A/N: Wow, talk about being awful. Here's an update after a millennia. Thanks to those who are still interested in reading! I've been living and working in Japan for the past half a year, so lots of life changes have kept me busy. I'm also full of excuses. Anyway, look forward to a few more updates! Peace.

"You up, Sakura-chan?"

She slowly blinked her eyes, rubbing them tiredly. Had she drifted off again? It was Sunday, but better known as her only day off in the work week. Sitting up carefully, she glanced up at Naruto who stood uneasily in the doorway.

Uneasy… Sakura got to her feet quickly. "What happened?" she demanded. It was hard to rattle Naruto. If he was visibly anxious then something big had occurred.

"Read it." He passed her his phone which was open to a news article.

Published 5 minutes ago.

Sakura meant to skim it, but the photo above the headline stopped her. In fact, it felt like more than time had stopped. Her heart stopped. Her breathing stopped. The world may have stuttered to a momentary halt as well.

Dressed in black from head to toe was Uchiha Sasuke.

His features were sharper…harsher. The cut of his lips was impassive whilst the bright red of his eyes sent searing chills down her spine. It looked as if he had been adequately fed, however, the dark shadows underneath his eyes screamed of insomnia. He wasn't well. He was far from safe. But the real concern now was why were they exposing him?

Orochimaru stood beside his captive in the photo, smiling for all the world as if he wasn't a criminal. Sakura scrolled down, reading the article haphazardly. Her heart was pounding painfully fast as adrenaline filled her veins.

…found him severely injured several months ago…

…rehabilitation services…no known living guardian to report to…

…rescued.

…A hero for saving Uchiha Sasuke.

"Sakura-chan?" Naruto called tentatively, watching a flurry of emotions pass across her face. She had always been a bit of an open book, but the amount of feelings registering on her features was borderline hysterical. He slowly tugged the phone out of her hand as she stumbled out into the hallway. "Sakura!" Naruto caught her wrist, stopping her from storming into the living room.

"What?" she snapped, whirling on him. "Are we just going to take our time? He's out there! He's public!" Her voice rose with each word, eyes wide and wet. "Let's go—"

"—she's right. Let's go."

The pair jerked around, seeing Itachi and Kakashi coming toward them. They were suited and groomed, expressions grim. Naruto cleared his throat, loosening his grip on Sakura's now slack arm. "Uh, go where exactly?"

Itachi snapped cufflinks into place, shrugging his coat on. "We've been summoned. Or rather, I have been summoned to collect my little brother as his only living relative." His eyes fell on Sakura. "However, you have been summoned by the press to respond to Orochimaru's request."

She stared dumbly.

The older man's lips thinned. "An official representative of Orochimaru contacted me soon after the announcement about Sasuke. They are extending a…helping hand of sorts to your research endeavors. Orochimaru has expressed public concern over the funding and facilities available to you and desires a…partnership. He wants to make himself a recognized member of your research team. We have already prepared a press conference for you to deliver a response."

"He certainly met our bold move with a bold move of his own," Kakashi mused humorlessly. Adjusting his mask, he reached out to gently ruffle Sakura's hair. The tender touch seemed to snap her back. "We need you to keep your cool during this press conference. I know this will be difficult, but you have to accept his offer for the publicity. If anything goes awry, now the entire world will be watching. We still have the upper hand. If anything, this may make our lives easier having him restrained by public relations."

Sakura wondered if she was going to be sick.

Shaking hands with this man was beyond hateful. He had left Itachi to die on an operating table. He lashed Sasuke like a dog. He brutally tortured both brothers for years. And now? She was supposed to make nice in the face of cameras.

How could she smile at his putrid figure and say she would be happy for his help?

"Maybe we should get sunglasses."

Sakura shot Naruto a questioning look.

The blond grinned. "Well, I just think if Sakura wears sunglasses, it'll hide the hate burning up her eyes. The cameras definitely won't be able to miss that."

She jabbed him harshly in the side, despite cracking a smile. Leave it to him to make a joke right now. Then again, was it a joke? Sakura frowned. "Actually, I agree. I need sunglasses."

Itachi and Kakashi exchanged a brief look before nodding. "If asked, it would be believable that your eyes are swollen from crying over Sasuke's appearance," Kakashi stated not unkindly. His gaze lingered on her before seeming to resign himself to the situation. "You're brave for doing this, Sakura. Remember that."

There's nothing brave about this. She bit back the urge to speak her thoughts. It was her who had gotten them into such a mess and she would do anything if it meant fixing things. However, what continued to bug her was the why.

Why was Orochimaru relinquishing control over his prized puppet? Why was he allowing any of this? What could he gain from the current situation? The most she could glean was that he would have a plausible alibi now for why he had Sasuke in his possession. It would do him no favors to be caught later down the line for having a supposed missing person under his care. However, the questions whirled uneasily in the pit of Sakura's stomach. It didn't feel right.

None of it.

XXX

News traveled around the world at lightning speed. The press conference saw Sakura graciously accepting Orochimaru's aid and also a brief statement of relief from Itachi about Sasuke being found. They made their intentions clear. Uchiha Sasuke would be returning to the family estate that afternoon.

Was this a dream?

Sakura could barely contain herself after hearing confirmation that Orochimaru's people would be delivering Sasuke as expected. It was unbelievable in the most dreadful of ways. All of it was happening too easily. In the best-case scenario, Sasuke would probably be strapped with bombs to take all of them out. At least then the misery of this nightmare would end.

In the worst case—Sakura couldn't even fathom what the worst would be. Orochimaru was made of a special sort of cunning. He was sadism incarnate with barely an inkling of humanity.

For that reason, she couldn't calm down as the clock struck four in the afternoon and a call came through to Itachi. He murmured soft, curt answers before eyeing them all somberly. It was finally time. "They're waiting outside the main gates."

Sakura stood immediately, but Kakashi's hand on her shoulder stopped her. "It's probably best you wait here," he smiled behind his mask. "We don't know what the situation will be like. Since you're a non-combatant and a prized medic at that, we'd all be worried if things went sideways."

"I can…," she trailed off, shaking her head slightly. Brushing his hand off, she nodded slowly. "I understand. I'll be right here."

"Sakura-chan," Naruto gathered her in a strong hug, patting her back a few times with too much strength. "Don't worry. I'll have teme here in a flash and you can make gooey eyes at each other again."

She slapped his chest lightly, managing a small laugh. "Got it. Hurry up then."

Bright blues and pearly whites beamed at her. The blond saluted once before trotting after his superiors. Sakura watched them go, wondering how many times she would see their receding backsides. It had been her wish to improve in self-defense, but only so much progress could be made in practice. But high heavens forbid that she attempt any real combat. Naruto had been adamant about helping her learn self-defense only for emergency situations.

It was fine though, she assured herself. After all, she didn't have the time to master combat. She had more important things to hone. Green eyes flickered down to her hands. Like always, she couldn't see the chakra network like Itachi or Sasuke, but she could certainly feel its presence with absolute certainty. In fact, it was such an acute awareness that she almost feared it. It made her…hopeful.

Perhaps too hopeful. It made her ask questions about the limitations of human morality. How much could she heal someone with this knowledge and her abilities? Although she hadn't been able to practice on any humans aside from Sasuke (once, all those years ago), she had practiced enough on animals. Reviving fish was now child's play. Bringing mammals back from the brink of death was a bit more difficult, but wholly in the realm of possibility.

So…how far could the human life be extended with these abilities? Furthermore, it bore no risk for her own chakra levels. It seemed that human energy was replenishable—an endless source of power that could be harnessed to benefit humanity.

Or something.

These ideas were currently more terrifying than exhilarating. She knew firsthand what happened to people who tempted the limits of humanity. The last thing she wanted was to be the next Orochimaru. Or perhaps, another test subject in one of his labs.

Silence should've been the red flag.

If everything was going right, then Naruto's voice would've been booming from beyond the inner quarters and absolutely insufferable by the time they entered. That was why she should've been smarter and questioned the shudder-inducing quiet.

"SAKURA, RUN!"

The warning crackled the air. She whipped around in time to lock eyes with fierce red. A flashback to reuniting with Itachi flitted through her mind as a familiar hand clamped around her throat. It yanked her up with incredible force, her tip toes just barely brushing the wooden floor.

A choked gasp lodged itself in her windpipe, fingers uselessly clawing at his expensive suit jacket. Tears blurred her vision as the vice-like grip tightened swiftly.

Although in reality it couldn't have been more than a handful of seconds, the fear nearly killed her. Shouting voices followed a bright blonde head as it rammed directly into them. The force of his blow jarred the death grip and she kicked away, crashing to the floor. Mere inches away, the former best friends fought mercilessly, Naruto only gaining an advantage for a few seconds.

Sasuke backhanded him into the garden, slowly rising to his feet and reaching for Sakura once more. There was molten hatred rumbling in those blood red eyes, promising only painful things. Despite that—

The click of a gun stilled his movements.

Kakashi kept a steady finger off the trigger, but the warning was clear. His gaze was calm yet strained. "Step away from her."