People! I come to you from the land of the sleepless! I've not been getting a very good night's sleep, and my creativity is seriously taking a hit. If I don't get the next chapter out Thusday, please don't riot!

But, anyway... Read on!

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8am, Konoha Hospital

"How is he?" Shikamaru asked hoarsely. Shizune turned to the group of young shinobi, all waiting outside Naruto's hospital room.

"He's gone into a catatonic state," she replied sadly. "Almost like a coma. It's only on machines and jutsus that he's staying alive."

"We never even had a chance to tell him that Sakura is alive," said Rock Lee, who had also taken Sakura's disappearance very hard.

"Uzumaki's gonna need a miracle for this one," Choji said. He looked down at the bag of chips in his hands and shook his head. "I'd give up all my chips so that he would wake up."

Ten Ten, whose pregnant belly was showing a bit, nodded. "I would give up all of my shuriken for Naruto."

Neji hugged her tight. "I'd even give up my Byakugan. I don't ever want to lose someone I care about again."

"I would… I'd rather go back to being the weak ninja a used to be!" Hinata said fiercely. Hinata hoped with all her heart that Naruto would awaken.

One by one, each of the ninja offered up something they'd trade for Naruto's well-being.

Shizune smiled wistfully. The only one that could save Naruto now was Sakura. And not because of her medical skills. Naruto had made up his mind; he didn't want to live without Sakura, and the blonde boy was hardly going to change his mind.

Same time, Akatsuki Hideout

When Sakura awoke, she had a deep feeling of unrest, as if she had forgotten to do something, but that she couldn't remember what that was.

However, that feeling was disregarded when Sakura recalled the events of the previous night.

Had Itachi really kissed her? Had it perhaps been a dream? She couldn't tell.

As Sakura always did, she checked to see if the door was locked, and this time, she found that is was unlocked.

Blessing her good fortunes, and instead of trying to escape, she retraced the route to the dining room.

To Sakura's delight, the smells of bacon, eggs, and pancakes flooded her nose, and overrode her senses. There was no fighting it now. She tiptoed into the kitchen and saw a tall, blue man at the hands of the frying pan.

"I knew you wouldn't run away from food," his deep voice chuckled, startling Sakura.

"Are those… pancakes?" she asked, mouth watering.

"Yup. Want some?" Kisame grinned at her. "Tobi was wrong. I do make one meal without fish: breakfast!"

Sakura nodded. "Good thing, too. Fish pancakes?" They both laughed.

"You know, Sakura," a deep voice said from the doorway. "As Itachi's whore, I really don't think you should be flirting with Kisame… un."

Sakura glared at Deidara. "I'm not Itachi's whore!" she yelled angrily. Kisame growled from behind her.

"Watch it, Blondie," he said menacingly. "Itachi would kill you if he heard you talk like that. And I'll back him up." Sakura blinked. Was Kisame defending her? Why would he do that?

Deidara rolled his visible eye.

"Uchiha is still sawing logs… un," he said. "I drugged his wine."

Sakura felt her throat contract. Was that why Itachi had acted that way? No, it was just a dream. She had to keep telling herself that.

"Why would I fall for an idiot's trick?" Itachi's cruel voice came from behind the blonde man. Deidara's eye got big and he scrambled off in a hurry. Kisame laughed.

"What an imbecile," he boomed.

Itachi didn't smile, but he did look a bit smug. Then he turned to Sakura.

"What did he say to you?" he asked calmly.

"He called me… your whore," Sakura said, blushing.

Itachi's face darkened.

"He wishes…" Tobi said, coming out of the dinning room.

Sakura looked up at Tobi with sarcastic eyes. "Don't you think that if Itachi really wanted me to be his whore, he would just force me? Do you think I could stand up to him?" she reasoned. "I'm a medic."

Tobi shrugged. "Whatever."

A tense silence came after that, until, luckily, Kisame announced that breakfast was ready.

Noon, Konoha Hospital

Inside Naruto's one-person room, he dreamed.

Ironically, Naruto's dream started out like Sakura's reoccurring nightmare.

Naruto was walking down a dark hallway, only he was just dressing in the shift that the hospital had put on him. He turned a corner and saw a body lying on the floor. However, instead of Neji, like in Sakura's dream, it was a younger version of himself, back when he wore that ridiculous orange jumpsuit. He could have been asleep, but there was a deathly pallor to the boy's skin that worried Naruto.

"What's going on here? Is that me?" he asked softly. The boy on the floor's eyes fluttered.

"Naruto?" he gasped.

"What's wrong?" Naruto questioned franticly, kneeling down. All of a sudden, the little version of himself morphed into Sakura's bloody body, and Naruto started to cry.

"No! Sakura-chan!" he yelled.

"Get up, boy," a cruel voice ordered. Naruto looked up to see the Kyuubi staring down at him. His immense presence was enough to make Naruto cower, and he clutched the blood-spattered body of Sakura to his chest, as if to protect her, though Naruto knew that any protection he could offer did not matter any more.

"Your cherry blossom is not dead. She needs your help. Go to her." Naruto gaped at him. How could he know such things? All the same, it must be true. Why would the nine-tailed fox lie to him?

Naruto opened his mouth to say 'Thank you', but the Kyuubi had vanished as quickly as he had appeared.

The blonde-haired ninja looked down in determination as the colors around him began to swirl. "I will save you, Sakura-chan. I promise."

Same time, Hyuuga Estates

"Neji… What do you think about Washi?" Ten Ten looked up from her laptop computer.

"No, my great uncle's names is Washi," Neji answered, sighing. "How long are you going to be on the computer, Ten Ten? I have work to do."

"If it's a girl we could name her Daija," Ten Ten offered. "And what 'work' are you doing? Playing video games with your internet friends?"

Neji scowled. "No…" Then he mumbled something incoherently.

"What was that?" Ten Ten teased.

"Oh, never mind," Neji said mulishly.

"Come on, Neji! What would you name the baby?"

Neji thought a moment. "If it's a girl or a boy?"

Ten Ten squinted. "I'm not sure yet. I think it's a boy, though."

"Well then, how about Neji Jr.?" Ten Ten laughed.

"No way, Neji! Don't you want your son to be original?"

"It would be an honor to be named after such a great warrior!" Neji grinned.

Just as Ten Ten rolled her eyes, a messenger knocked on the door to their living room.

"Enter," Neji commanded, in a voice that would've never given away that he had been laughing a moment earlier.

Hanabi Hyuuga, Hinata's younger sister, who was now 15 and a powerful chunin, came in.

"Father wishes to speak with the two of you. It is very urgent!" Neji nodded and stood up, closely followed by Ten Ten.

They followed Hanabi to Hiashi's main quarters, where Hanabi left them to train. Under the profound respect she had for Neji, Hanabi was still a typical teenager.

"Hiashi-sama." Neji kneeled low, and Ten Ten bowed her head a bit.

"Neji. Ten Ten. I have wonderful news." Hiashi smiled kindly at the two shinobi.

"What is it, uncle?" Neji asked, his opaque eyes widening.

"Your friend, the one with the Kyuubi sealed inside him," Hiashi began. "has woken up!"

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Wooooo! So how was that? I know, I know, I promised you SakuraXItachi, but, come on. In the last chapter, Itachi was terribly OOC, and even Sakura knew it! But, there will be more... later. I don't know when, but it is coming!

Oh, also... What are your oppinions on KisameXSakura?

Keep reading and review!