Inseparable Companion
Disclaimer: Naruto is not my mine.
Chapter:2
Sakura was so lost in thought that's she didn't see the person standing in front of her with his hand raised in greeting, until she walked into him.
"Yo, Sakura" Kakashi greeted.
"Ah! Sensei, morning," Sakura blinked in surprise. "Sorry I wasn't looking where I was going.."
Kakashi rolled on his heels and looked past her. Sakura, confused, looked behind.
"Where are you coming from so early?" Kakashi asked smoothly, "You house is in the north part of town, right?"
Sakura felt a rising panic, and covered it with a laugh. "Yeah, I stayed at a friends. Actually I just passed out there, now I've got a bit of a hangover."
Sakura attempted to look abashed. Wether Kakashi believed her or not, he did not press it, and changed the topic.
"I'll walk with you to the Hokage's." And he fell into step beside her.
Sakura didn't bother asking how he knew she was headed there, but figured it was obvious.
"How was the mission?" Sakura felt guilty about not asking sooner.
Kakashi looked down at her, a slight crease formed between his brows. "It was a success.."
"Congratulations Sensei," Sakura said, not even knowing the details.
"Hn. We have… Itachi in custody."
Sakura was stunned and he saw the disbelief strike her face when she whipped around to look at him.
Kami! Here was Sasuke's murderer in our hands! Now was our chance to get some closure, avenge his death! Kill the bastard!
"Sakura, I know what you're thinking, and believe me, we all have similar thoughts, but it's not that simple."
Sakura was pissed, "Like hell!"
Sakura couldn't get her head around the fact that Itachi was here! The Hokage! Sakura realised, this must be what she wants to see me about. She broke into a run.
And it was.
Tsunade was ready for her, and when Sakura walked into her office, Kakashi still on her heels, Tsunade could see the angry storm on her face.
She sighed heavily, "I see you told her, Kakashi."
He hmmd and shrugged then looked out the window.
They argued for a short while, Sakura's screeching was eventually drowned out by Tsunade's overwhelming bellow. Kakashi had stepped out earlier, when the noise became too much for his ears, and taken to reading icha icha while lazing against the hallway wall outside. When the door opened then slammed shut, a fuming Sakura marched up to him.
"Arghh!," She screamed frustrated. "She wants me to treat him!? He murdered Sasuke! We should just let him die! Never wake him up from his stupid coma!"
Kakashi sighed in understanding, "Now Sakura, don't think of doing anything rash. He has destroyed more lives then just ours. We mustn't act so selfishly, Itachi must be evaluated in court and tried fairly." Kakashi put a hand on top of her head. "Don't worry though, he'll get what's coming."
Sakura new Kakashi was right. But when he showed her to Itachi's cell, Sakura wondered about the confrontation. Would she be able to control her disgust. What is she accidentally killed him… Would she then be in trouble?
"Kakashi shifted on his feet and Sakura turned to him, "You alright with him?"
Sakura nodded, half smiling. "Yeah, how dangerous can one sleeping assassin be."
When Kakashi didn't move Sakura pushed him out the door reassuring him she was going to be fine and she wouldn't do anything stupid.
"Well, I do need to go inform Naruto of a few things.." If he saw her stiffen at the mention of Naruto he didn't show it. "There are guards just down the corridor, they'll lend a hand if you need it." And then he was gone.
Sakura stood outside a moment longer than necessary and when she entered things were not as she had imagined. Itachi needs to be awake, she told herself. No one can reach his thoughts, or trial an un-conscious man. The sooner she can wake him up the sooner he can be sentenced for his evil crimes.
Itachi lay still. The cell was dark and cool. No windows were anywhere in sight. He only had black pants on and bandages wrapped around his mid draft and head. His torso and feet were bare. Sakura felt a pang of longing when she took in the familiar features, so much like Sasuke's…
She thought of the look they'd shared, and regret threatened to swallow her whole. They might have had something! Sakura shook her head of her thoughts and looked back at her patient. His breathing was light and she had to bend close to check he was still alive. Running simple tests, she recognised a healthy body and a few cracked ribs. Fractures were also healing well in the wrists and left leg. Which would heal even quicker with her chakra flow.
So the serious damage must be internal.
She reluctantly scooted closer to his still frame and lightly touched his temples. His hair was silk against her fingers and his skin smooth and firm. Distracted by his closeness she lent forward and breathed him in, then realising what she was doing she jerked back shocked and disgusted with herself.
That was enough for one today. She left quickly without turning back.
Naruto was not at the Ramen stand when she walked past, and she was relieved. Sakura had managed to avoid him for a whole week and in return she focused a lot on Itachi. He had a lot of complicated chakra strands looping around inside his mind that Sakura didn't recognise. She'd pull back from scrying through his head to do some more research then dive back in. It turned out to be very time consuming and mentally draining. Each day she'd drop a report in to Shizune about her progress.
Kakashi was on the sidewalk reading when she exited the building that evening and she walked up beside him and they strolled companionably.
"How's it all going?" Kakashi asked.
Sakura frowned thoughtfully, "Well I think I'm almost there, but I can't be sure. Itachi has so many chakra strands spider webbed all over his mind, touching the wrong one breaks my link and I have to start again! It's though he has booby trapped his mind with techniques to keep people out."
Kakashi hmmd thoughtfully.
"But there's also a lot of fried wires in there, if you get my meaning. I'm going to have to repare them myself to get a response at all…"
Kakashi knew Sakura would figure it out and he told her so. She smiled, pleased and he had the sudden urge to be in her company a little while longer.
"Want to have some tea?"
Sakura, not wanting to go home to an empty house just yet, accepted.
--
The next day Sakura decided she was losing her mind. She new it was because she was spending way too much time with an un-conscious man!
While focusing on a subtle healing flow of chakra into his mind, she started to get frustrated at always being pushed out. She entered again feeling annoyed, and had to pull back at the violent force behind her approach, reminding herself how delicate the mind is. Yet after starting over so many times she was getting pissed. Sakura started muttering things to Itachi, using all the bad curses she knew. When she felt the familiar resistance building, ready to push her out she let her chakra grow strong and blasted it into the source, fighting it off.
"Eep!" Sakura yelped, as she fell backwards off her chair. She stood up and dusted her skirt down. "That hurt!" She said accusingly to Itachi. But he showed no response. She slumped on the chair feeling defeated
Sakura sighed, tired all the sudden. She found herself drifting into daydreams a lot lately, mainly about Sasuke, something she rarely did nowadays. Leaning forward she let her head rest gently on the bed. She looked at his pale hand and without thinking grazed her own hand across his knuckles. She touched his arm lightly and then lightly trailed her fingers from his bandaged torso up to his collarbone.
"…look so much like Sasuke." Sakura murmured before leaning over to stare down into Itachi's placid features. She didn't remember moving and the current blur of thoughts made her forget who she was really looking at. She bent her head and pressed her lips onto his. They were firm lips and cool under her warm face.
Then she felt the oddest thing, it was more the atmosphere had just changed then anything actually moving. She was embarrassed she'd forgotten herself and pulled back, only to freeze in horror. Two red eyes looked up at her from the very awake Uchiha Itachi.
"Please don't tell me you did that to wake me up…"
--
Sakura had been so shocked she'd exited in world record time. The cell doors locking instantly at her departure. If the guards thought she acted odd when she dahed past them, they didn't show it. She had been so surprised she'd come all the way home without giving her report. Itachi was awake! And no one would know until she informed them! There were no cameras in the cell. It was so scarce only one nurse came at the end of the week for cleaning and routine necessities, and Sakura had been doing all that lately.
Sakura new she should let people know he was awake. Itachi would be upgraded to a higher security cell and interrogations would begin almost instantly, but she felt humiliated and without being able to restrain herself she let the tears flow. The report can wait, and she sobbed herself to sleep.
End Chapter 2.
Let me know what you think…
:)
