HEY GUYS, GUESS WHAT, THE BLACKHAWKS WON THE STANLEY CUP. AGAIN!

HELL YES MOFO'S.

AN: Alright, now that my excited ranting about how FRICKIN' AWESOME THE BLACKHAWKS ARE, I'll let you read the chapter.

Please review!

The First Time

Chapter 8: Hope in Everyone

"And now he's turned into a man, though he thinks just like his mother
He believes we're all just lovers, he sees hope in everyone."

"They've found us."

"Hn?" 'How can you tell? I can't sense anything'

"It's sort of like a sixth sense."

"Aa." 'That's right, I remember now.'

She was right – all three members of Team Seven held some sort of supernatural bond that allowed them to sense the others whereabouts when they were approaching. Additionally, they could usually sense the mood that their teammates were in. It spoke of an unbreakable bond that was completely beyond all understanding. It spoke of all the trials they had gone through together and how they had conquered those trials. They were a team that was comprised of an Uchiha heir who was desperately attempting to escape the fate of the Uchiha curse, a kyuubi jinchuriki, and a petite pink-haired kunoichi that could break down mountains with her fists. Perhaps it was their odd assembly because they were a magnet for trouble, but they were always there for each other. Really, it made Itachi a little envious.

One night four years previous, Sasuke had sat down to dinner with his family. Half way through the meal, he stilled completely and his eyes went wide. Then he was off like a lightning bolt through the door as if someone had just screamed his name in horror from somewhere far away. That was the night that Sakura's parents had died. It was as if Sasuke had just known that something was wrong with Sakura and that she needed him. As far as Itachi could remember, that's when their acute awareness of each other began. But it went three ways. Itachi had even experienced Naruto doing something similar before. He would never believe it if he hadn't seen it happen so many times.

"They're coming for you," she whispered evilly from her place next to him. The warm spring air and sun was beating down on them, but they had found a shaded area on a cliff behind training ground three where they had been working. It was the same cliff where she had found him the night of their housewarming party, and it was their small hiding place from the rest of the world – namely her team. The soft breeze flew around the cliff and struck them a little harder than it would on flat land, but it was okay because it was warm and it was spring, and with their shoulders and hips touching as they sat next to each other, they were warm.

Itachi had files and ANBU mission reports to go through while Sakura was pouring over back-logged paperwork from the hospital. It was one of the few times they could sneak away just to be together, but it seemed that there was always more work to do. In the entire month that had passed since her birthday, Itachi had been sent out on several missions, and Sakura had begun her ANBU training under an advisor. So their time together was limited, but they took the small opportunities to see each other; even if they had work to finish up.

Sometimes just being next to her was enough.

The past month had been a whirlwind of fending off questions from various sources, avoiding Hatake Kakashi like the plague, and sneaking minutes with her, but Itachi wouldn't have it any other way. Because he finally had her. Immediately following the party where he kissed her – like the next morning, Itachi was sent on a mission for a week, much to his eternal relief yet consternation. He left her wondering what they were to each other, left her confused, and when he returned, slipped through her apartment window while she was making dinner, she ripped him a new one – yelling at him for leaving her muddled and doubting the entire time. Finally, to stop her rant, he leant down and kissed her full on the lips. She scoffed when he asked her if that cleared things up for her, but she blushed then, and smiled, and he kissed her again.

When he returned, he saw Sasuke for the first time. His younger brother simply glared at him since they were in their house, and it was just the two brothers – Shisui having been sent on a long-term Akatsuki reconnaissance mission. No, Sasuke would not confront Itachi alone. He would wait until Naruto and Kakashi were with him.

The Hokage had taken the news of their budding relationship surprisingly well. When she gave him the mission report the morning after her birthday, she had just graced him this knowing smirk the entire time. However, he did not fail to hear the idle threat in the way she spoke. Her final words to him were along the lines of 'if she gets hurt, you'll be demoted to chunin so fast your head will spin.' But Itachi had no intentions of doing any such thing.

Mikoto was thrilled beyond belief and any form of rational – there was a surprise. In fact, the woman had gone teary-eyed and blessed the gods that her son wasn't going to die alone. Sakura, in turn, busted out laughing the middle of the family dinner where they announced that they were a couple. Sasuke scowled, clenching his fists, and excused himself form the family dinner to return home. Fugaku seemed pleased as well. He never showed it, but he had a soft spot for Sakura and he approved of the coupling.

The only people who didn't seem terribly pleased with the match were Team Seven; them and the fan-girls, of course.

Itachi wasn't horribly shocked by their discontentment, but he could handle his otouto and Naruto. It was Kakashi he was mostly worried about. Save the Hokage, Kakashi was probably the only ninja in Konoha who could kill him, hide his body, and go on like nothing ever happened. And the copy-ninja would do that. Itachi was painfully aware of his paternal instincts towards Sakura, and he knew that Kakashi had driven off suitors for the young female in the past. Being an Uchiha, though, Itachi was painfully committed and he would not let anyone change his decision. However, there was no point in causing problems when they were not necessary. He would have to make a mental note not to be alone with Kakashi anytime soon. It could mean his ultimate demise. But once again, she was worth the constant paranoia.

Their newly found relationship seemed to make her happier than ever, and he couldn't understand how he managed to make her that happy. Her smile was larger than ever before, her eyes brighter, and they were only like that when she looked at him. Whatever he was doing was working, though, and he just was happy he could make her happy. Their relationship might not be commonplace because he wasn't normal, and she certainly was extraordinary, but they found their ways to make it work.

"I should go," she finally stated as she shoved her files into her folders and began to clean off her rumpled clothing.

"Hn?" 'You're really going to sick your guard dogs on me?'

"Don't you think it's time you just got this over with? They'll be tracking you until they can have words with you," she replied with a nonchalant shrug. "Plus, it's just Naruto and Sasuke. Kakashi is on a mission with Gai-sensei for a while."

Itachi let out a bit of a relieved sigh even though it was inaudible. Sakura heard it and laughed. "You'll be fine. They'll probably just threaten to kill you or something. But I know you can take them."

She winked at him as she stood up and collected her folders. Itachi was still sitting against the tree. Realizing she was leaving, he grabbed her by the wrist and pulled her back down, effectively scattering the papers out of her folders. His lips met hers in a chaste kiss when she landed in an ungraceful heap on his lap. When he pulled back, he couldn't help but smile. Her face was bright red from embarrassment – something it did almost every time they had kissed since her birthday. That included the kiss on her birthday as well. He had pulled back from their first kiss to find her cheeks such an alarming shade of red, he was sure she was going to pass out.

"I have a mission tomorrow," he stated.

Her eyes dawned in comprehension and her face sunk a bit. "How long?" she asked dejectedly, wriggling herself off of his lap and gathering her files once more.

"Only a few days," he replied evenly. When she had finally gathered her folders for, hopefully, the last time, she scooted over to him once again. The sad look in her eyes made him think for a moment, not wanting to leave her upset because of his mission. Would she always be that sad when he left? He certainly missed her when he had to go away. What would he do when she left for a mission? So far, she had been too busy with training for the ANBU exams and her work at the hospital to take any missions, but he was sure he would be worried sick about her the entire time she was gone, especially now that she was taking more dangerous missions. He mentally shook his head. Sakura was a strong kunoichi, and she had her team. Those boys would rather suffer a thousand deaths than see harm come to Sakura, and that actually brought Itachi quite a bit of comfort. But that didn't mean he still wouldn't be worried.

That brought him back to the present, staring into melancholy emerald eyes and a small, fake smile plastered on his girlfriend's face, "I'll stop by tomorrow morning before you leave for work to say goodbye."

Her face immediately lit up, a small hint of excitement shining in her eyes, and a real grin on her face. Once again he found himself marveling that such a short sentence and such a simple promise to see her once more could excite her that much. She leaned in and kissed him on the lips so forcefully that he was actually surprised. This had been the first time that she had initiated a kiss. Apparently she realized this as well because when she pulled back, her face was shining pink again.

"I'll see you later!" she squeaked. With a few hand signs and another smile, she disappeared in a flurry of smoke and cherry blossoms.

Just then, the two brats, the two banes of his existence, threw themselves into the clearing. Naruto was huffing from their run, and Sasuke's eyes were glowing red with the Sharingan.

"Where is she? What'd you do with her? We know she was here!" Naruto began shouting at him, demanding answers. Itachi merely tilted his eyebrow before returning his gaze to a mission report that Neji had handed him that morning languidly. He would not humor their immaturity.

"Aniki," Sasuke stated evenly while returning his eyes to their normal obsidian color. "We need to talk."

Itachi motioned for them to sit in front of him, steeling himself for the upcoming conversation that was bound to be fickle and awkward. He put the mission report that was in his hand down and focused his attention on his brother. Naruto was pacing nervously behind him, clenching and unclenching his fists, seemingly debating if he wanted to attack Itachi or not.

Sasuke sighed, apparently looking forward to the upcoming conversation as much as Itachi did. "Look aniki," he began frankly. "Let's start by saying that I don't disapprove of this match."

That took Itachi completely off guard. He was sure he was going to get some sort of furious lecture about staying away from their precious Sakura-chan. Naruto didn't seem to agree with Sasuke, thought, when he shouted, "I do! I disapprove of the match!"

"Baka," Sasuke muttered while rubbing his hand through his hair and over his face. "I know you'll take care of her, and I know she could do worse – a lot worse. I've seen her do worse. You're my brother so I may be biased, but I trust her with you. However, there are other things to consider…"

He trailed off for a moment as he looked to be a mix of uncertainty and anger. Conversations for Sasuke, like most Uchiha men, did not come easy. They were taught from a young age to be obedient, silent, and repressive in order to be the most effective shinobi possible. Expressing ones feelings was not something that happened very often. Sasuke's face contorted for a moment to find words, but Naruto quickly came to his rescue.

"Look teme-number-one, Sakura-chan may act all tough and happy all the time, but she's got some problems," he muttered, coming to a standstill behind Sasuke to stare Itachi down. Itachi felt the urge to roll his eyes for the briefest of moments. Of course he knew that. It did not require explaining. But he didn't interrupt and allowed Naruto to continue, "And she works really hard to keep away from her problems. Like she's married to her job, or something. Anyway, she's sensitive. I can't tell you how many times teme-number-two over here had made her cry just 'cause he said something stupid and insensitive to Sakura-chan."

"The dobe is going on a tangent, but he's right. Sakura pours her heart into everything. It's what makes her such a horrible, yet such a formidable, shinobi. She's runs on emotions even though we are taught never to show our emotions. However, her emotions relate directly to her fighting style and prowess, which makes here disturbingly strong. This filters into the rest of her life though," Sasuke murmured with the thoughtful look dawning his face once again. "Let me give you an example. How long have you…had feelings…for Sakura?"

Itachi thought this through for a moment. When had his feelings for Sakura changed? He supposed it was probably the day she metabolized the alcohol in his system when she was sixteen. It had been the first time he had recognized her as anything other than his little brother's chunin teammate. However, that had simply been physical attraction back then. He supposed it had taken time after that for his physical attentions towards her to morph into something bigger. It took him spending more time with her to realize that he was compatible with her in that way. But it had been a while. He supposed that after that day things were certainly different. He found himself jealous of other men who garnered the girl's attention. He also reveled in the attention she gave him and enjoyed her company profusely.

"At least a year?" he finally conceded although he wasn't sure on the exact timeline of everything. "But more so in the past six months."

Sasuke sighed as if that had been the answer he had been expecting. "Alright," he said. "That sounds about right. But that's the thing with Sakura. When she finds something she covets, she gives it her all. Sakura's been in love with you since she was five."

"Five?" Itachi questioned. He certainly remembered their first meetings. It's not every day that one meets a child with pink hair, but it had been such an inconsequential meeting at the time. He hadn't really thought all that much about it. Had her feelings really been so…continuous?

"Of course," Naruto interrupted his thoughts, "It was just a childhood crush at first. She was only five. But it grew into something more over the years. Sakura-chan has always had a soft spot for you. Ever since you rescued us from the chunin exams especially."

That was around the time that they had started seeing more of each other. Sasuke formed a special bond with his teammates after that particular ordeal, and he began inviting them over more and more. Naruto's apartment was too small for them to spend time together, and Sakura found her parents much too embarrassing to have the boys over. So most of their spare time was spent at the Uchiha compound or causing trouble in town, which also meant that Itachi saw more and more of the rosette. Once her parents died, Sakura became a relatively permanent fixture around the house, even going as far as to stay with them for several weeks while she saved up money for her own apartment. He supposed it couldn't be helped that any childhood crush that she may have formed would have blossomed under such a setting. Many mornings he would help Sakura and Sasuke train before going on missions, and then they would eat dinner together if he was home. Now that he reflected, they saw a lot more of each other in a rather rabid span of time.

It was a bit ironic that it had taken him so long to catch up because he was under the impression that Sakura had spent a good deal of her life looking at her teammates back. But now she was strong, now she was sure of herself, and she knew exactly what she had wanted – just like she had when she went to the Godaime asking for an apprenticeship. But Itachi had caught up and now Sakura knew of his feelings for her, and he wasn't going to let her go. He could now grasp Sasuke's and Naruto's concern. They weren't concerned that he would break her heart purposely – they were concerned that he wasn't aware of what he was getting into and break her heart accidentally. Of course, he had no such intentions. He was nearly twenty-three, and although he hadn't had a serious relationship yet, he merely believed it was because he hadn't found the right person. Most of the women who were eligible and up to Uchiha standards just wouldn't do – they were usually too fan-girlish to ever garner Itachi's attentions. Now, though, he gathered that he had found the perfect woman to form a bond with. He wasn't about to stop this relationship from becoming what he hoped it would.

Being an Uchiha meant being certain before you took any serious leap, and he was no different. Sakura wasn't the type to jump into a relationship unless she was certain of her feelings as well, so there shouldn't be too much to worry about.

"Your concern is understood," Itachi finally stated, "And unnecessary."

Sasuke was an Uchiha, and Sasuke understood Itachi, so he nodded his head in comprehension and stood up to walk away. "Alright," he finally stated. Naruto looked between the two brothers, not understanding the silent conversation that was going on. But Sasuke finally finished, "There is nothing we can do to protect you from Kakashi, though. Best of luck."

X

She was standing by her stove, hands flipping the spatula in her hand, when he jumped into her living room window gracefully. Dawn was barely peaking over the horizon, and the spring air was crisp with a bitter chill that alluded to the fact that it wasn't summer quite yet. Her voice filled the room as she hummed a tune to herself, dancing a little in her medic uniform.

"Your omelet is on the table. I'll be right in," she said chirpily without turning around to even acknowledge him. He let out a deep chuckle before moving into the small dining area that was attached to her kitchen. A glass of orange juice, an omelet, and some cooked pickles were already sitting on the table when he slid into the chair. Only moments later, Sakura pranced into the room with her own glass and plate. "When'd you say you'd be back?" she asked.

"I should return by Monday evening," he replied smoothly, biting into the first bit of his omelet. If there was one good thing that came out of Sakura's parents dying, it was that she had to learn how to cook for herself – and whom else would she learn from but Uchiha Mikoto? Sakura rivaled his mother in terms of culinary prowess only because Mikoto had taught Sakura everything the Uchiha matriarch knew about cooking. He reveled in the amazing tastes of a simple omelet that she could create.

Sakura could tell that he liked the omelet. He would close his eyes for a moment after every bite, and the food stayed in his mouth a few moments longer than necessary. A smile spread across her face before she dug into her food as well. Damn she was a good cook. "What's the mission?" she asked in order to make conversation.

The arched eyebrow she received in response was the only answer she needed – he couldn't tell her. She huffed a bit in exasperation, but she understood his need for anonymity. It could mean the difference between life and death for him. She was surprised, however, when he chose to respond.

"I'm meeting an informant. That's all I can tell you," he said easily. Sakura felt a little bit of relief wash over her. This mission wasn't some insanely dangerous assassination or tracking mission. Sure, it was probably more dangerous than any missions she's been on alone, but by Itachi's standards, it was more like a break. "What will you do while I'm gone?"

"I'm going to train with Yamato-taichou some more," Sakura replied. Yamato, or Tenzou as he is called in ANBU, was her ANBU practical trainer who she would be working with for the next few months. She was glad to be taught by someone she was familiar with. Yamato had taken over Team Seven with Sai for a few months when Sasuke went to train with both Kakashi and Anko, just as his teammates had done with their respective shishous. "He also wants me to do some training with Kurenai-sensei since I'm a genjutsu type, and it will help me during the exams. He says a big difference between the ANBU exams and the jounin exams is that the ANBU exams uses S and A-ranked jutsu like really crazy genjutsu. He said that once, the entire ANBU exam was an elaborate genjutsu, and nobody passed, and he wants me to know how to combat and create such jutsu."

"Or," Itachi interjected, "I could train you in genjutsu."

Sakura looked at him, baffled. "You would?" she asked. Itachi was easily the most renowned genjutsu specialist in Konoha. Not even Kurenai-sensei, who was very, very good, could capture Itachi in a genjutsu for too long. Sakura had caught to two sparring just using genjutsu once, and it had been breathtaking. Both of them stood there with looks of pure concentration on their faces while chakra was being thrown about wildly. There was something scarier about that sparring match than any taijutsu fight that Sakura had seen because you couldn't see anything. You didn't know what was going on in the fight. All you could see was the way Itachi would wince and Kurenai's breathing would become harsher. It was beautifully disturbing.

"Hm."

Sakura beamed. She had never considered asking her boyfriend for help because she didn't want to ask for special treatment. Additionally, Itachi was already so busy, she didn't think that he would have time to train her. "I'll train with Kurenai-sensei first so I don't embarrass myself!"

"There's really no need for that," Itachi replied. Now that he was done with his omelet, he stood to take his leave. Sakura stood after him and walked up to him, her face alight with something akin to anticipation, excitement, and a little bit of anxiety. "I'll see you when I return home."

Sakura smiled and took a step closer. Itachi did the rest. Putting one hand at the base of her neck and the other around her waist, he pulled her to him and tilted her head so he could angle it better. His lips met hers in a soft yet passionate kiss. Sakura melted, her body flushing against his as on arm wrapped around his ribs to clutch onto his shoulders while the other ended tangled in his hair. It was a far more intimate embrace than they had experienced so far, and Itachi felt a surge of heat rush through him as his heart beat began to accelerate and adrenaline coursed through him. As her lips moved against his, the kiss became a little harder and a little more passionate.

Itachi slipped his tongue from his mouth and traced her bottom lip, taking things further than they ever had in the span of their month-long relationship (despite the fact that he had really only spent about half that time in Konoha). Tentatively, Sakura's mouth opened for him to explore. He was holding her tighter now, trying to close any distance between them even though there was none. Heat surged through his entire body when she surprisingly emitted a noise from the back of her mouth that sounded like a moan to him. The desire for her was getting the best of him; his body taking on a life of its own as her heady scent and touch flooded him. In a flurry of passionate kisses and tongue and pressing closer, it surprised him that he heard the front door knock at all.

"Oh Sa-ku-ra, it's time for work!" came a sing-song voice from the other side of the door. Itachi reluctantly pulled back when he heard a key slip into the door and twist. Apparently Ino had a key to Sakura's apartment. Sakura, for one, was wondering why she bothered to announce herself and knock in the first place. Usually Ino just barged in without warning, but her befuddlement was answered when the door cracked open just enough for Ino's voice to sing once again. "Are you two decent? That's right; I can sense your man-candy in there."

"Man candy?" Itachi echoed in an amused voice. That was a new one. Sakura just turned to him and gave him a lopsided grin. But her chest was still heaving, and her delicious lips were swollen, and it took all of his willpower not to attack her with a barrage of kisses once again. He leaned down and gave her another kiss on the lips, bidding his goodbye, before slipping out of the window as Ino hopped into the apartment.

Leaving the village a little later than he wanted was worth it, he decided, as he slipped out the village and began to take the road west towards Ame.

It was a little over a day's walk from Konoha to the border town where he would be meeting his informant – the same one he had been meeting once every few months since he was eighteen years old. Only the Godaime Hokage knew of his inside with the Akatsuki. In return for the information he gave her, she did not pester or punish him when he refused to tell her where he was keeping Orochimaru's ring. Nobody could know that – it was safest to only put himself in danger.

This didn't come without payment to his informant, though. His friend in the Akatsuki was currently in the middle of peace-talks, through Itachi, with the Godaime. The overall goal was for him to escape the Akatsuki and seek refuge in Konoha until the rest of them could be killed. After that, he would be granted clemency to live in Fire Country conceded that he didn't try to do anything to harm the nation. It amused Itachi greatly to know that one of the Akatsuki had fallen in love with a young female on the other side of Fire Country, near the shore, and that's why he wanted to badly to escape. However, he got the feeling that many of the Akatsuki weren't in the organization by choice.

He had met his particular friend, if you could call him that, when he had shown up in Konoha when Itachi was thirteen. The member had asked Itachi to join the organization to be his partner. Of course, Itachi had refused, but the member was not deterred. He returned several times after that, stating that there was just something he liked about Itachi and he found 'the kid' amusing. Itachi wasn't sure if he liked being referred to as 'kid' by the informant, even now, but he actually enjoyed the man's company despite the fact the he was an S-class criminal.

He stepped into the secluded clearing several miles outside of Rain Country where their meetings usually took place. He didn't have to wait very long, though. The light flare of familiar chakra was what told Itachi that his acquaintance was in the area and intended on meeting up with him. Itachi gave the smallest burst of his own chakra to reveal his location, before preparing for a fight. It had never come to that, but he was precariously near enemy territory, and it didn't do well to be unprepared.

There was a muffled grunt from the edge of the forest just before a large figure in a black and red cloak stepped into the clearing. Pulling off the thicket hat that adorned his blue hair, Hoshigaki Kisame grinned at Itachi.

"Hey, kid!"

X

"I made botamochi," Sakura called out as she stepped into the Uchiha main house. The passionate argument going on between Naruto and Sasuke – undoubtedly about something stupid – could be heard from her place at the front door. Mikoto's head popped out of the kitchen and into the hallway to find the source of the voice, her friendly face beaming at Sakura.

"Hello Sakura-chan. Thank you for bringing dessert!" she called. Sakura walked into the kitchen where she could see Naruto and Sasuke bickering in the dining room. Fugaku was sitting in his normal place at the head of the low table, a vein in his temple beginning to pulsate. This was no doubt due to Naruto's boisterous yelling and Sasuke's immature, snide comments. There were two pieces of paper sitting on the table, one in front of each of the boys respectively, which seemed to be object of the debate.

"What are you two arguing about?" Sakura sighed as she sat down the dessert she made and went into the dining room, folding her arms across her chest annoyance. Fugaku looked almost relieved at the interruption and seemed to pass a grateful glance her way. She bowed lightly, "Fugaku-sama."

Fugaku greeted her, but with the attention off of them for a mere moment, the boys went back to bickering immediately. "No, don't put that on there!" Naruto cried out as Sasuke scribbled something down on the paper in front of him. Naruto was glaring murderously at his own paper, comparing his responses to Sasuke's.

"What are you two doing?" Sakura asked, sighing in frustration.

"Filling out our applications to ANBU," Sasuke replied shortly. The process in getting into ANBU was a little tedious for those who were not recommended by a jounin sensei, an ANBU official, or another delegate within Konoha. First, they would have to fill out an application. If the application was accepted, they had to attend a practical; meaning they went into a room with a whole bunch of ANBU captains and show their skills in genjutsu, taijutsu, and ninjutsu in the matter of five minutes. If they passed that, then they were given an ANBU practical instructor, like how Yamato was instructing Sakura, and they trained. If their ANBU instructor felt they were ready, they would then be allowed to take the ANBU exams the next time they were given. Those who were recommended by someone, such as Sakura was, were automatically given an ANBU instructor and were guaranteed to take the ANBU exams whether their instructor thought they were ready or not. Of course, taking the exams when your instructor says you're not ready would be foolish – at least, that's what Sakura thought.

"So you guys are going to apply, huh?" Sakura asked as snatched the paper out of Naruto's hands, reading over the questions thoroughly. He hadn't written anything down yet. Probably because he wanted to be sure of what to write before he ruined the application.

"Yes. Not all of us have the Godaime Hokage to recommend us," Sasuke replied bitterly.

Sakura merely smiled. "If you're having trouble figuring out what to write, why don't you just ask Itachi or Shisui to help you fill it out?" she asked.

Sasuke scoffed. "Itachi wouldn't help," he rebuked. "Unless…someone he was close to asked him for pointers."

Sakura rolled her eyes when she understood where his implications were lying. "I'm not going to seduce my boyfriend into helping you with the ANBU applications! Ask him yourself!" she hissed.

Fugaku actually chuckled at that comment, forcing Sakura to internally concede that she had forgotten he was there. What would have been a very awkward conversation quickly turned into a pleasant one when Mikoto whisked into the dining room with food. Sakura helped her serve dinner and tea, and the group began eating the delicious meal happily, all previous squabbles being forgotten about.

"Sakura-chan, do you know when Itachi was supposed to return?" Mikoto asked casually as they finished off their dinners.

"He said he was supposed to be back sometime this evening," Sakura replied. She hadn't even realized that Monday had come so quickly with all the training she had been doing. All day Friday had been spent with Yamato, Saturday with Kurenai-sensei, and she worked at the hospital on Sunday. Today had been her only day off so she was enjoying a 'family dinner' at the Uchiha main house despite the fact that most of the 'family,' i.e. Shisui and Itachi, weren't present. She shrugged, "But it isn't abnormal for these missions to run a little long."

Mikoto nodded her head in understanding. Sakura began to pull plates off the table with Mikoto, dumping them into the sink and grabbing the plate of botamochi she had brought along with serving plates and tea. Mikoto set the botamochi down on the table as Sakura brought in the teapot and some cups. When her pager began to go off, the one that hospital staff issued for on-call doctors, she inwardly groaned. It was supposed to be her day off, dammit. She looked down at the black little screen and red the message. '911 ANBU4 CAP CD:9'

Her mind went through the code: emergency, ANBU squad 4, captain, code 9 – meaning the person was a breath away from death… ANBU squad four…captain…

The breath caught in her throat, the blood draining from her face as the teapot hit the ground, splashing as the hot liquid scalded her and the porcelain cut her bare feet. She couldn't care less, though.

"Sakura-chan, what's wrong?" Naruto yelped in surprise, jumping up. Mikoto was already rushing to clean up the mess, but Sakura paid her no mind as she sprinted out of the house, running faster than she ever had before.

X

He was late.

The sun had long since set on Konoha, but he was approaching rapidly. His talks with Kisame had gone on longer than usual, but there was a lot of information to get through. Apparently the Akatsuki had also lost Akasuna no Sasori's ring when he died three years prior, and they were looking for that now as well. It should take the heat off of him for a while, but it meant the Godaime Kazekage was in for a few spies being sent into his village. That would not do. The last time there had been spies in Suna, Gaara had died, after all.

Kisame had admitted that they didn't know where Sasori's ring was, and they were assuming it was with his grand-uncle, the brother to the acclaimed medic, Chiyo. Kisame had just asked Itachi to keep his ears open for him because if Kisame could come up with some answers, then he was more likely to hold onto his position within the Akatsuki. He would also look less suspicious. Itachi was sure he was already catching heated questions as to where he ran off to every month. Most of the time, though, Kisame was seeing his girlfriend on the shores of Fire Country, but other times he was meeting with Itachi.

As Itachi neared the looming gates of his home village, something unsettling coursed through him. He couldn't quite explain it, but something was wrong, very, very wrong. Indeed, he assumed as he approached the gates, something must be terribly wrong. Hyuuga Neji was standing in the middle of the gates, his intense gaze fixed on Itachi. His mouth was set in a grim line, and although his forehead was hidden, he could see the crease in it by the way his eyes were tilted.

Before Itachi could question what was going on, Neji spoke, "Aburame Muta is dead."

Itachi gulped, a fresh wave of pure, unadulterated fear coursing through him. In a voice that was much too quiet and much too weak, he croaked, "What about Inuzuka Hana…Shisui."

Neji gave a great sigh, "You need to go to the hospital."

He burst through the doors to the room where he was instructed to wait less than three minutes later. His mother, father, and brother, along with Naruto were sitting in chairs scattered across the room. Also in the room was Hana's brother, Kiba, and mother. Surprisingly, though, there was another man in the room who Itachi did not expect to see.

"Itachi," the man greeted. Uchiha Kagami was sitting in a chair, legs nervously twitching in anxiety. Shisui was the spitting image of his father, and it nearly pained Itachi to look at him now, especially since he had been the one to send Shisui on this mission. The unveiled fear in the man's eyes was suffocating, and Itachi found himself wondering if Fugaku would outwardly express his fear if it were Sasuke or Itachi lying on the table in the other room.

Everybody in the room was looking around nervously. Mikoto was biting her lip, Fugaku looked more serious than ever, Sasuke was paler than humanly possible, and Naruto looked like he was ready to jump out of his skin. Not to mention the Inuzukas, who seemed to be in their own world of fear and anxiety.

The door to the operating room where Shisui was currently being worked on was beyond a short hallway that was attached to the waiting room. Inuzuka Hana's operation room was adjacent to that door. There was a flurry of staff running in and out, and all Itachi could do was stare down at the father of his best friend.

"Kagami-oji-san," Itachi greeted weakly. He looked around the room expectantly, waiting for someone to tell him what the hell had happened.

The answer came from the busty blond Hokage that burst into the room, nearly colliding with Itachi. "Ah, you're here," she greeted frostily. "I just had to notify Aburame Muta's family of his death. The seal on his arm destroyed his body, at least that's what Hana told us before she passed out. They were attacked by missing-nin on their way back from their reconnaissance mission, but that's all we could gather from her. Shisui was worst off, it seems. He apparently did everything he could to protect his team. If it weren't for his body flicker technique, they wouldn't have even gotten this far. He literally used the last of his chakra to transport himself and Hana to the front gates."

"Why aren't you working on them? Why aren't you with Shisui?" Itachi asked instantly, staring the Hokage dead in the eye.

To his surprise, her lip quirked upward a bit. "Sakura insisted on working on Shisui," she replied, her tone almost amused. "Came crashing in here, threatening anyone who got in her way, and took over as lead surgeon in the matter of a minute. Shizune is with Hana."

His next words were cut off by the door to Shisui's examination room slamming open. A male medic stuck his head out, the relief on his face evident when he caught a glimpse of the Hokage. "Hokage-sama, Sakura-senpai requires your assistance."

"She should have plenty of help," the Godaime replied a little offhandedly as she walked to the door.

The medic paled a bit before glancing back into the room. "She made two of the nurses cry…again. It seems she is more…hot-blooded than normal," he remarked quietly.

Itachi was sure he heard something akin to a growl come from the operating room, and it sounded startlingly like Sakura.

"Well then, can't have you short staffed now, can we?" Tsunade agreed, stepping into the operating room with a small smile adorned on her face. Moments later, two nurses came walking out of the room, clutching onto each other as tears fell down the cheeks.

"She's…so…nice…most of the time," one sniffed. The other nodded her head in agreement as they made their way out of the waiting room.

"Sakura-chan is scary when she's in surgery," Naruto commented weakly.

Nobody responded, but everyone silently agreed with the blond nin. But for now, all they could do was wait.

AN: Alright, there's that chapter. I was suffering from serious writers block, but then I started on the sequel to Lemon Juice, and it gave me inspiration. The plot for this chapter spilled onto the page in the matter of three sessions (most chapters take me four or five). So I hope you liked it. We got some Itachi-Sakura action, and the main plot for the rest of the story was actually introduced. I'll let your foreshadowing abilities think of what's going to happen next.

Anyway, I hope you enjoyed!

Please review!