Burnt Toast

By: Xmarksthespot

Disclaimer: Nope.

Chapter 4. Two Days

I used to eat peanut butter and jelly sandwiches every morning when I was a kid.

Now, I'm just too busy for breakfast.

..

As she wandered around her kitchen, scanning her cabinetry for ingredients, the woman could only ponder of the previous night. If she had known yesterday that she was going to spend two hours in the jail cell only to avoid his eyes, she probably would've stayed home. The fact that he didn't do anything responsive didn't help either.

However, Sakura was determined that early noon. The medic quickly left her house with one thing on her mind: she needed to see the Hokage. The quest for a reason to keep her from feeling too disappointed in her friend was set out as she hurriedly made her way to the tower. Ever since the announcement of the execution had been made, the young woman somewhat held herself back from seeing the blond, and she was sure he was also reluctant to see her as well.

"I'm here to see Uzumaki, Naruto," she told the receptionist.

"Do you have an appointment?"

Sakura shook her head. "No...My name is Haruno Sakura. Could you page him? He'll let me in." Only minutes past before the woman commanded Sakura to follow her. During this time, Sakura stared at the secretary's back heel as she was led to the office; she studied them. They were clean. Clearly, not the shoes of a ninja. Her eyes wandered upwards to the secretary's brown hair; it was neat and she could tell that said woman didn't stress much.

"Naruto is a good Hokage," she said out loud.

"Yes, he is," the secretary agreed. She stopped at the door and turned to face Sakura. "Just knock before you go in." With that, she went back to the office.

A smile was forced the moment the small hand tapped against the door, but when she heard Naruto's voice for the first time in a while, it faltered into a mere line. She slowly turned the knob and a penetrating light from the large window blinded her momentarily from really seeing her old teammate.

"Hi, Sakura-chan."

Sakura could hear the soft voice greeting her; she missed it dearly. The green eyes looked to the side to meet the cerulean. "Hey, you." She noted that he wore the formal robes of a Kage, satisfied that he was adapting to the new life – the first few months were hectic.

It was like meeting someone for the first time. Their relationship had always been close; it was just recently that they began to drift.

Her steps were slowed purposely, and she made her way towards him. "All of this work is really stressing you out, Naruto... Even with your blond hair, I can easily see your grey strands." Her hand carefully raised and she ran her fingers through his hair.

Naruto's whiskered markings showed creases as he frowned. "I-It's not the work, Sakura-chan," he paused to reach his hand onto the one that caressed his face, "It's the same reason why your eyes are red right now."

The girl gulped, realizing that the main topic of their conversation had just started; one question loomed in her mind. "Why?" She breathed out.

Dark blond brows raised in shock. "Because I care... I mean, isn't that why you're –"

Sakura shook her head peacefully, and tried to force a small laughter. "No..." She muttered, "I mean, why did this happen?" Her tears came to a stop the moment they reached the edges.

The Hokage's head lowered, hiding the upset features from his friend. "I... Never wanted it to end like this. You know how much I wanted us to be a team again, Sakura-chan. I would never purposely do this to him!"

The petite girl's stance stumbled at the loudness of his voice. "I know, Naruto," she assured, "You're a good Hokage... I know that."

Naruto's fist slammed onto the edge of his new desk. The grown man tried to keep his own tears from flooding like Sakura's were right now. His mouth trembled the more words he accumulated in his head; they were reasons, excuses, anything to make the next few days never happen.

"N-Naruto?" She heard a sniffle, and she wasn't sure whether it was her or him.

"Did you know that we – us – were the only ones who dared to fight for his life? You, me, and Kakashi-sensei. Three people against the village, Sakura!" His fury kept him from addressing her the way he used to. "Even people we went to school with, they didn't want him back. Our own friends decided that it was a bad idea; they said that it was just putting our village at risk!"

Sakura nodded understandably, tightening her body, and hoping it would keep her from exploding with more emotions. She knew what Naruto was talking about; she knew that all of their friends had been avoiding them – Ino, Kiba, and even Lee.

Naruto's teeth were clenched, and his eyes were shut tight. "I hate it. I hate being Hokage and being powerless. All I can do is go to his cell every day and know that it would be one of the last conversations we'd ever have."

The medic approached him again, grasping onto one of his hands; they were warm. "But you fought for him, Naruto. You fought long and hard for his freedom, and that's being a Hokage – a great one."

There was a curt nod, but none that was visible to Sakura.

"Go see him, Sakura-chan."

Her eyes fell back and her comforting hands lifted from his. "W-what?" Her voice squeaked.

The blond stood back up straight, and made sure his attentive eyes connected with her's. "You haven't said a word to him in the last week... Sasuke told me you came, but you wouldn't even look at him. Don't make it seem like it's his fault, Sakura, 'cause you are."

Sakura's head jerked to the side. "But I... I don't know what will happen, Naruto. I mean, I'm engaged." She held up her hand to show him the ring as proof. "It wouldn't be fair."

"None of this is fair, Sakura!" His voice briefly wavered. "Just go see him," he said. "I'll give the prison guards a call – I think Shikamaru's on duty now anyway. Go see him, Sakura."

She stood there silently in deep thought. It wasn't until Naruto got off the phone that her body turned itself around. "Thank you, Naruto," she said with a smile before she left.

Her steps hurried down the stairs, and into the cold air again. Her tired feet pushed through the heavy snow, but stopped the moment she saw the recognizable building; she was less than twenty feet from the entrance. Fifteen feet, ten, nine – she counted it all in her head. When she was less than five feet, the kunoichi froze.

It hadn't occurred to her that snowflakes were collecting on top of her cotton candy coloured hair or that her legs were numb from the wind. Ten, possibly twenty minutes had past, and all she could do was stare at the doors. Posters were taped on them, of criminals, of schedules... Of Sasuke.

She had memorized his execution date the moment it was announce many weeks ago. Since then, all she was able to do was enter the building, but never brave enough to approach the cell. Not until recently, that is. Sakura was getting the process through, one step at a time, but now all she could do was regret.

Had she wasted all of her time because she was too much of a wimp to go see his face? The girl couldn't bear the thought of what things would be like had she gone to see him the very first day he came back.

"Sakura?" The voice startled her; it was Shikamaru. He studied her carefully as he pushed the door open even further. "I got the call from Naruto half an hour ago... Have you been standing out here all this time?"

She didn't reply.

The ring pierced into his ear flickered with the low lighting of the room, Sakura noticed, when she agreed to come inside. Cobwebs were still the same, as well as the staring from other guards – they all remembered her as the girl who came and did nothing every single day.

Shikamaru gently grabbed her one arm and placed a metal band around it. "You only have so much time left. Just go inside, Sakura, and talk." He sounded like Naruto.

The dull faced girl saw the same shine on her wrist as his earring before she looked up back at the large door that creaked when it opened. Her legs motioned themselves to go inside and they kneeled down when the door was shut; she sat across from him, but her face still laid low like yesterday's visit.

"Sakura."

Tears spat out of her eyes as soon as her head jerked upwards, responding to the foreign voice she longed for so long. He had a smirk on his face – why did he seem so joyous?

"Hn, it's been a while," he said.

Something squirmed in the pit of her stomach. Her arms trembled at the cool air and the strange aura that surrounded them; it was strange that he was the one talking, and not her. Forcefully, she raised her voice, though she knew it squeaked. "Yeah, it has, Sasuke-kun."

Her green eyes looked at his face and immediately, she frowned. "I want to... I want to see your eyes."

Sasuke gave another smirk before raising his shackled arms to move his bangs to the side, revealing dark, charcoal eyes. He stared straight at his former teammate, watching her reaction; her face seemed surprised. "Is there something wrong?" He carefully asked.

Sakura's mouth was slightly parted, retrieving the air back into her lungs; the pale pink lips curved. Her glittering eyes gazed back in amazement. "You, Sasuke-kun." Her smile grew even bigger. "Your eyes are as beautiful as the day you left Konoha." The fluttering feeling she had in her chest resembled the feeling she had when she was a kid, when the two would meet every morning with the team.

He rolled his eyes. "Hn," he grunted, but added, "you haven't changed much either."

For some reason, she felt like Sasuke needed to know. Without even thinking, her mouth leaked out a thousand words, releasing all of her memories. "I became a medic after you left; I trained under the Godaime, and Naruto trained with Jiraiya," she began.

It had been over an hour, but neither complained. Sakura was still talking, and Sasuke was still listening, but eventually, words became tears, and the Uchiha remained still.

"S-Sorry," Sakura muttered. "I know how much you hate it when I cry." She quickly wiped the droplets of water away and glanced back at him, smiling.

Sasuke allowed a breath to escape his dry lips, and he licked them afterwards. With difficulty, his body repositioned itself, shifting towards the rosette, but made sure there was still enough room between the two. "It's okay, Sakura," he said. "And I already knew everything you just said." His eyes suggested that he was entertained by the whole situation. "The dobe had told me all that weeks ago."

Flabbergasted, Sakura's brows furrowed. "And you let me talk all this time? Why didn't you tell me?" The creases of her brows lessened when she saw the Uchiha smile and small chuckle was heard. "I'm serious," she tried in all distressfulness, but her poker face was horrible. It was soon enough that she broke out in laughter.

Sasuke's smile eventually disappeared, and he looked back at her again. "To tell you the truth... I don't remember why I found you so annoying."

Her body leaned back against the cold brick walls. Her eyelids fluttered, and came to a stop when her view was darkened. "I guess we just needed some time to think, and some space," she explained, "I mean, I don't think I've ever heard you laugh before."

She moved a few strands of her hair behind her ear, but the change in Sasuke's face caused her to question him. "What?"

Sasuke blinked a few times and his face shifted back into his monotonous state. He opened his mouth to speak, but no words came out.

Sakura's hand dropped from the side of her face, realizing that Sasuke's eyes followed it. Her eyes drop to see the shiny rock that was visible on her ring finger. "Oh," she breathed out. "I guess I forgot to mention," she said while pushing herself to smile, "I'm engaged." A false chuckle followed it.

The man nodded. "Aa, congratulations."

Startlingly, Sakura stood up. "I should go. Um, he – my fi... Kyo – he should be home by now, and I have to make dinner, so I-I'll see you tomorrow, Sasuke-kun? Is that okay?"

He got up as well, so that his eyes were looking down at hers. "Aa," he murmured. But when she turned around, he added, "Come early. If you can, please."

Her head slightly turned around at the same time her hands pushed the door open. "O-Okay. See you then." With that, Sakura exited the small cell.

The moment Shikamaru took off the silent alarm in her wristband, she ran home without saying a word. Tears at this point were dried out, and her body mainly felt panic. Her chest beat rapidly with every step she took, especially when she was outside her door.

The keys jingled in her shaking hands, and Sakura was unable to push it through the hole. She played with the doorknob, but no matter what she did, nothing would open the door.

Suddenly, someone on the other side opened it; it was Kyo.

"Sakura, where have you been?" He sounded worried. He pulled her in for a squeeze. "You're freezing," he said, closing the door behind her. The warm eyes gazed down at her, and he gave a small smile. "You okay?"

Sakura nodded. "I went to visit Naruto today," she explained. The woman took her coat off slowly, entering the kitchen. She saw a few other guys hovering over the dining room table.

"Hey, Sakura!" Kyo's friends greeted.

Her fiancé behind her placed his hands on her shoulder to place a kiss on the top of her head. "Sorry, I forgot to mention the guys are here."

The woman shrugged. "It's okay. You guys haven't eaten yet, have you? I'll go make something." She grabbed a few celery and carrot sticks from the fridge and a cutting board, silently chopping the vegetables.

"This execution is really wearing me out."

Sakura heard the man next to Kyo say. She looked up, but her hands continued to move the knife. Her heart sank when she realized they were all talking about Sasuke. She nibbled on her lower lips, forcing herself to cut the vegetables even quicker, hoping the loudness of the knife against the board would keep her from hearing the conversation.

"I heard the Hokage visits him everyday," another coworker said. "Poor guy, he must be devastated. They were close friends, weren't they?"

She heard Kyo agree and mention something else. Her right hand motioned the knife as fast as it could.

"Sakura?" His voice spoke up.

The woman ignored it as she did the rest of their voices. She hastily grabbed another carrot stick and began cutting it again, before she realized there was blood all over the board. Her vision was blurred with tear drops.

"Sakura!" Kyo quickly rushed over to her and held onto her bleeding hand. His fingers glowed a beautiful royal blue as he healed the small cut. "Is everything ok –" His voice was cut off when he saw his future wife's wet face. Unsure of what to do, he walked over to her, and his arms wrapped around her body. All he could do was say her name, but she never responded.

Coworkers all got up from the dining table to see the situation. They had never seen Sakura so down before.

"He can't leave me," she muttered, slowly dropping herself down onto her knees.

"What?" Kyo questioned.

"He can't leave me!" She cried out. "He can't, he can't..." she repeated. "I can't leave him."

..

Date: February 14

Days until the execution of Sasuke Uchiha: 2

TBC

..

A lot longer than usual. I'm hoping the next chapter will be around this length, but I'm not entirely sure.

Please review.