner of his mouth pricked up slightly. "Merely wondering how jealous my little brother must have gotten when he watched Naruto and Sakura interacting." He chuckled deep in his throat, but the sound did not break the surface. "How cute."

"They're quite close," Kakashi agreed, hiding his own mirth.

"When do we leave?" Naruto prompted, interrupting their soft conversation. He had his arms around Sakura's shoulders, half-hug and half-headlock.

Itachi checked the time, seeing the clock inching toward supper time. "Now should be a good time. I will call the staff to notify them of our arrival and dining needs. They should also have a spare key into the inner quarters. I trust that you remember how to get there, Naruto." When he received an affirmative nod from the blonde, Itachi stood and picked up his recently reconnected office phone. "Naruto, Sakura, please proceed ahead of us. I am alerting my personnel to have an armored vehicle prepared for you at the back entrance."

"You two are joining us later?" Sakura inquired uneasily.

Kakashi ruffled her hair gently, smiling beneath his mask. "No need to worry. We may be targets, but we're strong. We'll definitely meet you two in a bit."

The assurances hardly seemed to affect her though, as she continued to give them a strained look. Sakura opened her mouth to possibly protest more, but then Naruto was tugging her bodily toward the door. "Have faith in them, Sakura-chan," he grinned easily, blue eyes shining warmly.

She smiled back slightly, pushing him off of her and walking alongside him. "If you're wrong, I'm kicking your ass to the moon."

Naruto's back stiffened, but he forced out a nervous laugh. No one in their right mind would take her threats lightly. She packed a punch, to say the least. "Let's go, let's go."

XXX

"…And here's the bathroom, Sakura-chan," Naruto pulled a sliding door aside, revealing a neat and clean wooden bathtub and showering station. Freshly bottled soaps rested on a shelf with clear labels. They peeked in from the changing room that only held the necessities—a sink, mirror, and laundry basket. Naruto slid the bathroom door shut, and reached for a cabinet in the changing room, revealing stacks of navy blue yukata. "Staying at teme's house always did feel like a hotel, huh?" he laughed.

"I guess so," Sakura muttered, amused. "I never got to sleep over, so this is my first time seeing these things."

The blonde cocked his head. "Huh…I guess that's true. You were just over here all the time, so I assumed you must've stayed over at least once."

"I've stayed late," she agreed, "but I never really officially slept over. I certainly didn't take a bath here." Sakura yawned, rolling her shoulders. "Speaking of, I think I'm gonna take that bath now before dinner."

Naruto grinned. "Alright. I'll keep lookout—"

"—no need," she deadpanned, pointing at the exit.

He drooped, but the glimmer of mischief remained in his bright eyes. "You're such a party pooper, Sakura-chan. Well, whatever, it's your loss." He snickered on the way out, snapping the lock on the changing room door before closing it behind him.

She smiled softly, glad to have Naruto with her. The past two years would have been painfully unbearable without him. Glancing up at the blue yukata, she tugged one down, noting the slightly too large size. The material was softened from use, but the color remained rich. Unfurling it, she searched for the familiar symbol, finding it on the back near the neck line. It was carefully embroidered, each stitch clearly done by hand. Sakura traced the pattern gently with a fingertip, an affectionate smile curving her lips before she knew it.

"This is the first time I've seen you wear a yukata!" Sakura was nearly jumping up and down, her wooden sandals clicking against the concrete noisily. She stumbled slightly, catching herself on his dark blue sleeve.

Sasuke gazed down at her, wordlessly. Despite the stoic silence, he made no move to push her hand away from where it gripped him. The festival crowd around them was growing rowdier by the second as lantern lights grew steadily brighter with darkening nightfall.

Sakura grinned up at him, giggling at his clearly tense expression. "We didn't have to do this, you know. We can see the fireworks clearly from your backyard and Naruto just bought that takoyaki maker so we can still have the festival feeling." She began tugging his sleeve toward the exit which laid no more than a few feet from where they stood.

"Hn." This time, he did shake her off, only to take her hand instead to turn them toward the somewhat intimidatingly dense crowd ahead. "Once a year is doable."

"Really?" she laughed, shuffling after him as people made way in the face of his frigid demeanor. Sakura gripped his hand tighter, unable to wipe the silly grin off her face. "Don't blame me if this night kills you, Sasuke-kun."

A spark of challenge lit his dark eyes as he glanced back at her. Smirking faintly, he pulled her closer until they were pressed hip to hip, hands clasped tightly between their bodies. "Don't get lost."

Blinking away the memory, Sakura set the yukata back on the shelf.

X

Naruto lied back on the tatami mats of Sasuke's room, gazing up at the barren ceiling. The sliding doors were open, allowing a soft, cooling breeze into the cozy space. In one corner, a small, yellow lit lamp glowed, managing to illuminate most of the room. A familiar bookshelf peered back at him, nestled against a wall. His eyes landed on a pink binding.

Flipping open the book, he whistled. "Man, I remember that day! Ino made Sakura-chan buy that super skimpy red bikini, right?" Naruto laughed.

"What are you doing?" Sasuke snapped, hand shooting out to snatch the book.

Naruto dodged, turning a page. "Aw, that's pretty cute. First date selfie!" He teased, holding up the picture. "Man, teme, you seriously ruin all of these with your ugly face. I bet they'd look much better if only Sakura-chan was in them."

"Put that back," he ground out, unamused.

"What? I'm just reminiscing!" he chortled.

Naruto averted his gaze, rolling onto his side, back to the bookshelf. He had never been one to dwell on the past, but it seemed every memory was more painful than the next these days. Although Sasuke's location and status as alive had been verified now, it only made things worse. Naruto would have to carry the burden of not only failing his best friend once, but multiple times. Every lost opportunity to rescue Sasuke meant another hour of torture—another crack in the man's resolve.

Whoever they found at the end of this journey would never be the Sasuke they knew in the past. Naruto already understood this, and he had a gut feeling Sasuke did too. Take care of her…huh? What a joke. He scoffed. No one was safe, least of all Sasuke.

"…Do you all understand?" Itachi peered around the room. "From here on out, my little brother will no longer exist."