Previously

"You will speak to me about the mission later however."

I felt a shiver go down my spine—I knew she wouldn't just let it go. "I assure you, Tsunade-sama, nothing unusual happened."

"Mmm." Was her only reply as she sat down and turned her chair towards the darkness outside of the window.

Chapter 3 - Searching

Drip Drop...

Drip Drop...

ugh... what the—wha...

Drip Drop...

Drip Drop...

I opened my eyes to the sensation of water touching my skin. It was not the feeling alone that woke me however, it was its never ending irritating sound!

Drip Drop...

Following the path of the sound was not difficult at all. Looking up, another drop came crashing down, hitting me straight on my nose—of course my first reaction was to close my eyes and back away. In doing so however, I managed to find the perfect way to roll off my bed and come crashing down to the icy floor.

Ugh!

Drip Drop ...

Drip Drop...

No matter how dirty a look i managed to give the water droplets coming down from my roof, they did not hinder.

Only as I tried to stand, did I realize the pain I was in. It was one of those feelings that just comes rushing at you all at once—a final blow—for I had not felt this horrible last night at all. I could see nothing physically wrong with myself, yet I felt my blood pulsating through me every time I attempted any movement.

I just decided to sit on the floor for a few minutes, unsure of just what it was that I should do. Not because I couldn't move—no—because my mind just couldn't seem to make itself up about the previous days events. There was still something that just didn't feel right to me in the pit of my stomach—and it was currently attempting to eat me alive.

The halo around every corner of my room's curtain eventually caught my attention. Crawling as slowly as possible over to them, I grasped on to both sides, and with one swift movement...pulled them apart. The blinding light cut through the darkness that had previously called my apartment 'home'. It sent a burning feeling to my eyes as I fell backwards in, I suppose, what you could call pain from the sudden appearance of the rays.

I laid back once again, just allowing the sunshine to consume me—that is until my peaceful rest was interrupted by a sudden scratching sound. Others might have been frightened by it, but I barely noticed it anymore—I barely noticed anything anymore... Not the weird looks of sympathy some people would give me as I walked down the streets, nor the way Naruto always seemed to think his words over as he held a conversation about the past with me.

Sigh...

I finally stood and walked over towards the door lazily. The closer I got, the louder the scratching sound became.

"I'm coming, I'm coming!"

The door creaked as I opened it—a flash of fur quickly ran past me into my apartment, and heading straight for her bowl of food.

Poor thing! She must have slept outside last night.

I left her eating and walked drowsily towards my bathroom. I noticed nothing at first since eternal darkness still ruled this part of my home—but the second the lights came on, I could have screamed! There was no word known to me which could describe the current state of my hair. I attempted in vain to stroke it a few times with my fingers in hope of taming the beast...no luck.

Sigh.

Looking in the mirror again, a question suddenly popped into my head. One which I really had no answer to. Why did I let it grow this long? I tried to search for the answer...but it seemed to be hiding from me. I was certain however that it wasn't just carelessness.

Now that I was able to look at the cut on my neck clearly, I realized it wasn't as bad as I had previously thought. Still noticeable though. As my finger traced through it, I felt like slapping myself in the head.

"My necklace!"

I looked all around me, though I knew I wouldn't find it in any corner of this apartment. Though I chose to ignore it, I had a pretty good feeling of just where my necklace currently was.

Dammit...Dammit...Dammit!

There was only one thing I could do in order to get it back... and that was to go back into that dreadful, enchanting...beautiful...forest. I quickly weighed out the odds of running into Sasuke Uchiha once again. The odds seemed to favor me. If he were smart, he would have been long gone after an Anbu discovering his location.

I was almost certain he wouldn't be there. Or at least thats what I kept telling myself.

My decision was set. I would go retrieve it.

There would be no need for my Anbu garbs, so after a qucik shower I decided on an outfit I had not worn in a very long time. It was a tight red shirt, now much tighter on me than before. With black spandex shorts and a white skirt, cut in the middle and sides, above it.

How long had it been? Four years...

Since what?

...I'm...not sure.

I quickly dashed out of the bathroom as I heard a loud crash. Looking all around my room for an instant, I quickly spotted the culprit.

"Ona! Leave that alone!" I scolded.

The feline jumped off of the table without protest and found a comfier spot in the wild ocean of sheets that was my bed.

There was no longer a picture frame stuck in between the wall and table—now it had completely fallen down towards the ground...hidden for perhaps eternity.

Surprisingly, there was no resistance as I walked out of Konoha. There was no Naruto questioning me first where it was I was going, and later if I would buy him ramen. Ino wasn't anywhere in sight either. Then again, I never really saw her anymore. She, Shikamaru, and Chouji had become practically inseparable.

Once again, I tried not to notice the sad smiles some gave me as I walked down the street.

The forest I had come from the previous day was much further away than I had realized at first. It was a wonder to me how I had made it home in so quick a time. Yet I trotted along for hours after hours, the blazing sun only making the journey all the more pleasant.

And as I finally arrived at the beginning of the little trail, which passed through a thousand Sakura trees, I wished I had rethought coming at all. It was beyond me how I would be able to find this tiny little necklace in so large a forest. It could have possibly ended up anywhere...

However, I had to find it. I still remember the day that I had attained it. It had been a present from Naruto...and Kakashi as well, although he didn't want to admit it. The occasion had currently slipped my mind, but Naruto's words had not.

"Here Sakura, This is for you." I took the small box from him with wide eyes, wondering what it could be. And as I opened it, my eyes could only get wider.

"Wow...Naruto...its beautiful."

He smiled and sheepishly scratched the back of his head with his hand. "It reminded me of your eyes."

We both laughed together.

"Its a lucky crystal," he told me as he took it from my hands. He took out a Kunai and started to scratch something onto the crystal.

"Wha..what are you doing?" I asked as I attempted to get a closer look at his action.

"U'll see.." was his only reply.

I looked at him and smiled as he handed it back to me. He had scratched onto it, 'Team 7.'

"Write all of our names on it, and never take it off. That way, we'll always be a team...all three of us."

I nodded taking the Kunai from him.

I wrote my name, then Naruto's,

Then... was it Sai's?

Yes.. it had to have been.

- Third Person POV -

The days seemed to turn almost into routine for him. Waking up as early as possible in the mornings, and working out until the late afternoons. There was never an hour, a minute...not even a second that Sasuke would allow himself to stray from his task.

That is...until recently.

Maybe it happened on impulse...he really wasn't quite sure. But just as the previous day, he found himself in the forest of Sakura tree's once again. He wasn't quite sure of what to expect—but a feeling deep inside of him told him just what was coming. So he sat on the nearest tree to him and just waited.

He sat there watching the sun rise high into the sky. Sasuke closed his eyes and just sat back, enjoying the silence of the forest. Even in such a peaceful place however, he never once let his guard down. Life had become like that for him—all that was required was a second of carelessness and everything he had been through would prove to be a waste. He knew he was close to reaching his goal...'just a little longer..'

He slowly opened his eyes and looked below him. There was nothing there yet, but he felt it. He felt her. Was she really that foolish? Only a fool would come back for another encounter with him. How many had it been that had died by his hands now? Sasuke didn't quite know anymore. And as he thought about it.. he decided, Sakura really wasn't that smart to begin with.

She wandered aimlessly as she looked all around her, searching for any hint of green in between all of the pink. So far there was nothing. She had even searched under a peculiar looking rock, and still nothing.

Sasuke's emotionless eyes followed her as she moved from tree to tree. She seemed to be looking for something. He had an Idea of what it was, but just giving it back to her so easily didn't seem like the right thing to do. Besides, he had some unanswered questions. First there was her lack of memory..he was sure it wasn't an act. And second...that Jutsu she had used on him the previous day. He hadn't had the chance to personally look at it with his sharingan, but he would find out one way or another how it was used. It might prove useful to him for his future pans.

She become more and more irritated as the hours passed and there was still no sign of her necklace. Would Naruto be mad? She knew it meant a lot to him...and she knew it meant something to her as well, she just couldn't remember what. 'Was it really that important after all?' She pondered. There wasn't a time where she left somewhere without her precious jewel tied smugly around her neck. But if it really did mean that much to her, why had she forgotten it's importance so easily.

She sat down at the base of a tree in frustration, leaning her head back against the rough bark and closing her eyes. Sakura made a mental note to ask Naruto about the crystal the next time she saw him.

The air all of a sudden became thick around her, and her throat went completely dry. 'shit!' She hadn't even thought about making sure the zone was safe. She quickly turned around to find the tip of a blade pointed directly at her nose.

Sakura gulped and followed the blade's body to its owner.

"What are you doing back here." His deep voice filled her ears.

"Uchiha..." She said, a little lighter than she would have liked. She wanted to look at him with anger in her eyes. He betrayed her people for crying out loud! He was a criminal! Yet she all of a sudden found it difficult to look away from his eyes. She searched deep in them for something. What was it that made him feel so familiar to her. She had seen him countless times before in photographs...but none of them had ever taken her breath away like this.

Sasuke noticed something different about her—something he hadn't really been looking at yesterday. On her forehead, there was a small seal. Much like the one he had seen on the current hokage—except this one was an oval with two smaller circles on either side.

He narrowed his eyes and withdrew his sword.

"Sakura..." he said.

Sakura found that she didn't like how he so openly referred to her by such a casual title. He didn't have the right! He didn't even know her!

"What is that?"

She furrowed her eyebrows and looked at him in confusion. 'Why isn't he killing me yet??!?' "What are yo-"

"That thing on your forehead.." he said as he put one hand on his waist and stared at her.

He could have sworn he saw her eye twitch. Her aura all of sudden became darker than usual. Sakura closed her eyes and tightened her fists as she stood.

"Just who..." she opened her eyes and glared at him, "do you..." She took a step towards him—he held his ground. "Think you ARE!" With each word, her voice became louder and louder, until at the last one she finally swung at him with all the force she could muster at the moment.

He easily caught her small fist with his hand—though even Sasuke couldn't deny that her strength shocked him if just a little bit.

"Sakura..." he warned.

No one mentioned Sakura's forehead and got away with it so easily. Especially not an s-class bastard like him.

She swung her other arm at him, but he ducked. His sword was still in his hand, but she noticed that he wouldn't swing it at her—no matter how hard she tried to get him to do so.

"Stop Sakura."

She hated the way his voice held no emotion. Even the most ruthless killers she had come across at least showed anger... but not him.

"Why wont you fight me!"

She swung her leg at him and he quickly jumped over it, still holing one of her fists in his hand. Sasuke narrowed his eyes at her—he decided at that moment that this Sakura was much more annoying than the old one.

He squeezed her fist in his hand tighter and tighter until he was sure it pained her—then roughly pushed her back with so much force that she fell to the ground.

"Don't be stupid Sakura. I don't want to kill you just yet. There are a couple of things I want answered first."

She sighed. It would be nearly impossible to overpower him—even if she used her full strength. He had proven that the previous day. She noticed when she fought him that he used neither his curse seal nor sharingan. And had it not been for the barrier Tsunade had shown her, she would have literally been toast.

"It's a seal used to control my strength. Tsunade-sama thought it was necessary."

Sasuke knew that wasn't what it was at all. He had already studied her chakara patterns from afar...there was nothing restraining it. Was she lying to him? If she was...then what was it really?

"How long have you had it?"

She seemed to be deep in concentration as she counted back in her mind.

"Ummm... about four years."

"Four years ago..." he mumbled to himself. 'Of course!' "That was when you and Naruto-"

"Who are you?" She said interrupting him. "Why do you claim to know me..and now Naruto too?" She shakily stood back up, holding her hurt fist with her other hand.

Ignoring her question, he went on with his own. "What was that Jutsu you used yesterday?"

Sakura frowned and shook her head, "Just kill me already Uchiha. I'll say nothing more to you."

He smirked and took a step closer to her. "That's something you never seem to learn."

She narrowed her eyes at him, "What is?" Sakura looked towards the ground as he took yet another step.

"To be careful what you wish for."

When she looked up at his eyes once again, they were no longer the deep onyx she had become accustomed to. Now, they were a deep red color, with hints of black within them. She was astonished for a second—never before had she actually seen the sharingan. She had only heard about it.

'Crap...' And it's effects were currently coming back to memory as well. She soon found herself unable to move.

'Close your eyes Sakura! Close them dammit!' She told herself, but it was no use...her body simply would not comply.

"Bastard..." She heard herself say—though it didn't sound like her voice anymore.

He came within a few inches of her, to the point that Sakura found it impossible to have a closer look of his deadly eyes. The last thing she felt was his hot breath on her skin before her eyes became heavy and everything went dark.

Sasuke caught her limp body in his arms. She was far too annoying. Despite this new 'tough' exterior of hers...nothing had really changed. She was still the weak little twelve year old he vaguely remembered—just with an addition of a few new tricks.

He was annoyed by the troubled look on her face. The way her eyebrows furrowed and her lip pouted into an unpleasant little frown. He was annoyed by her messy hair—it's thin strands all over the place at this point. He was annoyed by how light she felt in his arms. Much too delicate to be taken seriously.

She was just overall annoying to him...and the sooner she was out of his sight, the better.

- - - - - - -

There was an acutely annoying sensation on her nose. She moved it back and forth in an attempt to relieve herself of the feeling but it was no use. Sakura propped one eye open to look in the eye of what it was that was bringing her such agitation.

She noticed that there laid a single leaf, happily smiling at her, on her nose. Scoffing, she lifted her hand and swapped it off. She sighed in contempt, finally feeling at ease.

The feeling didn't last long however. She instantly opened both eyes and looked all around her. She blinked and then rubbed her eyes harshly.

Was she going crazy?

The Konoha walls were right in front of her. She sat against a tree a couple of yards away from them. But how had she gotten out there? Recalling her memory...the last thing she remembered was...

Sakura clenched her fists and narrowed her eyes..."Uchiha Sasuke..." She growled.

As she did so however, she felt something strange in her hand. As she opened it, she gasped loudly. In her hand laid the object which she had been searching for.

"The crystal! No way..."

She looked back to the depths of the forest for any sign of human life. She sighed. There was none.

"Who are you?" She said so no one in particular as she turned and headed for Konoha's entrance—a determined look on her face.

'I'll find out one way or another...HELL YEAH!!'

"Ah, Sasuke-kun! You're back." Kabuto greeted with a smile on his face.

"Hn." Sasuke had the urge to rip it off. Kabuto was well aware that Sasuke detested him—yet still pressed his luck and pushed his buttons. 'One of these days...'

"He's waiting for you." A dark look overcame the medic-nin's face.

Sasuke walked past him without another acknowledgment.

The slimy snake sat propped up on a bed, looking—if it was even possible—paler than usual. He allowed his lips to curve into a disturbing smile and licked his lips as he laid his eyes on Sasuke.

Sasuke narrowed his eyes at him—urging Orochimaru to say whatever he had to say and leave him be.

"Sasuke," he hissed, "I suppose you enjoyed you little...walk...today?"

Sasuke's glare grew more steady on him, but her remained cool—almost passive—despite his words.

"Mmm." The snake grinned.

"You'll need to get some rest tonight. We have a long day ahead of us tomorrow." The grin remained on his face.

Sasuke didn't like it one bit. He turned his head slightly in an attempt to see past his words. Had that time come around again? Sasuke turned his back on him and left down the dark corridors of the snakes lair. Tomorrow it would shed its own skin and find comfort in another's.

He slightly grinned, as he closed the door to his room... It was getting boring anyway...

End Chapter 3

Been kinda stumped with this story lately.. but I'm determined to finish it :)

Love,

Fates Princess