He was never anywhere to be found, as if to fill the void she left behind, he had immersed himself in his missions. There was even a rumor going around amongst the leaf shinobi, that he had rejoined the Anbu. Worry and guilt plagued her mercilessly.

"What's going on with you forehead?" Ino tried, for what felt like the billionth time in the last month, to figure just what the hell was going on with her best friend. Sakura who seemed to only be physically present, had already resolved herself to dismiss her friend's worry. Her plan was as it always was, when asked, if she were 'Alright'; she begun to insist, that she was simply tired and overworked from the hospital, however her heart had another agenda, before she knew what was really happening, Sakura had broken down and revealed everything that had happened. Ino hadn't said anything, instead, she simply allowed Sakura to loosen the binds that had been weighing on her heart for far too long.

Sakura both reveled and rued the fact, that she was finally able to express, just how truly broken she was, and how she felt like such a fool for trying to love yet another broken man. It was like a never-ending weight had been stuck on her chest, sucking the breath right out of her lungs. Why hadn't she done this earlier? Why had she waited until everything had gone to hell? Maybe things could have ended differently, maybe they could have been saved, or maybe no matter what she did, there was no scenario, where they could salvage any kind of relationship between them.

,

Ino had done her best to both comfort and council her. Regardless of the fact they still couldn't make it through an ordinary conversation without fighting, she was still one of the best persons Ino knew, and she didn't deserve to close herself off like she had. She had to face the facts what happened, happened. She needed to find a way to gain closure and to forgive herself.

After crying her eyes for what felt like hours, the following day she had gotten up and had decided, she would simply try to just make it through this one day, tomorrow would have to worry about itself. Day after day she had tried her best to live that, hoping that one day the ever-growing hole in her chest would begin to stop, or at least not swallow her whole.

….

"Sakura!"

"Yes M'lady!" Snapping back to the present, Sakura couldn't help but feel a little sheepish as she realized she had once again zoned out, only this time, she would get it for sure. Lady Tsunade wasn't exactly known for her patience.

Oink….

Shizue gave Ton-Ton a small squeeze of comfort, while looking on concernedly, at her sibling student. She knew it couldn't be easy for either of them. While the relationship itself had been discreet, the falling out had been explosive. With his return to the Anbu, whispers amongst the Jounin had begun, and soon spread to the chunin then somehow, amongst the genin, before anyone knew it, it had become public knowledge. Speculations spread like a wildfire, as persons begun to wonder, what could have caused the famous copy nin to return to the black ops? For those who had been around at the time, they feared the return of 'Coldblooded Kakashi'. It wasn't just that, overall Team Kakashi just wasn't the same.

"What is wrong with you?" Tsunade narrowed her eyes impatiently at her student, they hadn't said as much, but she was no fool. She would be angry with him, but if she were being honest, she was more worried than anything else. By allowing him to rejoin the Anbu, she had believed it the best way to allow him to cope in his own way. However, she had obliged him for too long, at the rate he was going, he would end up getting himself killed. From what she had gathered, neither had been at fault for the break down.

She had been surprised at first, once she realized just what exactly had developed between the two, but it wasn't long after, that she had started to secretly root for them. It was just unfortunate Sakura's romantic track record was as shaky as it was, and Kakashi was just another walking casualty of his generation. There were moments she had seen an opportunity to step in and help guide her student, but she hadn't wanted to overstep, since they were both adamant to keep it to themselves. Now she wondered if she should have done it anyway. She could see the toll that the separation was having on her, she was not one to judge though, after Dan she had closed that chapter of her life and Jirayia …she had burned the book.

It was decided then, Sakura needed the time and space to heal.

"I think some time outside the village should do you some good."

"Yes M'lady" Tsunade clicked her tongue in irritability, at the despondent response she had received, before pulling for the abandoned mission file before her.

"Our treaty with the stone village is still rather new, this mission will hopefully help bridge that gap between our villages". She begun to explain. "I had originally slated Shizune to be our medical emissary, however, i've just decided to assign the task to you instead. It's an extended assignment, about six months or so". She finished, closing the file and placing it to the right.

"I'm also sending both Naruto and Shikamaru with you, you three represent the future of the leaf and we want to put our best foot forward."

"Yes Ma'am."