Hello my dear readers!! I'm terribly sorry for not updating sooner, but school's been hell and I've been having this major block… fortunately, the ideas came back, and I've finished this chapter!!

I hope you all enjoy it, I certainly enjoyed writing it!!

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto, but I certainly own the plot of the story!!

Please review people, reviews make me happy and they give me that rush of energy to write more quickly!!

In the Past – with 4 year old Sakura

The small girl ran as fast as she could, tears flowing freely from her eyes, rolling down her cheeks to then fall on the floor. She ran into the forest, stumbling several times in the process, going farther into the forest with each step, and after a while, exhausted from all the running she had done, she stumbled and fell.

She kept in place, not bothering to get up, just crying and letting the earth stain her clothes and skin.

Like every day, the mean group of girls had bullied her, even pushing her to the ground, the only way she had had to get away was run, away from them, away from everything. It was painful to hear what they said.

After some time she sat up, tears still running down her face, short pink hair ruffled and sticking to her face. Her hands were dirty as well as her clothes.

If only she was stronger…

"Are you ok?" she briskly got up and turned around to see a boy, older than her. He had spiky raven black hair and onyx eyes. His head was slightly tilted and he looked slightly worried.

"I- I'm fine." She mumbled looking down trying to clean her tears with her small hands, but only managing to get dirt into her face.

The boy approached her, and she prepared herself for the mean words.

But none came. He just gently pushed her hands away from her face and cleaned her face with his clean hands.

"Why are you crying? Did someone hurt you?" she looked up at him and hesitantly nodded.

"But i-it's ok, I-I'm used to i-it." he tilted his head and shook it.

"It's never ok to hurt people." He took her hand and pulled her gently, but she stayed in place.

"There's a stream ahead, you can wash your hands there." He explained with a gentle smile and she nodded, letting him lead her through the forest.

After a few minutes he stopped and signalled for the stream. She silently made her way to it and washed her hands.

When she was done she turned to him, her tears having stopped flowing.

"A-anou." She called, and he looked down from the sky to look at her.

"Yes?" she fidgeted with the hem of her shirt.

"Anoune… w-what's your n-name o-onii-chan?" he grinned and extended his hand at her.

"I'm Shisui!!" she hesitantly put her small hand over his.

"I-I'm S-Sakura." He enclosed her hand in his and shook it, a grin in his face.

"Hajimemashite Sakura-chan!!" she let a shy smile appear in her face.

"Hajimemashite Shisui-san!"

(A.N.: Hajimemashite means I'm glad to meet you.)

Chatper 19 – Memories, whispers and… closure?

Present day, Monday, March 17th

Her strides were confident. She moved elegantly, as if she had been born jumping from tree branch from tree branch. She moved stealthily, not making a sound, not even the bell that hung from her katana emitted a sound.

Once in a while she faked falling to the floor, only to grab the next branch with her hand and balance herself to the branch following.

They'd followed her into the forest, and every time they got closer than 30 feet (9 meters) from her, she disappeared from sight to reaper 30 feet ahead from them. She wanted them to follow her, but she wanted them away, it was as if she was playing with them.

As he looked around, he noticed Sasuke was ahead of them, as for Naruto, he kept by his side. They were around 3 miles (4.827 km) away from the village, and he knew that half a mile ahead there was the ocean.

She kept jumping from tree branch to tree branch, and they kept following, desperately trying to catch her, because without her they were nothing. Kakashi would no longer be sensei, Naruto would no longer be Baka, and Sasuke… he would no longer have his sanity.

"Damn it." he focussed ahead once more as he heard the blond curse. "We lost her." Sasuke was emitting a very dangerous aura, but since he could sense her and he was still moving ahead, they hadn't quite lost her.

"Not quite Naruto." The blond glanced a him and then looked at his best friend/rival that was still ahead of them, having forgotten he wasn't alone.

"Sakura-chan's never been like this before." He mumbled as he jumped to another branch. "But I'm pretty sure amnesia doesn't cause personality changes." The copy ninja raised a brow at the Hokage to-be.

"And how do you know that?" Naruto shrugged.

"Baa-chan told me after I asked her if something would happen to me because of the amnesia I get when I use the Kyuuki." Kakashi gave a curt nod, understanding.

They kept following Sasuke, silence settling except for the sounds of the forest.

"Maybe her personality hasn't changed." He noticed the blond shifting.

"What do you mean Kakashi-sensei?"

"Doesn't she make you remember of something?" there was silence as Naruto thought.

"Well… no, not really." Kakashi sighed, figures Naruto wouldn't have noticed.

"Try to remember, when she gets angry or when she's with an altered spirit, she's a bit like that." Naruto made a thoughtful sound but said nothing. "Maybe this is her true personality." Naruto grunted.

"No, this isn't her true personality, Sakura-chan is nice, she's not mean and sadistic, she's a good person." He seemed to have it sculpted deep into his head, which made Kakashi sigh.

"There's also the possibility that she only showed a part of herself to us." That seemed to make its way into Naruto's brain, making the teen consider the possibility.

The light breeze felt nice against her skin, and the smell of the ocean below was soothing. She still had an hour or so before she had to meet her aniki, so she could still afford to spend some more time with the other 3 males.

She looked up at the sky, only a few white clouds were seen, being carried by the wind and casting different sorts of shadows over the ocean. Some birds flew past her, chirping happily, flying freely towards the sky.

Closing her eyes and focussing, she made a mental image of the forest, with the help of her chakra, and located the 3 males, they were close, a couple of minutes away.

A small smirk made its way to her lips, and she leaned back against the tree, her eyes in the horizon, observing all the movements of the ocean and enjoying the sound of the waves crashing against the cliff wall.

For a moment she wondered, exactly who was she? But that thought was put aside quickly. Sure, she wanted to know, but what if she didn't like it? What if… what if so many things, but deep down, she knew she wanted, badly, to know who she was.

Forgetting all about the current situation, she smiled as something played in her mind.

"Shisui." She whispered softly, as if not to disturb nature. "His name's Shisui." She was happy, a concrete memory, even if she looked pathetic in her memory, she remembered someone connected to her, and it was a progress, and it wasn't in the form of a nightmare, those nightmares that made her wake up edgy and terrified and that she couldn't remember clearly, only how it had felt.

Her thoughts were broken when she saw Sasuke landing on the middle of the clearing of the cliff, Naruto and Kakashi were almost here too.

She watched as he stared into the horizon for a second before turning to her, his expression devoid of any emotion, his sharingan staring straight into her eyes.

"Sakura." He spoke, nor softly or coldly, more like a statement. She pushed herself away from the tree and tilted her head.

"If you say so." she shrugged and took a step forward. "I don't know." He stood still, his eyes still on hers, but a brow rose.

"You're supposed to be the brains of the team." He stated mockingly, and she frowned. There was something about him, he was… how to say it…

"You're an ass, did'ya know that?" she noticed the way his jaw clenched, and honestly, it amused her greatly.

Taking a few more steps forward, she stopped a couple of feet in front of him.

"The little boy who lost his clan, lusting for power to kill his own brother." She made a point to smirk smugly as he narrowed his eyes at her. "Such an egoist, selfish and self-centred life don't ya think?" she took a step closer, it truly was fun to, as they say, press his buttons, or just plainly provoking him, if we want to be more specific.

"There are so many people in the world that lost their families, that have nothing, and that fight to survive and rebuild their life." She paused, not breaking eye contact with him and getting closer, their bodies only inches away. "Yet you…" she smirked. "You pushed back all the help offered and just preferred to do as your brother said." She leaned closer, their faces a breath away. "You chose to become what you hated." She saw his sharingan spinning wildly at her whispered words, and she backed away and laughed.

"And it's true at that, even if I don't remember myself, I remember others, and let me tell you, you make a lot of bad things." He watched all of her movements, this person… it couldn't be Sakura, because Sakura had a kind heart and didn't spoke words to hurt others, she was a healer, not a destroyer. But it was her, and he didn't like it, because her words cut him deeper than any knife, kunai or katana could ever cut.

"You talk as if you know me." She tilted her head and joined her hands behind her back at his words.

"One doesn't have to know another to speak facts." She closed her eyes for a moment and then looked over her shoulder, a smile playing on her lips as she saw their sensei and the Dobe.

"I don't have to know what clouds are made of to know they are white or grey." She looked back at him. "And I don't have to know you to know I hate you." she spoke so calmly, as if she was saying the sky was blue. And it made him snap.

But it wasn't because of her words, it was because of the way she said them. He knew he had done many things to make her hate him, and he admitted his sins and accepted her hate, but her indifference… it was different, because she was acting as if she hadn't, once upon a time, been in love with him, and, once upon a time, been his team mate… his friend.

So he used his skills, specifically his speed, to, in the blink of an eye, be in front of her, and his temper only worsened when she looked at him with an unfazed, bored look.

"What do you know about me?" he hissed out to her, his words harsh and cold, wanting to know what she remembered from him.

"You?" she smiled that oh so innocent smile that fooled everyone, even him, had he not known, due to the situation, that it wasn't genuine. "I remember feeling stepped on, ignored, underestimated, pushed around, used." Her words were harsher than his, and her eyes had turned from bright emerald green to dark dangerous green. "All good memories." Her sarcasm hurt him, because he knew he had treated her like… he didn't even want to say it.

But even with the tension forming in the air, his genius was working, because if he wanted her back, her memories couldn't be all bad and of the past, they had to be new ones, some that represented him now, not back then. And as he got a, brilliant or nor, idea, a smirk made its way to his lips.

Using his skills, which had been being so very underestimated lately, he pushed her back against the tree she had been leaning against when he had landed on the clearing, his hands resting on her shoulders, his head bent down so his lips were against her ear.

"Should I make you associate some new feelings to me then?" she narrowed her eyes at him and his stupid smug smirk.

"Kusokurae." She hissed out, to which he smirked, and the moment she was about to skilfully move away, he did something that shocked her. (A.N.- Kusokurae means fuck off.)

Onyx eyes kept fixated in emerald green ones, and before she could move away, because he had good senses, he made his move, and he was sure he heard Naruto choke and Kakashi cough, both in shock. Because, ladies and gentleman, Uchiha Sasuke, alleged walking ice-cube, kissed (amnesiac at the moment) Haruno Sakura.

He watched as her eyes widened in shock and then narrowed to a full out murderous glare. She turned her head away, breaking the kiss and glared at him.

"What was th-hm" he didn't let her finish her sentence as he captured her lips with his again, how he had longed for this. Hell, she was the reason he had come back, he'd wanted a kiss from her from day 1, even if he wouldn't admit it.

He felt her trying to move away, trying to push him back, so he moved his hands so he was holding hers next to her head, his eyes boring into hers, even if it was getting hard to not close them. She wasn't going anywhere, he wasn't just gonna let her go, not when she was so close, not when he could taste her, feel her, smell her, have her all to himself.

Her attempts to move away were getting weaker and more and more half-hearted, and he took advantage of it, gently nibbling her lower lip and tracing her piercing with his tongue, it wasn't a bad feeling, juts different, and he was extremely pleased when he felt a low moan coming from deep in her throat and her nails digging in the back of his hands. He could charm woman when he wanted to too, although he usually didn't have to resort to kissing, hell, woman threw themselves at his feet, which he found pathetic, and, just to be clear, he only charmed woman to get information.

This time he was the one to break the kiss, letting her breathe and smirking at her, he'd make her remember everything. He joined their lips once again, this time in a gentler manner, and, since she wasn't trying to move away anymore, released her hands, making his own travel down her body, one settling on the back of her neck and the other going lower and settling possessively on her waist, pressing their bodies closer.

For his pleasant surprise, her hands fell on his shoulders and then she slid them to his chest, where she clenched her fists in his shirt, followed by her eyes slowly closing.

She gripped his shirt, trying to get some sort of logical thought, but finding none as his lips moved against hers. Her eyes closed, he was just so… overwhelming, having the power to make her mind go blank and her senses go high and focus only in him.

His tongue slid across her lips and she pressed her body further against the tree, trying to regain some control, which she was finding to be so very hard. She gripped his shirt tighter and slightly parted her lips with a moan as he nibbled her lower lip, slightly tugging her piercing with his teeth, and that's when it got intense, because that was when he closed his own eyes and let his instincts and desires come out, exploring her sweet cavern with his tongue, memorizing every crook and nook and drowning in her sweet taste. And she kissed back with as much passion.

A few months ago

She let out a frustrated sigh and looked over her shoulder.

"Now, seriously, couldn't you do this tomorrow??" she whined. Her answer was silence and she let her head drop on the soft pillow, it was frustrating when he did that, concentrating in nothing else, and forgetting that this particular canvas was a person, a very tired one at that, that had just spent quite a lot of energy healing and cleaning a stubborn gaki's house (Yeah, because the one labelled Teme was just a stubborn brat).

"C'mon, at least say something." She whined again, which, frustratingly, once again, got her no response from the male.

The bed shifted and she felt him move over to her laying form. Looking back a little, she saw him laying several new flasks of ink, all of which with different colours, and several paint brushes around her body.

"You gotta be kiddin' me." She muttered. "Ain't ya finished yet?" she mumbled against the pillow.

"Be quiet." He whispered and she felt him straddle her hips, his body leaning over her nearly naked one, and he was shirtless at that. It wasn't that she was attracted to him, hell she saw men more unclothed than this when she did check-ups at the hospital, but it just made her uncomfortable to have her team-mate-- her friend this close, she had yet to get used to this, and she had done it with him more than a couple of times before.

"I'm tired." She mumbled, and a few seconds later she felt his hand stroking her cheek, not lovingly, just soothingly, she knew he didn't held any type of attraction towards her, they were just friends. Well, maybe he did, but just in an artistically way, just in the way where she became his living canvas, and they were fine with it.

"Just relax." He told her softly, even if his persona was stoic, he showed emotions to her, even if just barely.

"Fine." She muttered and let her body sink further against the soft mattress.

She felt every shift of his body through the light shifts of the bed, and as she did as he told, relaxed, she could hear him dipping a brush in one of the ink vials to then raise it and resume his art.

She felt the brush stroke her skin, the paint was cold against her body, and she unwillingly shivered, it wasn't exactly tropically hot in the room, and she was barely clothed, hell, she only had her panties on, good thing that she was laying on her stomach, and she wouldn't let him see her bare chest anyway.

After a few strokes with different brushes and different amounts of different paints, her body got used to the never lingering movements on her back, the light shifts of the bed, the way the dimmed lights (she wondered how he painted properly) lulled her to a state of almost hypnosis.

Her body was sure to get sore after she'd washed herself, this paint wasn't exactly easy to get off, she had to rub and scratch and rub some more for it to come off, but, somehow, after he finished and before she went home to take a shower, it was worth it, because his paintings were always, how to say it… unique and beautiful, and for those fleeting moments where she would look at herself in the mirror with him next her smiling his rare genuine smile, the dimmed lights and everything… in those fleeting moments, she felt free, she felt beautiful, she felt like a piece of art, a fleeting moment of pure perfection. And it was always like that, because each time, before she could see herself, he covered the mirror and made her stand in front of it in a unique way each time, and each time it took her breath away to see his true nature. Not the distant, annoying, idiot he was with everyone and everything else, the kind hearted, nice and amazing artist. Words that didn't seem to suit him, and yet they did.

"Can I ask you something?" she glanced at him with her peripheral vision, she could barely see him, just his tilted head, his bangs falling around the half of his face she could see and his eyes looking at something on her back.

"What is it Sai?" she felt him shift and felt the slow movement of a small brush move in swirls over her right shoulder, which she couldn't see.

He kept silent, and she saw his look soften, his emotional barrier being opened for her.

"We both know it's not romantic." He stated softly and removed the brush from her skin. She felt him bend over her and couldn't stop the light blush, the skin to skin proximity felt awkward.

"Know what?" she felt him blowing softly where his brush had previously been for a couple of seconds.

"Why did you told me you loved me?" she let her gaze drop to the sheets, she'd told him that hadn't she?

Silence settled and he didn't push her to answer, instead he got off of her and off the bed, to then take her hand and pull lightly, signalling her to get up. It was his sign, then he would walk to the mirror and keep his back to her while she got up and wrapped her arms around herself, covering herself.

And that's what happened, she got up, covered herself and walked to him. He handled her like someone would handle a fragile and priceless piece of porcelain, turning her gently in front of the covered mirror, his fingers moving around her body, never lingering anywhere, just moving her hair, her face, and then he took a step back observing her, and only when he was happy with what he had done did he walk to the mirror and took the black sheet off, letting her see his work, standing next to her with that genuine smile that made him even more handsome that he already was.

And just like every other time he'd done this, what he had painted took her breath away, and for these few moments she felt like a piece of art, she felt free and beautiful.

"I do love you Sai." She whispered, her eyes memorizing every little detail of the painting in her back. He stayed quiet, his eyes on the mirror, admiring his work, admiring his canvas. "I love Naruto like a brother, Kakashi-sensei like an older brother, Tsunade-shishou like a mother." She met his eyes on the mirror and smiled. "And I also love you." He tilted his head like a confused child, which he was when it came to emotions. "Like a team mate, like a friend…" she paused and kept smiling. "Like a brother, like family!" he smiled at her.

"Like family." He whispered and smiled. "Like family." He repeated with more confidence.

"Yeah, like family." And a comfortable silence settled between them, a piece of art being admired and the feeling of belonging being cherished.

Present day, Monday, March 17th

Why? Why? Why? Why?

Why couldn't she do anything? Why couldn't she just push him away and punch him or kick him? Why couldn't she just free herself and walk away? Why? Why? Why?

Why couldn't she stop herself from enjoying his kisses and nibbles? Why couldn't she stop the moans from escaping? So many whys, but the main question was just one.

Why was she so affected by him?

His kisses made her mind go blank. Wherever his hands touched started to tingle. He was just overwhelming, breathtaking. And he irradiated so much passion, he kissed with so much passion, and he touched her so softly, so gently… so… so lovingly.

He broke the kiss they had been sharing, their breaths were raged, and she took in as much air as she could, her eyes heavy and refusing to open fully, just a little.

Her mind was spinning, being consumed by darkness and then light and then images, voices, flashes, but she couldn't focus on any of it.

She gazed up at him with half lidded eyes, his own were half lidded as well, but they remained blank, as if he didn't anyone to know what he was thinking.

He leaned down to her face, and as his lips touched her skin she closed her eyes, her hands tightening on his shirt and pulling him closer on their own accord.

He trailed kisses over her cheek, to her jaw and then to her neck, and she could do nothing but moan as he did so. His lips were so warm, and soft, and addicting, and he had this unique taste she couldn't get enough of, this bittersweet taste.

His lips trailed down her neck, and when he reached her collarbone she leaned her head to give him more access, even if her logical mind told her to just get the hell outta there. He sucked and nibbled on the soft flesh, and she whimpered, one of her hands moving upwards, her fingers tangling themselves on his raven locks (once again, her hands were moving on their own accord).

Her inner world was crashing down and rebuilding itself at the same time, all because of this boy, man, and his kisses, and she hated that she was enjoying it, because she didn't want to enjoy it.

Her closed eyes half opened when she felt more than heard his whispered words, his lips moving over her pulse, but they closed again as he trailed kisses up her neck.

His lips settled near her ear and he leaned his head in hers gently, his eyes closed as he whispered words no one would ever know but her (and if she told anyone he would deny them).

His right hand cupped her cheek, thumb making soft circles on her cheek, his left hand on her waist, holding her as close to him as possible.

Soft whispers, soft secrets being confessed to the one that he would ever tell them to. Lips moving ever so lightly, fingers caressing, body pressed as close as possible.

And then she screamed, pushing him back violently, her eyes a light green close to silver, her face contorted in agony, hands flowing upwards to clutch her head. Hands tried to reach out to her, but were violently slapped away.

"Stay away from me." She screamed, her voice filled with pain.

"Sakura." A whisper followed by loud calls from behind him.

"Sakura-chan. Sakura-chan."

She walked away from the tree towards the cliff, body slightly shaking, head feeling as if it would explode. Arms and hands moved and as her feet touched the edge of the cliff her sleeveless vest was being held by her hand. Green close to silver eyes gazed at the waves below.

"Don't jump Sakura-chan." The calls kept going, and she looked over her shoulder. A crying and desperate blond, a just as desperate silver haired, and in the background, not having moved and inch, a broken boy, a slow tear running down his cheek.

And she jumped, the calls being ignored, everything being ignored. The cold oceanic air felt good against her burning skin and ready to explode head.

She closed her eyes and let the ocean consume her.

The sensei held his blond student (shouldn't it be ex-student?), preventing him from reaching the edge of the cliff to look, it couldn't be pretty to look at. The blond cried and struggled to get away, but staying within his senseis prevention hold all the same.

He personally felt like crying as well, but he wasn't one to cry like this, he only cried when he was alone, because he didn't want the pity of others.

One dark uncovered eye followed his other student (once again, shouldn't it be ex-student?), watching as the stoic raven haired boy walked to the edge and then stopped, his eyes slowly looking down, hands clenched inside of his pockets, his cold exterior not fooling him one bit.

Onyx eyes slowly looked down from the horizon to the ocean below, fists clenched and this heart breaking feeling consuming him alive, she'd jumped because of h-

Thoughts stopped, despair decreased as he saw her, still there, raven-like wings coming out of her back, wings that reminded him of the images on the story books of the fallen angels. Black wings that made her look like an angel, even if she didn't need them for that.

Wings flapped and her body stopped before hitting the water. Wings flapped again, and again, in a slow motion, making her body ascend in the air.

Onyx eyes followed all of her movements until she was at their level, 200 meters away from them.

She turned to face them, eyes still near silver green, and her right hand (which was free, the left one holding her vest) reached for her katana, slender fingers gripping the black handle and then starting to pull, the silver blade becoming visible and reflecting the sun.

Wide eyes watched in the background, tears gone and hope restored.

The sound of her katana being unsheathed was close to none, and after a few seconds she had it in from of her, as if she was going to attack them.

He noticed her lips barely moving, her hand starting to glow golden orange, the glow spreading through her katana until it was all orange.

She raised the golden orange glowing katana over her left, and as she moved her katana down to her right swiftly she murmured a "Katsu.".

As she moved her katana, the golden orange glow moved towards the cliff.

The last thing the 3 males heard was the sound of the bell in her katana, after that there was only the golden orange glow coming towards them and exploding.

From afar the explosion could be seen, the small amount of chakra used by the girl exploding and consuming almost 1,5 miles of the forest, the impact of the explosion being felt until 7 miles away.

I hope you all enjoyed this new chapter, I know it took me like… forever to update, but, well, we all have problems and blocks once in a while!!

Anyway, please be patient with me, I won't abandon anything!!

Man, did i have a lot of trouble to put the separating lines, i think i had to put them more than 4 times for them to stay... what a pain in the ¤¤¤

Please, please review!! Don't you juwt feel like clicking that little button saying 'Go' at the bottom of the page to review?? I bet you do!! :D

Oh, by the way, I just changed my pen name before updating this chapter to Sakura Yukimi, which means viewing the cherry blossom snow!! Did I choose well?? Opinions are welcomed!!