Chapter 22: Diplomacy
Tobirama hated guard duty, no matter how important it was. He'd already managed to tag both of the Kumo shinobi with his seal when they first met at the border, so he knew where they were, but in the currently tenuous situation, he knew that Hashirama wanted someone he trusted implicitly to take care of them and in the same vein, his wife. It was unsurprising that Sakura had also been elected to accompany the Kumo shinobi to dinner, considering the obvious interest the one named Sarui had shown in her, and even the quieter observing of C. It was likely that Kumo was attempting to confirm the rumours they'd heard about her.
Sakura apparently, was using multiple methods to garner and deflect attention. The Fifth Hokage must have taught her methods in how kunoichi could take advantage of situations. Tobirama was certain that she hadn't spoken to Madara about what she'd planned, or he would've forced her into different clothes. Not that she was immodest, but Sakura had a way about her fashion choices that were clearly influenced by her own time, where it was apparently more free in clothing choice for females. Whomever she'd managed to persuade to make her clothes was apparently doing well because Sakura had been quietly influencing kunoichi style choices throughout the village in a slow but clear way. Traditional kimono-like garments were being traded for outfits of less fabric, like fitted pants, that were easier to move around in.
For the dinner with Kumo, Sakura had opted for a black dress that tied around at her waist and ended around her knees. It had long, billowed sleeves, so she had at least some protection from the cool weather. When the wind blew the fold of her dress, Tobirama realised that the dress was not tied together in any other way. He caught a glimpse of her bare thigh before she brushed it down, blushing slightly when Sarui gave her a smirk that could only be flirtatious. Tobirama breathed a deep sigh. Sakura had an innate talent of making things complicated. It wasn't her fault, and probably she wasn't like that in her regular time, but here was different, since she brought back a head full of knowledge and ability. Not to mention that Tobirama was not blind to the fact that Sakura seemed to have grown more beautiful in the last few months, and even more so now that she was happier and smiled more. He knew that had a lot to do with Madara, but he liked to think he helped her too.
Sakura stood out in the crowd. In a room filled with Hashirama, Tobirama, and Madara, for her to be sitting at the table and treated as an equal in front of foreign shinobi spoke to her position in the village and in Hashirama's eyes. It was no secret to the world that Hashirama was the greatest and most powerful shinobi alive, and he had respect for someone like he showed Sakura, it was interpreted as that shinobi being powerful as well. Tobirama knew there was no way they would be able to quash the rumours about Sakura any longer. She took them to an Akimichi restaurant, which was suspiciously clear of civilian patrons and housed only high-level shinobi dressed casually, including Yuri and his wife, their toddler, and infant. Kagami brightened and smiled broadly, plodding over to Sakura when he saw her.
"Kuku!" He said happily.
"Hello," Sakura said, bending down and giving him a hug. "Are you out for dinner with your family?"
Kagami nodded, looking like a dark-haired version of his father, his eyes wide but serious, and a little crease between his eyebrows that was more like his mother when she was worried.
"Kiko was cwying befwore," he said with some childlike concern. "But she's okay now," he said with a nod.
Sakura looked up and waved at Matsuri, who smiled but was eying the Kumo shinobi with distaste. Tobirama couldn't fault her, she had recently been kidnapped, after all.
"You're a good brother for worrying about your sister," Sakura said with a kind smile.
Kagami beamed.
"Come eat wif me, Kuku!"
Sakura ruffled his hair and smiled.
"Sorry, Kaga. I can't today."
He pouted sadly and Sakura gave him another hug.
"I'll come and see you tomorrow though."
"I come hospwital!" Kagami said.
"If your mummy wants too," Sakura said. "You'll come and help me?"
He nodded.
"I ban-age people!" He puffed out his chest proudly. "I two now!"
"Yeah, you're a big boy!" Sakura laughed.
She sent him back to his parents, and Kagami was scooped up by his father who gave Sakura and Tobirama smiles, but, like his wife, eyed the Kumo with suspicion. Hopefully, the Kumo shinobi wouldn't pick them as Uchiha.
"Cute kid," Sarui commented.
Sakura turned a bright smile on him, obviously not remembering that these were not exactly allies. She caught Tobirama's eye, seeing his warning in them, and her smile dropped into a smaller and duller one.
"Yes, well. It's easier to find cute kids when there is peace," she said after a moment, making it obvious she didn't want to see that disappear.
Tobirama glanced at Sarui and C, the latter of whom gave a slow and knowing nod. They were approached by a server, who Sakura greeted like an old friend. It was obvious that she had been at this place before. The four of them were seated at a booth in the back of the room, and the guards at a table far enough not to be able to hear everything, but close enough to be aware of what was happening.
"So, Lady Sakura," Sarui said after they had ordered their meals. "You work at the hospital then?"
"Yes," Sakura replied.
"A medic and a member of Konoha's council," Sarui said with a whistle. "That's impressive."
"Is it?" Sakura questioned, looking like the innocently naive little girl she certainly was not. "Why?"
Tobirama kept an eye on C, who was seated across from him, and looking at Sakura impassively. Sarui seemed to be unsure of how to answer her.
"Well," he said. "Medics aren't usually part of leadership councils, are they? And if they are, wouldn't it be the director of the hospital or head medic at the very least?"
He was fishing, and Sakura wasn't planning on answering him. Tobirama wasn't either. Eventually, Sakura gave a small shrug.
"You're probably right," she replied with a little smile.
An obviously evasive answer if there ever was one, Tobirama thought.
The conversation slipped into an idle chat about nothing in particular. Each of them was conscious of not revealing too much about any one thing until Sarui and Sakura dropped into a conversation about medical jutsu. Apparently, Sarui was also a trained medic. Tobirama watched them speak with growing enthusiasm as they discussed medical procedures, and C also observed them silently. From Sauri's knowledge, it seemed that he truly was a medic, if he wasn't Sakura would have exposed it, unless she was just pretending. But from the look in her eyes, he could tell she was genuinely excited. They spoke for ten more minutes, barely pausing to eat their food, when C finally lost his patience.
"It seems you've found another truly passionate person to speak about incredibly boring things too," he said, drawing both Sakura and Sarui out of their conversation.
"It's not boring at all," Sarui retorted.
C raised his eyebrows.
"Perhaps to you," he replied. He looked at Tobirama. "Shall we leave them to their discussions and perhaps find a quiet place to share a drink, and speak of matters of more importance?"
Tobirama looked at Sakura, who gave a small shrug of apology and a smile.
"We can meet you later," she said.
"Let's return to your hotel," Tobirama suggested.
C nodded and gave Sarui a look.
"Behave yourself," he said.
Sarui winked.
"Always."
Sakura watched Tobirama and C leave, keen to get back to her conversation. She was surprisingly enjoying herself, talking about medical ninjutsu was always interesting for her. Sarui let out a chuckle.
"Finally," he muttered. "The old coots have left."
Sakura raised an eyebrow.
"Fancy a drink?" Sarui asked her, grinning.
When he saw her expression he sighed.
"Come on, all this medical talk will be way more fun over some sake, don't you think?"
Sakura scoffed.
"Yeah, right," she said. "You and I are not friends, Sarui."
He gave a shrug and another, smaller and more playful grin.
"Isn't it a diplomats duty to show their guests a good time?"
"When the guest seems to want to ply their host with alcohol it usually means they want them off their game," Sakura intoned. "So are you planning to get me drunk for information or kidnap?"
Sarui laughed.
"You're forgetting the third option."
"What's that?"
"Seduction."
Sakura blushed, and Sarui laughed.
"Come on, Lady Sakura. You're supposed to be accompanying me around, aren't you? Let's say I just wander into a bar."
"You're not going to let this go, are you?' Sakura sighed.
"I've seen enough women in Kumogakure to know they're nowhere near as exciting as you," Sarui said standing up.
"Flattery will get you nowhere," Sakura said, also standing.
"I'll take that as a challenge."
Sakura rolled her eyes. She was glad to see that he didn't attempt to leave without her, that would have been rude. Instead, he waited for her to speak with the servers, say good-bye to Kagami, who planted a sloppy kiss on her cheek, and then they left, followed by two guards at a distance. They walked a short distance down the road to a bar, and Sarui took in everything he saw with careful eyes. He was as dark-skinned as Omoi had been, but his hair was golden, not white, with large dark eyes. He was good-looking in a boyish sort of way, but Sakura had a feeling he was older than he looked. But they still seemed around similar ages.
They sat together in the bar in a free booth along the side of the room. The guards were opposite them again, and Sakura saw them giving her disapproving looks, which she ignored. She'd specifically come to this bar because she knew the back room was occupied by Hashirama and Madara. The Hokage had dropped by her house while she was getting ready to inform her he'd be around - or at least his clone would be and he'd be sticking close to his wife and their baby. Sakura ordered a honey wine, and Sarui some sake.
"So then, Lady Sakura," Sarui said. "What shall we drink too?"
"Peace and prosperity?" Sakura suggested.
"How boring," Sarui droned. "How about we drink to you?"
"Me?" Sakura asked in surprise.
Sarui nodded.
"To you, Lady Sakura of Konoha. Medic and shinobi extraordinaire!"
Sakura laughed.
"Oh, well, how nice of you," she said, lifting her glass. "To me then."
"To you," he said.
Their glasses clinked and they both drank.
"So peace is boring to you?" Sakura questioned him.
"Don't try and lead me," Sarui grinned. "That's not polite."
Sakura took another sip of her wine, gazing at him over the rim.
"Well, you can't fault me for asking it, can you? I was recently attacked by your countrymen, after all."
Sarui's mouth twisted unhappily.
"Countrymen maybe, but traitors definitely," he muttered.
Sakura looked at him in interest and he downed the rest of his sake before pouring more.
"So," he said, clearly about to change the conversation. "Are you…free?"
"Free?" Sakura questioned.
Sarui looked at her playfully disparagingly.
"Are you going to make me spell it out?"
Sakura grinned.
"I don't know what you're talking about," she said.
He laughed.
"Of course not, in a dress like that, you're clearly an innocent little flower. Okay, fine. Lady Sakura, are you married or involved with a man?"
Sakura sipped on her wine before downing all of it and hating herself for what she was about to do.
"Not at the moment," she said.
Technically, her relationship was on hold until the Kumo shinobi left. She wasn't really lying. Kind of.
"What a pity," Sarui said. "The men in Konoha must be blind or stupid."
Or terrified of Madara, Sakura thought, amused.
"I told you flattery will get you nowhere with me," she said teasingly. "Flirts and flatterers are only good for one thing."
"But that one thing can be so enjoyable," Sarui said. "And become so many more things if it's good enough."
Sakura refilled her wine.
"I find that overconfidence is often overcompensation."
Sarui shrugged, that grin still in place.
"Then you haven't been with the right men."
I've only been with two men, and both of them are far superior to you, she thought, smiling widely at him.
"I thought we were here to talk about medical jutsu," she reminded him.
He let out a mournful sigh.
"But it was just getting good."
Sakura laughed lightly.
"If that was good, you definitely need to work on your lines. Maybe it'll lead to lasting peace."
She saw the back door of the room open in the corner of her eye. Hashirama stepped out and saw her. Both he and Madara were suppressing their chakra.
"You seem to want peace between our countries pretty badly," Sarui commented.
"And why not?"
Sarui had a flirtatious glint in his eye.
"You know, the best way to solidify peace is through marriage," he said.
"Oh?"
Hashirama and Madara paused, listening where Sarui couldn't see them behind the screen he sat in front of.
"What do you say, Lady Sakura?" He winked.
"Marrying me is definitely not going to bring peace," Sakura laughed, imagining the murderous look on Madara's face.
"Well, we could skip the marriage part and just go right consummation," Sarui said, drinking his sake. "A night of passion has been known to stay the hand of violence."
"Some hands perhaps," Sakura replied, trying desperately not to blush.
She could feel the slightest amount of killing intent, but Sarui hadn't noticed it yet.
"Sleeping with the enemy does have some kind of allure, doesn't it?" Sarui said.
"So we're enemies then?" Sakura questioned.
"Figure of speech," Sarui grinned. "We're both unattached and attractive, whose to say what might happen when we finish our drinks."
If Sakura had to choose the better seducer between Sarui and Haru Sarutobi, Haru would win hands down. She had to admire Sarui's tenacity, although she also wanted to laugh in his face.
"A lot of things might happen, Sarui," Sakura said. "You're right. I could end up in your bed." He seemed to brighten at that. "Or I could go home and sleep alone. Or in someone else's bed, that is not a foreigner, and the act wouldn't be treasonous. Or, before you finish your drink, Lord Hokage might come out of the booth behind you and explain that we don't negotiate with sex in Konoha."
"Negotiate?" Sarui's eyebrows raised. "I'm not negotiating anything for Kumo here. Only for myself. You really have taken the fun out of the evening with that, Lady Sakura. I was just hoping to spend a pleasant night here in pleasant company. C is truly boring."
Sakura gave an apologetic smile.
"Yes, well, Tobirama can be the same."
Sarui gave her another small smile.
"He's stoic, isn't he?"
"He seems like a good match for C."
"A match made in heaven, just like we could be, if only you'd give us the chance," Sarui pleaded jokingly.
Sakura laughed.
"Oh, Sarui, what should I do? Those big, pleading eyes of yours - oh, my," Sakura swooned.
Sarui laughed.
"What fun you are," he said. "I hope we never meet on the battlefield. It would be the worst kind of torture."
"I hope that's a genuine statement," Sakura said.
"It is," Sarui nodded, suddenly serious. "Lady Sakura, truly, I was joking earlier, but peace sounds blissful. Truly, we don't want war, and I'm terribly sorry those fools attacked you and Lady Mito."
"I'm sorry too. Look at the position we're in now because of it."
Sarui agreed.
"Horrible, it's just terrible to find myself sharing a drink with the loveliest lady in all of the Land of Fire."
"You are incorrigible."
Sakura shook her head, but she smiled.
"Indeed he is."
Hashirama's voice suddenly came from behind him and Sarui froze, his eyes wide and shocked. Sakura sucked in her lips and bit down, attempting to hold back the smile and laugh. Sarui looked at her a little betrayed as Hashirama and Madara appeared at their table.
"L-Lord Hokage," Sarui stammered, clearing his throat. "Lord Madara. I wasn't expecting to see you here."
"We were gambling!" Hashirama declared, smiling deceptively wide.
"Ah," Sarui said.
He was obviously unnerved by the silent Madara with his unreadable expression, yet the aura of intense displeasure.
"I won everything, right Madara?" Hashirama clapped him on the back.
Sarui was staring at the Hokage in confusion. Sakura was well aware of how odd Hashirama was, with his mood swings and personality. He seemed like a completely different man to the one Sarui saw in the meeting earlier in the day.
"Unfortunately," Madara muttered.
He glanced at Sakura, who smiled at him over the rim of her win glass. She could tell he wanted to rip her from the seat and murder Sarui. He was more contained than she expected him to be.
"Sakura, I'll escort young Sarui back to his accomodations," Hashirama said. "I need to chat with Tobi anyway."
"Then I'll see Sakura home," Madara said.
"How kind," Sakura responded pleasantly. "It was nice to speak with you Sarui, I'd really like to talk to you more about chakra fusion remedies one day."
Sarui pursed his lips, but he was still looking at her with a cheerful gleam in his eyes.
"I'd love to share another drink," he said. "Good night, Lady Sakura."
Sakura and Madara watched Hashirama and Sarui leave, and Sakura drank the rest of her wine.
"Want a drink?" She asked him.
Madara folded his arms over his chest. "
There are several things I'd like to do right now," he said gruffly. "The majority of them would begin a war."
Sakura smiled.
"Sit down. Relax a little."
She filled her wine again and passed him the glass. He sat down across from her and drained the glass, staring at her with a hard, dark look.
"You know it was all in jest, don't you?" She asked. "I'm supposed to be single and young and fun. They're not supposed to take me that seriously."
Madara gave the smallest of annoyed pouts. His eyes drifted down to her dress.
"Are you armed? The material is so flimsy."
"Of course I am," Sakura said with a frown. "You don't like my dress?"
He was silent.
"….too much," he muttered, looking away.
"What was that?"
"I do," he responded quietly, looking back at her.
Sakura smiled and leaned over to him.
"It's very easy to take off," she whispered. "Just one, quick, pull."
Madara's gaze darkened and she sat back in her seat, smiling smugly, and flirtatiously at his expression.
"It's too bad we have orders," she said, her expression playfully dramatic and forlorn.
"Sakura," Madara said sharply, his tone making her glance back at him.
He stood and removed himself from the booth, taking two steps until he stood beside her. He leaned down and whispered in her ear.
"If that dress isn't on my floor in five minutes, I will come to find you, tie you down and rip it off."
Sakura felt her cheeks turn red in excitement, his breath on her ear making her shiver with excitement. She bit her lip, meeting his eyes as he pulled back, feeling a rush of desire spike inside her. She rubbed her thighs together.
"That could be exciting," she breathed.
Madara gave her a brief look of unadulterated desire before he turned away and left. sakura followed him after she took care of the bill. She didn't expect him to be waiting outside, but he was, and he pulled her into the deserted alley beside the bar, pushing her hard against the slightly damp stone wall, gripping her thighs and forcing her higher, so her legs were wrapped around his waist. His mouth attacked her neck as his hands gripped her thighs tightly, enough that she was sure he was going to leave bruises.
"No other man will have you," he growled lowly.
She felt his teeth nip at her collarbone and she gasped at the possessiveness he was displaying, finding so much pleasure in it. He pulled his head back, pressed her even harder against the wall, so she could feel exactly how hard he was between her legs and looked at her with eyes that made her shiver.
"Say it," he said, bringing his face close to hers. "Say you're mine."
Sakura wrapped her hands in his hair.
"I'm yours."
Her heart raced. After a moment, he kissed her. There was no slow build-up to the passion. He was ardent and forceful and Sakura returned his affections with equal measure. Sakura's dress ended up on his bedroom floor…eventually. But not before it was close to torn up in the alley.
"The prisoners are terrified of going anywhere with C," Shikaru announced.
"That seems to confirm the theory they're traitors," Madara muttered.
"What did C have to say last night?" Hashirama asked his brother. "Does anyone know where Sakura is?"
"Hospital, probably," Shikaru supplied.
Tobirama shrugged, moving onto the more important topic.
"C spoke about the usual political drivel," he said. "Trying to assure me of their Raikage's motives and truth. From everything we've observed, it does appear that Kumo wasn't the perpetrators and they were rogues."
"Or liars," Madara said.
"There's always the possibility,' Shikaru interjected. "But they're clearly giving us an out, and will be able to blame any conflict on us if there is any."
Hashirama sat back in his chair thoughtfully.
"Let's wait and see what their Raikage says," he decided.
"Lady Sakura!"
Sakura had her hands in the chest of a patient that needed her full attention and focus.
"Lady Sakura!"
She felt some rage mixed with her stress.
"WHAT?!" She snapped.
"L-Lord Hokage has summoned you," the messenger announced, his voice shaking.
Sakura felt irritation prick, and blood seeped from the dissecting aorta in her hands. She grit her teeth, there was no way she could leave now.
"Tell him I'm busy."
The messenger seemed to hesitate.
"But L-Lady Sakura, the shinobi from Kumogakure - "
Sakura looked up and glared at him.
"Tell the damn Hokage I'm busy saving his shinobi's bloody lives!" Sakura shouted. "NOW GET OUT AND LET ME CONCENTRATE OR YOU'LL BE ON THIS TABLE NEXT!"
The terrified messenger knocked on the door to the meeting room and was called in by the Hokage. The two Kumo shinobi looked at him in interest, standing before the table where the Hokage, Lord Tobirama and Lord Madara sat. Lady Sakura's chair was empty. Lord Hokage frowned.
"So where is Lady Sakura?"
The messenger gulped.
"Busy," he said weakly.
"Exactly what is so important she can't be here?" Lord Tobirama asked, seeming annoyed.
The messenger swallowed.
"Her exact words?"
Lord Hokage nodded. The messenger's lips trembled as he remembered the incredibly terrifying look she'd given him and the complete sincerity of her threat.
"T-tell the d-damn Hokage I'm busy saving his shinobi's b-bloody lives!"
"Anything else?" Tobirama asked.
"She threatened to put me on the table if I didn't get out," he whimpered.
"Thank you."
"I don't have to go back to her, do I?"
Lord Hokage shook his head.
"No."
The messenger departed with a breath of indescribable relief.
The door to the conference room closed and Hashirama couldn't contain his laughter anymore. Even Tobirama and Madara cracked smiles, whilst the Kumo shinobi looked confused.
"So I take it Lady Sakura won't be joining us?" Sarui asked with a frown.
"I would think not," Tobirama replied.
"Surely a more senior medic could replace her. It seems unorthodox to address an incomplete council," C commented, apparently disapproving.
Hashirama continued to laugh.
"Ah," he said between laughs. "Well."
He sniffed and his laughter died down. He looked at the Kumo shinobi and smiled broadly.
"Sakura is the Head Medic, so if she can't leave, it must be quite serious. We don't question her in her own field of expertise, a lesson we've learned the hard way."
"Lady Sakura is the Head Medic?" Sarui asked with shock.
"Indeed," Tobirama said, almost sounding smug. "She's not just on the council for her looks."
Sarui and C shared a look, and Hashirama knew how annoyed she was going to be at him for revealing her position to them. Probably as annoyed as he was in the morning's discovery that she and Madara had disobeyed his orders to keep at a distance. Honestly. It was just a couple of days. But it was amusing watching Madara try to keep his composure while Sarui was overtly trying to get Sakura into bed with him. Not that it would have happened. Sakura knew better than to put herself in a position that vulnerable with an enemy, and also, Madara.
"Have you heard anything?" Hashirama asked them, breaking their silent communication.
Whilst Tobirama compiled the first Konoha Bingo Book, Hashirama was certain Kumo would be keeping records of the Konoha shinobi they came across somewhere, particularly someone like Sakura, who seemed to have appeared out of thin air.
"From your Raikage."
"Yes, this morning," C replied.
"And?" Madara said impatiently.
C gave a brief sigh.
"Kumogakure is willing to provide bounty payments of 15,000 for each of the dead shinobi, and 8,000 for the living."
"Very well," Hashirama said. "You will be escorted to the border of the Land of Fire by a team of shinobi to await the arrival of the payment. When we receive word you have the money, we will bring the prisoners."
"We will require the scrolls before payment."
"One scroll, as a show of faith," Tobirama said.
C's jaw clenched, after a moment, he said, "Agreed."
"Good," Hashirama nodded. "Send your messages to your Raikage. Tomorrow you'll leave for the border. For the remainder of the day, Nori and his unit will be your escorts around Konoha."
"Thank you, Lord Hokage, for your hospitality," Sarui said.
Sakura sighed deeply, feeling familiar nausea, fatigue, and helplessness that came when she failed. The surgery was silent, the nurses and other medics stared at her, the blood splattered all over her, and the dead body on the table. She swallowed the threatening vomit, took a step back, lifting her gloved hands up. Blood dripped to the ground.
"Time of death - " she glanced at the clock. "3:12 p.m."
She'd been in surgery with him for five hours working to save his life. But nothing, nothing worked. Sakura clenched her teeth together in mindless frustration. He was the first patient she'd lost since coming back in time. Everything she tried failed. Logically, she knew that sometimes the body just didn't recover, no matter how many times you tried to fix it. His heart just came apart in her hands and she couldn't keep it together. One of the nurses pulled a sheet over his body, over his face. Sakura flinched when she felt a hand on her shoulder.
"Take off your gloves, Lady Sakura," Fumi, an older nurse said in a quiet kind voice.
Sakura swallowed and nodded. Slowly, she took off her gloves and they dropped to the floor, slick with blood. She kept it together for a few moments longer, ordering the staff in their next tasks, until she had to get out of the room where the dead shinobi mocked her in his peripheral vision. All the talent in the world and she still couldn't save him. Some medic she was. Sakura found a deserted hallway and slid down it, her face in her hands, trying to hold back the tears. She hated this, she hated it so much. Fumi found her moments later.
"I'm sorry, Lady Sakura," Fumi said, standing quietly. "But the family as arrived, and his teammates are waiting for news."
Sakura looked at Fumi tiredly and nodded.
"If I may, Lady Sakura." Fumi waited.
"No need to stand on ceremony," Sakura said, forcing herself to her feet.
"There was nothing anyone could have done," Fumi said. "Not even you."
"If only knowing that made it easier," Sakura replied.
Fumi gave her an apologetic nod.
"Thank you for your hard work today," Sakura said quietly as she passed her.
Sakura paused behind the wall before turning into the waiting area. She sniffed and wiped her eyes, steadied herself, straightened her shoulders and walked out calmly. The shinobi took one look at her and immediately understood. They simply stood still while she was swarmed by the mother, father and little brother of the shinobi who had died. The reactions were normal for families who'd lost a child. Even shinobi families grieved loud and hard, and to make matters worse, she knew this was the first patient who'd died since the forming of the village. Sakura excused herself after two full minutes of verbal abuse to which she didn't respond. She walked away from the mothers wailing, finally letting the tears fall. Today was not a good day.
Tobirama was in Sakura's office when got back and she sighed heavily at seeing him.
"I'm not in the mood for whatever lecture you're about to lay on me," she said tiredly.
He peered at her.
"You have blood on your shoes, pants and in your hair," he said after a moment. "What happened?"
Sakura sat down heavily.
"Teijira Shuu died on my operating table."
She looked down at her hands.
"I just got back from telling his family and team."
Tobirama was silent.
"Are you all right?" He asked when the silence stretched longer than he deemed comfortable.
She scoffed.
"What do you think? He was barely older than I am and I just worked five hours on his body that kept falling apart in my hands and nothing I did worked. I felt his heart beat for the last time, my hand was the only thing holding it together."
A shudder ripped through her body.
"He's the first person to die from injuries sustained on a mission since the village formed."
"He won't be the last."
Sakura cast a glare at him.
"Oh thank you, mister helpful," she snapped. "That's excellent, Tobi. Just what I needed to hear."
"Why don't you go home and take a bath?" He said.
"I have paperwork to fill out," she muttered. "Dead shinobi makes for a lot of paperwork."
"Where are your students?"
Tobirama not-so-subtly changed the subject.
"Scouring the clans for medicinal herbs and the like for the greenhouses," Sakura said. "The Nara guard their secrets carefully, and Shikaru won't even let me in on them. Hikari's planning to wear Shikata down to convince his father."
Tobirama almost managed a smile.
"She's been wondering when you're training is going to start."
"When Kumo is out of this country," Tobirama muttered. "That's why I'm here. Tomorrow I'm heading a guard unit to the border, escorting the Kumo shinobi. We'll exchange the prisoners for payment."
"So no war?" Sakura asked hopefully.
"No war," Tobirama said.
"Thank the Sage," Sakura breathed.
"Indeed," Tobirama said seriously.
"You're going away again," Sakura said, pouting slightly.
He seemed to be going away a lot.
"I feel like I've barely seen you around recently."
"I've been here. You've been occupied," he said, raising an eyebrow. "Are you planning to go public any time soon? It would certainly be less irritating for me."
Sakura laughed a little.
"How so?"
"The only person my brother can talk to about it is me," he deadpanned.
"Sorry for the inconvenience," she smiled.
"I'll tell the others you won't be at the dinner for Kumo tonight," he said.
"Oh."
Sakura leaned back into her chair.
"That would actually be good. Thank you."
"Will you be back for the Rinne Festival?" Sakura asked.
"I hope so. I'll see you before I leave."
Sakura nodded.
"Thanks again, Tobi."
He paused in the doorway and looked at her briefly.
"Good-bye…Saki."
Sakura froze, staring wide-eyed at the place Tobirama had just vanished from. Had he just… called her Saki? She felt a happy blush on her cheeks. He gave her a nickname. Tobi gave her a nickname. Granted, it was one that she'd had from Shisui and it made her feel a little sad and nostalgic. But a nickname from Tobirama Senju? Perhaps the day wasn't so bad after all.
"It's going to snow," Hikari said.
Shouta frowned at her and glanced at the blue sky. It was cold, definitely, but the air was missing the bite it usually had when snow was on the way.
"It won't," he replied.
Hikari shook her head.
"It will. I always know when it's going to snow. It's going to snow tomorrow."
"If it does, I'll go to the festival with you," Shouta said.
He didn't believe it was going to snow at all, and this way, she would stop bothering him about whether or not he was going. Hikari's eyes lit up.
"Really?"
He sighed.
"Sure. It's not going to snow."
She grinned.
"It will, so you're going to come with me. You better find me a good present!"
Shouta rolled his eyes and glanced up at the sky again, a slight frown on his face. She was definitely confident, and it was making him doubt. He was going to find her a present either way, but she didn't need to know that.
"Only if it snows," he said.
"You're so mean," she pouted. "It's a tradition to give gifts to your friends."
"Oh. I didn't know we were friends," Shouta teased her.
"You and Shika really irritate me when you're like this," Hikari said with annoyance.
Shouta smirked. Shikata also enjoyed teasing Hikari, and when the three of them were together they were often sending each other smirks and grins of satisfaction while Hikari's head was about to blow.
"Do you have a gift for me?" He asked, mildly curious.
"Of course I do," she said, looking at him like she couldn't believe he would think she didn't.
"Am I going to like it?"
Hikari sighed with exasperation.
"I'm not an idiot, Shouta. I don't know why you always doubt me. I think I know you pretty well by now."
Shouta smiled.
"Well, I guess we'll see then, won't we?"
Sakura looked up when she heard a knock at her office door and immediately wanted to shrink away from who she saw. She didn't, however. She shuffled the paperwork she had been working on neatly into a pile and told the two members of Teijira Shuu's team to come in and close the door. The effects of Tobi's nickname left her and she immediately felt apprehension at why they had come to her.
"Excuse us, Lady Sakura. My name is Ryou Hisao, and this is Aki Izumu."
"I wish we were meeting under better circumstances," Sakura replied sombrely. "Why have you come to see me?"
Aki was staring at the floor, pale and visibly shaken by his teammate's death.
"We just - "
Ryou coughed in the way that Sakura had heard many times before like he'd been crying and it was still stuck in his throat. Before he could say anything else, Sakura spoke for him, preempting his question.
"There was nothing else the two of you could have done," she said.
Ryou swallowed and looked at her, a small glimmer of hope in his eyes. Aki stopped the jiggling movement of his leg and stilled. She swallowed.
"Teijira suffered from irreparable damage and severe blood loss. Basically, no matter what anyone did, his body was too damaged to recover."
"You couldn't fix it?" Ryou whispered.
Sakura shook her head sadly.
"I spent five hours trying."
Aki stood abruptly and left, his chair falling back loudly on the ground, and Ryou flinched at the sound of impact.
"Ryou, if you or Aki need to talk to someone about this, please don't hesitate to come to my office," Sakura said as kindly as she could. "I'll do everything I can to help you."
Ryou nodded.
"Thank you," he said. "I'm sorry for bothering you."
Sakura watched him go with a heavy heart. Death was never easy, as she was well aware. When Sakura arrived home that night, she decided not to go to the dinner with the Kumo shinobi. She didn't want to deal with Sarui's flirtation, or Madara's jealousy, as endearing and amusing as it might be. Instead, she took Itachi's picture and put it on her coffee table, hugged a pillow to her chest and laid down on her side on her couch, staring at his image.
Itachi had been one of her patients, as he generally despised the hospital and exposing himself in any manner to a stranger. In an effort to make sure he was healthy, Tsunade had assigned Sakura to treat him for any ailments or injuries. Something that terrified her at first, since his clan would blame her if anything was missed and happened to him. But she soon got over that. Itachi's brief dance with a dangerous lung infection had been quickly cleared up and soon Shisui was also assigned to her, and Kakashi, although she was surprised about that.
Since Sakura had been made responsible for the health of three of the most, if not the three most powerful shinobi in the entire village, more and more requests came in for her until Tsunade almost broke the village in her irritation. She had been lucky that Itachi and Shisui were generally less injury and accident-prone than Kakashi was. But for allowing her to practice her medical ninjutsu on them, Sakura would always be grateful.
The more time they spent in the hospital, the more the understood Sakura's reality of viewing death on a more personal level. In quiet ways, Itachi would try to keep her spirits up on the bad days with dango or by doing something he never usually did, like initiate physical contact with her, usually in the form of a comforting hand on her back or shoulder or a pat on the head. Shisui was more overt and obvious and it normally ended in her either bursting out crying, laughing or in violence. She wouldn't mind something small like Itachi had done for her. A little tap to her forehead, a little smile. Instead, she stared at his picture and just missed him.
At the end of the dinner when Hashirama was escorting the Kumo shinobi back to their accommodations, Tobirama quietly informed Madara of Sakura's day. He nodded in response and gratitude, and headed straight to her house, not bothering to deactivate his Sharingan, which had been active the entirety of the time spent with the Kumo shinobi.
He paused at the gate and saw that she was inside the house, but it seemed like she was asleep on the couch. With a quick motion, he deactivated her seals and entered the house, quietly shutting and locking the door behind him. He slipped off his shoes and silently walked through the small entry hall into the living room. It was a testament to how much the day had affected her that Sakura didn't wake up at all. Her senses were well trained, and any other time she'd be awake by the time he rounded the corner.
She lay on her side, curled up into a little ball, hugging a cushion to her tightly. Her mouth was slightly open and there was a little puddle of drool on the couch which made Madara smile a little. He glanced at the picture of Itachi on the coffee table, moved from its usual place across the room. He clenched his jaw, feeling an illogical but unavoidable spike of jealousy. He grimaced slightly and looked around. It was late, and her house didn't smell like food. It was likely she hadn't eaten. Madara was not someone who cooked. He'd spent his time training while the food was prepared for him. Uncertain of what to do, he stood for a moment, until he decided to run her a bath and wake her up. Moments like these, Madara hoped that it was the thought that counted since they were definitely going to have to go out to get food.