Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto.
Bring Me To Life
Summary: After Sasuke left, Sakura didn't know what her purpose in life was anymore. Her presence has becoming nothing. When three years pass, Sasuke comes back to Konoha. At his return, Sakura is at a mix of emotions. "Save Me From The Nothing I've Become."
Chapter 3 – A Question
"You were going to fight me one day, Sakura. It just happens to be today. Let's make this more interesting. If you win, then I promise to never abandon Konoha again. But, if I win, I'm leaving. I won't be coming back. Sound fair?"
"But… you just got here…"
"Which gives you all the more intention to want to beat me. As you said, there's no point in fighting unless you have an intention."
"Wait a minute. Can this fight… take place later?"
"No backing out. But since I'm feeling generous today… we'll hold this fight for later."
The memory replayed in Sakura's head over and over again. The pink-haired kunoichi sighed as she lay flat on her back against the silk sheets of her mattress. So many times the recollection had played, in fact, that it made her head dizzy and her stomach churn.
I can't fight him, she thought to herself. Jade eyes grew lackluster as her gaze was pointed absent-mindedly at the boards of her floor. A sigh escaped her legs as she stood, dragging her feet across the ground as she exited her residence.
She walked down the streets of Konohagakure, her face discreet of what her true emotion was. As she strolled calmly and leisurely down the roads, she soon found herself in front of the door that lead inside the Hokage's Mansion. Realizing her subconscious had lead her there, she opened the door, the sound resulting in a small creak.
Walking up a few more floors, flying easily up the stairs, Sakura found herself bursting open the door. Her legs stalked inside as her palms slammed somewhat harshly against the mahogany desk.
Having heard the footsteps approaching the door, Tsunade was already aware of a visitor. But her head snapped upwards from the mission scroll her gold eyes had been glazing over when she heard her door slam open. Her brow arched questioningly upon seeing her blossom-haired apprentice.
"Sakura?" she questioned, seeing the girl's face void of any emotion. "Is there something you need?"
Her student didn't miss a beat, quick to answer. "Tsunade-shishou, I have a question for you."
The kunoichi had realized that her subconscious had lead her to the Godaime's building to seek the wisdom of the Hokage, and upon this realization, she found it reasonable. Therefore, she decided to try it out, her emotions slightly out of check as she found herself losing handle of them.
A few moments of silence passed before Tsunade nodded slowly, indicating Sakura to continue. The medic nin understood this as she begun clearing her throat a few times, finding it oddly dry.
"Hypothetically…" she began, her tone somewhat wary. "If Orochimaru came back, proving he wasn't an enemy against Konoha, then was given a second chance, how would you act if he asked you to fight him?" The blonde-haired woman opened her mouth to respond, but Sakura rapidly added with clarification, "If, for pretend, you used to have feelings for him?"
Propping her elbows upon the counter of her wooden desk, the Godaime leaned forward in her burgundy chair slightly. She weaved her fingers through one another, her intertwined hands held in front of her mouth.
This must have to do with the Uchiha's return, noted the female sannin, eyes squinting vaguely at this comprehension. She had somewhat expected this from her apprentice.
"If Orochimaru asked me to fight when I 'used to' have feelings for him, I would say that I wouldn't want to fight him." The legendary medic didn't bother that her answer was straightforward, for it was her genuine reply to such question.
"But," continued the blossom-haired shinobi, her voice probing, "what if he told you if you won the fight, he would never leave Konohagakure ever again?"
"Regardless, I would still stick to my decision. I would trust him that he wouldn't leave again." She saw how Sakura's large sea green eyes flashed at her statement. "But, if he did desert the village once more… well, I would have experienced this formerly. I would now how to handle myself if he were to do so once more."
"How can you say that?!" Emerald eyes grew at her sudden utter, her mouth speaking before her mind had time to think of what she was going to say.
However, at the sudden outcry, Tsunade remained unfazed, giving her apprentice a hard, firm stare. "This was hypothetical, was it not?"
The blossom-haired girl could feel her face growing red. "Yes, but Tsunade-shishou… how could you answer like that?"
Tsunade didn't miss a beat. "Don't you trust Sasuke?"
Yes, the Godaime knew her student wouldn't like the answer she had given. After all, a master knows one's students. However, she felt that Sakura needed to hear the statements from someone, and as fate had lead it to be the blonde sannin herself, then so be it.
Moments of stillness followed from the legendary medic's question.
"Don't you trust Sasuke?"
It echoed nonstop inside Sakura's minds from the silence that had followed. Such a short, simple sentence, and yet it had such a large effect on the blossom-haired girl. She opened her mouth to retort, but only to find that she couldn't process a reply. Or, rather, her mind wasn't giving her a reply.
Dark viridian eyes remained planted on the texture of the floor. The pupils were glazed over.
"Sorry… about my behavior," uttered Sakura her voice barely above a whisper as her tone seemed almost remote.
Watching her turn on her heel before walking out of the room unhurriedly, Tsunade felt a frown etch itself on her seemingly young features.
"Sakura," she called out to the girl. The said kunoichi paused in her footing, but did not turn around. "Don't think too much of this," advised the Godaime.
She could see the muscles of Sakura's back tense before relaxing a second later, the carnation-haired girl continuing her trot out of the small, oval area.
A wretched migraine wracked the brain of Sakura's, her legs sauntering down the streets rapidly. Everything was a blur to her as she zoomed on by, her mind clouded with too many thoughts for her attention to be divided.
Tsunade-shishou's answer was no help at all, spoke the girl mentally in her mind. It didn't help whatsoever.
Yes, it did. She did give a good answer.
Mentally, Sakura scoffed. No, what she did was make things even more baffling—
Oh please, give me a break. You're just afraid of getting hurt again!
Suddenly, Sakura's walking came to an abrupt halt. Verdant eyes expanded at her inner's exclaim.
I'm… afraid of getting hurt again?
She continued her way home; her pace a lot slower than it was before as she stared at the ground. She saw a blur in front of her, but didn't bother to look up. Then she felt herself collide with something.
"Sorry," the automatic response instantaneously left her lips, viridian eyes routinely tracing upwards to view the outlook of the person she had run in to. She found herself looking into familiar pair of intense, charcoal eyes.
"You've let your guard down. Anyone could have attacked you right now."
Sakura shrugged indolently. "I don't care."
Her answer was short and brisk. Her mind was tired from its too many thoughts, not to mention her body was exhausted from the nonstop processing of her brain.
"Then if I did this," uttered the Uchiha, raising a kunai to a pressure point on her neck. "You wouldn't care?"
Sakura looked up at the raven-haired ninja, pain and exhaustion evident in her eyes.
She lifted her hand and took hold of Sasuke's grip that held tight on the kunai, her hand gripping aroud his own. She nodded, almost seeming as though she were in a trance as she pushed the kunai lightly into her skin. The action drew a thin line of blood, yet her face didn't falter whatsoever at the sharp cut.
Sasuke eyed her slicing of her neck from his peripheral vision warily, his own ebony eyes holding their gaze firmly as they bored into her own viridian orbs. He squinted when he felt a trickle of Sakura's blood fall on his hand. Nevertheless, his face remained as emotionless as ever.
"That answer your question?" asked she in a murmur, removing the kunai as she brushed past him, continuing her way home.
She had only walked a few steps before she saw Sasuke's form appear in front of her, having used his blinding speed to get there without her noticing.
"Not so fast, you still owe me a fight."
Averting her deadpanned stare from his collarbone to his pale, handsome face, her mouth tugged into a frown. Her emotions were slowly coming back into check.
"I… don't want to fight you," spoke the kunoichi slowly. She paused for a moment, hesitation evident on her face and body language before she continued her sentence. "…I'm not going to fight you."
Sakura darted her emerald gaze to the floor, not wanting to see the Uchiha's reaction.
"Don't tell me these 'emotions' of yours is what changed your mind," he responded brusquely, stuffing his hands in his pockets absent-mindedly.
"Please don't fight me," she whispered, swallowing the heavy lodge forming in her throat before uttering, "I'm too weak."
'Too weak mentally' the kunoichi would have stated. She had been a lifeless doll until the Uchiha had made his grand "reappearance," and here he was demanding him to fight her? She had confidence in her physical abilities, complimented to even be surpassing the Godaime herself, but her mental capacity to carry out the fight? She wasn't sure if she could go through with it, therefore causing her to whisper lamely of her "weak self."
Upon her self-inflicting declaration, thick raven bangs hovered over Sasuke's piercingly dark onyx eyes.
"Pathetic," he uttered darkly, stalking away with his back facing her.
Sakura stood there, stunned at his insult began to seep through her.
Pathetic? she thought, her eyes watching his retreating back. Her lashes lowered as her stare fell upon the ground. …Is that what you think of me?
Sakura could feel tears at the back of her eyes, but she refused to let them fall. The salty beads of moisture burned the edges of her eyes.
Show him that we aren't to be messed with! Inner Sakura tried to compromise.
Too weak…
Her alter ego scoffed at her outer self's defeatist attitude.
Her hand twisted the doorknob, opening it as she stepped across her doormat, entering her apartment residence. Her mind wouldn't stop playing hers and Sasuke's encounter, almost seeming as though her brain was taunting her with the moments that had occurred between the two. She felt even worse, remembering how Sasuke had commanded her to fight him, feeling pathetic she had rejected his offer instead of proving to him how much stronger she had become.
This is getting to my head, it's messing me up. It's like Sasuke's this big distraction that I need to forget and move on about, but I can't.
She allowed herself to outwardly cringed as she came upon a grave realization. She hadn't changed the way she had felt about him, all those years ago.
She still loved him, and he carried with him the shards of her heart.
Her body ached as it pulsed with each throb. She dragged her feet across the room, sluggishly climbing up her stairs. Once she reached the top of the staircase, she headed towards the room. Once at the door, her hand placed itself against the doorframe, large sea green eyes staring at her bed.
Hauling herself a little farther, her body fell forward as it collapsed on the bed. Almost immediately her eyes fluttered to a close, her breath instantly evening out as she felt sleep overtake her.
Sauntering in, Sasuke walked briskly inside the oval office, a scowl set in his features. Two ANBU followed in after him, watching each action diligently as they stood by the door, guarding it.
The Uchiha continued walking further inside before stopping himself a few feet in front of the mahogany desk, onyx eyes squinting.
"What do you want?" questioned he, blinking slowly before glancing at the woman with half-lidded eyes.
Tsunade scowled at him in return, aggravations from the earlier day causing her to be moody and quick to anger. And, what was currently growing her frustrations was the lack of respect attitude sported by the skilled raven-haired shinobi.
"You are receiving a mission," Godaime stated, narrowed almond eyes boring directly into the half-lidded charcoal eyes of Sasuke's.
"A mission?" He repeated, monotone. "I'm off probation, then?"
Tsunade shook her head at his inquiry. "You're not off of probation. This is still apart of your probation, and on this mission, you're going to be going with Sakura." Tsunade blinked her almond-colored eyes, weaving her fingers throughout one another as her hands place themselves in front of her face.
"Listen, Uchiha, you may not feel any feelings towards Sakura but if she comes back in a worn up state, just know that you will be punished for it," her intonation still held a sense of high authority despite it's ominous intention.
Sasuke sneered, "Don't threaten me when I'm stronger than you."
"I wouldn't jump to conclusions just yet," she remarked, narrowing her eyes at the young Uchiha.
Sasuke scoffed, standing up, eyebrows knitting together in a rigid scowl. "Is that all?"
"I'll be notifying you more on the mission later on. For now, that is all. You may leave," stated the Godaime, diligently witnessing the raven-haired shinobi leave the oval office. A sigh escaped her lips once he was out of sight.
"Shizune!" she called for her obedient assistant.
"Yes, Tsunade-sama?" came the reply from the black-haired woman as she scurried inside the office, Tonton securely fit in her arms.
"I need a bottle of sake," commented the blonde sannin, her fingers rubbing against her temples in a circular motion.
Shizune smiled at the familiar statement. "Of course, Tsunade-sama."