A/N: I just want to clarify a few things. We are in Konoha, but this is a AU. People are not ninja. However, it isn't a society like ours, because people are allowed to go around with stuff they use to defend themselves (Sakura carries poisons around, for example). And by the way, there is no Kage in Konoha. Konoha is a democracy, a city-state. People have the right to vote and are part of every decision. I believe the Kage system tends to be a bit like tyranny (does Danzo mean anything?); I'm sorry that Naruto can't fulfil his dream here.

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Sakura turned to her right, where the sound had come from, and she saw a man, half-hidden by a tree, who seemed to have gotten hurt. Cautiously, her medic instincts kicking in, Sakura approached him. She saw the trademark black hair of the Uchiha family, and decided he couldn't be a bandit. Therefore she asked, "Um, excuse me, are you hurt?"

The man turned around, as if he already knew she was there, and curtly shook his head. "No, thank you. A branch fell off a tree and hit my arm, but it's nothing."

His voice was warm and deep, but Sakura couldn't immediately process what he had said, because her mind was shocked by his appearance. He was tall and he had long black hair tied in a low ponytail, dark onyx eyes and stress lines that marked his face. But most importantly, he was the most handsome man Sakura had ever seen. He was obviously an Uchiha, and it seemed he was just hiking. Something wasn't right in that, but Sakura didn't have time to think about it, because her brain right then decided to connect again and she registered the words "branch", "hit" and "arm".

Her generous nature coming back, she said, "May I see? I'm a medic, I'll just make sure it isn't anything serious."

The man observed her carefully for a few instants. Unbeknownst to Sakura, the Uchiha was taking in the beautiful woman in front of him. She was beautiful, and seemed to be kind and compassionate as well. He said, "As you wish."

Sakura approached the man, still a bit careful, and then observed his arm. The Uchiha rolled up his sleeve and showed her his arm. Sakura couldn't help noticing that his whole body was muscular and fit. She shook those thoughts away and examined his arm.

After a minute or two she said, "It seems that the branch has sprained your wrist and has affected your elbow as well. You won't be able to fully use your left arm for a day or two. You should keep it as still as possible; if you agree I will bandage it, so it will stay still and you'll be able to continue to use it as usual."

Sakura didn't notice, but the man's eyes didn't leave her face for an instant as she spoke. She then looked up at him, a silent request in her eyes, and he nodded briefly. The medic took a bandage from her bag and wrapped it skilfully around his wrist and elbow. When she was satisfied, she pulled back.

"Thank you," the man said quietly. Sakura looked up again, surprised. His voice had been steady, but with an underlying emotion that seemed to be… endearment?

But the man didn't give her time to think it through, because he asked, "Were you going to the old Granny that lives in the forest?"

Feeling relatively safe in giving him such an information, Sakura nodded. "Yes, I have to visit her to examine her health."

"Then I'll have to advise you to not take the direct path to her house. Bandits were seen there the last few days. It's better if you take the path to the right, which goes around the mountain and is safer."

Sakura was a bit surprised, but nodded nonetheless. "Thank you, I will."

The man smiled a little, and it almost took Sakura's breath away. "No, it is me that should thank you for helping me. Have a good day." He took the path that went back to the village and disappeared a few moments later.

Sakura blinked. Then she shook her head and slowly went her way, making sure to take the path to the right. She thought again about the man, and realized she hadn't even asked for his name. To her, he remained a mysterious tall and handsome man, most probably an Uchiha.

Sakura decided to stop thinking about him. She was wasting her time. She knew the path around the mountain was longer; as expected it took her more than an hour, even if she walked quickly. At least it was safe and free from bandits, as the mysterious man had said. When she saw the old woman's house, she sighed in relief. She still had to visit her, walk home again and then she would finally be free to continue her work on poisons. And maybe, just maybe, to try to find out who the mysterious Uchiha was.

Mentally shaking herself, Sakura reached the small cottage and knocked on the door. A quiet voice answered, "Come in."

The medic opened the door and walked in. She noticed that everything was in the dark, because the windows were almost totally obscured by the shutters and she had already closed the door behind her. Blinking in the dark, Sakura cautiously approached the bed she had caught a glimpse of. She hesitantly asked, "Granny?"

A voice replied, "Yes? Who is it? I'm in bed because I feel a little tired today."

Sakura got nearer. "Hello, Granny, I'm Haruno Sakura from Konoha. I'm a medic sent by Tsunade-Shishou to visit you. Tsunade-Shishou has a surgery scheduled for today, so she sent me instead. May I visit you?"

The old woman, for what Sakura could see, seemed to nod. "Of course."

Sakura, after searching in the dark for a while, found a chair and sat down near the right side of the bed. She could still see very little. "Granny, would you mind if I opened a window? It's very dark in here."

The old woman replied, still in a very quiet voice, "I'd rather not, please. The light disturbs me."

So Sakura had no choice but to stay in the dark, literally. She took out her stethoscope and asked the old woman to bare her front and then her back. She was very careful since she could see very little, and listened to her heart. She couldn't help but exclaim, "What a powerful heart you have! Even athletes don't always have such a potent heartbeat! And what incredible lungs you have!"

The Granny said, "I try to keep myself healthy by eating fresh food, fruit and vegetables as often as possible, and I usually walk a lot."

Sakura was still amazed at the condition of the old woman. She then asked the Granny to bare her arm in order to take her pressure. Again, the medic was surprised. "Usually only young people have this perfect kind of pressure!"

The old woman replied, "I try to take good care of my health."

Sakura soon finished her visit. Even if she couldn't see much, she had found the condition of the old Granny surprisingly good, considering her age. Her file had simply stated that her conditions were fine, it said nothing about how extremely fine she was. And Sakura was astonished by it. And she was convinced that something wasn't right. "You really seem to be young and full of life, Granny! You're practically screaming health!"

The old woman didn't answer, probably because she was busy re-dressing herself. However, the medic hadn't been able to do a full-body visit because of the dark, and she still was shocked by her fantastic health. So she asked the Granny to come to the hospital one of the next days. "Because," she explained, "I haven't been able to complete my examination, since it is so dark and you said you were too tired to get up. I'd like to thoroughly complete the visit."

The old woman didn't respond, but Sakura felt a sense of… amusement emanating from her. Before either one could say anything, there was a knock on the door.

Both seemed to tense a little. Sakura stood up. The Granny sat a little more straight up and said quietly, "Come in."