Prompt #03

Japan

Sakura stared out of the window of the plane as it began its landing sequence. They banked steeply and she caught sight of the sprawling city below. Closing her eyes, she leaned her head back in to her seat, trying to ignore the slight tremble of the plane as it touch down on the runway. She didn't want to open her eyes – didn't want to be here in this country.

"Excuse me, Miss?"

Sakura peeled open one tired, green eye to see a sympathetic looking stewardess looking at her.

"We've landed. You are free to begin disembarking."

Sakura mumbled her thanks and stood, wincing at the stiffness in her legs. She grabbed her carry on bag and threw it over her shoulder and allowed the friendly stewardess to accompany her through the tunnel from the plane and in to the terminal. The woman smiled and bowed politely as she left Sakura stood by the luggage carousel.

"Welcome to Tokyo." She chirped before scurrying away.

"Yeah. Thanks." Sakura would have winced at the lack of enthusiasm in her voice had she been feeling anything other than a bone-deep sadness. She stood there, surrounded by excitedly chattering people all waiting for their bags so they could begin their holidays and enjoy a couple of weeks away from the normality of home.

But this wasn't a holiday for Sakura; it was going to be her life now.

The first pieces of luggage began to make their way around the carousel and Sakura was surprised that hers were among the first. She grabbed the pink suitcase as it passed but was not quick enough to grasp the second. Sighing, she had no choice but to wait while the belt went round again and soon enough she had a hold of all her luggage.

The rest of her things were being freighted over – she had already had to pay a fine, exceeding the luggage weight limit as she had.

She made towards the arrivals lounge with her bags in tow, moving awkwardly until a helpful man offered her use of a luggage trolley. Emerging in to the main terminal, Sakura swallowed as she watched families being reunited and happy expressions all around. Her throat closed up as she suddenly felt very alone. While the airport was not as busy as Heathrow had been, the press of people around her left her feeling out or sorts and she took deep, steadying breaths.

"Sakura?"

She turned around, coming face to face with a smiling blonde woman.

"Tsunade-obasan." The language felt strange on her tongue – out of practice and too formal.

Tsunade smiled and placed a hand on her shoulder. "We can stick to English, it's fine. You'll be a fluent Japanese speaker soon."

Sakura's lips attempted to turn upwards but she failed miserably. She observed her Aunt and noticed that her face was rather drawn and the lines around her eyes were deeper.

"Come on, let's get you home."

Sakura watched the city fly past as her Aunt drove them away from the airport and towards Sakura's new life.

She wanted to be back in England, enjoying the feeling of finishing her A-Levels and looking forward to one last summer with her friends.

Things wouldn't quite work out the way she planned.

She had a place at University College London to study medicine. Her parents had been so proud, always bragging that their daughter had been accepted to one of the world's best universities. Of course, it all relied on her actually achieving the grades needed in her A-Levels but there was no doubt in anyone's mind that she would do it.

Now she would not be going to university until the next April – a full 10 months away.

It was confusing, having to forget that her school year would no longer run from September to July. She could have enrolled immediately in Japan and caught up on the first month or so, but honestly she was not feeling very motivated. Her place at UCL had been lost and now she would be attending the University of Tokyo, her Aunt's alma mater.

She had almost a year to find her feet in this new city before having to focus on her studies again.

"I'm sorry Sakura." She glanced over at her Aunt and her amber eyes briefly met Sakura's.

"It's not your fault." Sakura whispered and looked down at her lap.

Her Aunt looked nothing like her father and that was a good thing, she felt. She only had to deal with unbidden memories when she caught her own eyes in the mirror.

It had been almost a month since the crash. Sakura had been eighteen when it happened and although an orphan, she was still an adult. Honestly she could have been preparing to move to London as she had always planned, but the idea of being alone?

When her Aunt, her only living relative, had offered her a place to live, Sakura had been tempted.

She had puzzled over it for days on end before deciding that it was better not to be alone – even if that meant moving to Japan.

"We're here."

Tsunade had pulled up to a neat, decent sized house. Sakura climbed out the car and looked around. It looked so different to her winding little street back in England. There was no woodland over the road where she would play as a child and no stream where she slipped and fell while trying to catch frogs.

While the clean and well-ordered foliage lining her Aunt's road was still pretty, it didn't have the memories that she had been surrounded by for eighteen years.

Her Aunt hefted both bags up in her arms and led Sakura to the house. It had been a long time since she had been in Japan and she almost walked straight in to the house in her outdoor shoes. She paused and toed off her Converse, finding that Tsunade had already bought her a pair of house slippers to wear.

Tsunade led the way up the stairs and placed Sakura's bags in the room that would now be hers. Seemed to realise that her niece wasn't feeling very sociable, Tsunade left Sakura in peace.

Sakura looked around at the plain walls and sighed sadly. Whoever said fresh starts were always a good thing?

Sakura discovered several things during her first weeks in Japan: the sunrises were beautiful, the moon seemed a lot larger here than in England, and most importantly she he found out that she sucked at being Japanese.

Really, she thought to herself as she peered at road sign over her head, it was in her blood and yet she could hardly speak it and her reading was even worse! Her Aunt assured her that it would come back to her – she had been taught of her heritage as a child, her father made sure of that. When Sakura had grown older however, her Japanese slipped to the back of her mind. While she had occasionally spoken it with her father, when her grandparents had died while she was aged twelve, she had no real reason to be speaking it regularly – no more weekly phone calls informing them of her life half a world away.

Tsunade was confident that by the time she started school again she would be perfect in all areas of Japanese speech and writing, but as it stood currently that didn't help her.

On her Aunt's request, Sakura had decided to go out and explore Tokyo. She had spent the day travelling around via the packed subway system but now found herself in a predicament – she had no clue where she was or how to get back to her house.

"Now do I want Shinjuku or Shibuya?" Sakura blinked and then smacked herself in the head. "I'm an idiot, I can't even remember where I live!" She glanced around, hoping to see a sign in English or at least something she understood. "Where am I?"

She studied the signs about her and mustered up all her knowledge of Japanese. "Shin-ju-ku." She hummed appreciatively. "Okay, I'm in Shinjuku and I need to get back to Shibuya." She closed her eyes and recalled what her father had taught her of Tokyo and its special wards. She was pretty sure they were next to each other.

She opened her eyes and saw that there was a man watching her, at least she thought he was looking at her – she couldn't be too sure with the sunglasses hiding half of his face. He had a hat on his head, blocking out the glare of the sun but the smirk on his lips was clear to see.

Sakura flushed, realising she had been stood talking to herself and turned to the right, walking with purpose and intending to find a subway and just go from there.

" Anata wa machigatta michi o susunde iru."

Sakura froze at the voice. She was pretty sure he had just told her she was going the wrong way. She faced him but he hadn't moved away from the wall. 'Oh great, my first attempt at not looking like a complete tourist and it's failing miserably.' She licked her lips as she tried to get her tired mind to work.

"Erm... machiga-" she paused – was that the right word? Deciding to go for it she tried again "Machigatta hōhō?"

The man pushed off from the wall but didn't close the gap, his mouth twitching up even higher. "Yes, 'the wrong way.'"

He switched to English and Sakura was impressed how flawlessly he spoke. "I heard you talking about Shibuya? Well if you carry on that way," he pointed at the direction she had been headed. "You'll end up in Kabukicho."

At Sakura's blank look he sighed. "It's a red light district."

Sakura blushed and bowed. "Thank you, erm arigato I mean-"

"Why don't we stick with English?"

Sakura straightened and smiled gratefully. "Thanks. Er... so could you tell me the way to Shibuya?"

The man eyed stayed silent and Sakura began to feel awkward.

"Okay." He said finally. "But can we walk?"

"You don't have to go the whole way, you can just point me in the direction and I'll –"

"Get lost again?" The man's lips curled up and Sakura bristled.

"I was not lost, I was exploring!"

"It counts as lost if you never return from your expedition."

Sakura huffed and turned her head away. "Well come on then, if you're going to help. I want to get home."

They fell in to step and began the walk back to Shibuya.

"You aren't from around here." Her companion pointed out.

"Am I that obvious?" She sighed.

"Yes."

"Wow. Thanks." She said sarcastically.

"So where are you from?" He pressed and Sakura snorted.

"Hey, hang on a minute, I'm not sure I should be chatting to you like this. I mean I don't even know your name… plus you look a bit shifty with that get up on." She motioned to his hat and glasses.

Her guide stopped walking and Sakura paused too. His shoulders were tensed and he glanced around.

"My name is Sasuke." He said quietly.

Sakura nodded. "Cool. I'm Sakura."

Sakura had no clue why his mouth dropped open a little but she swiped at her cheek as inconspicuously as she could –was there something on her face?

Sasuke soon snapped out of it and closed the gap between them. He reached up and lowered his sunglasses, letting Sakura see a ridiculously handsome face. Sakura found the dark eyes staring at her too hard to meet and averted her gaze, cursing herself as she felt the blush creeping over her cheeks.

Sasuke tilted his head. "What's wrong?"

"I just thought that for you to be hiding your face like that you must have something to hide."

Sasuke smirked and slid the glasses back on his face. "And?"

"And," Sakura said, a smile pulling at her lips for the first time in weeks. "I was right: you're hideous."

Even with his stupid sunglasses on, Sakura could tell he had a stunned expression on his face. She felt the laughter bubble up from her stomach and found herself laughing heartily. It had felt like forever since something had made her laugh, she realised, and she felt a sudden bittersweet stab of guilt – why was she here laughing when her parents– ?

Sakura stopped her chortling and pressed the heels of her palms in to her eyes, stopping the tears before they could fall. She glanced at Sasuke who was watching her with furrowed eyebrows. He opened his mouth but she cut him off before he could speak, plastering a fake smile on her face.

"Come on! We're wasting daylight."

There was silence as they continued their walk until Sasuke returned to his previous question. "So where are you from?"

"I'm from here now." Sakura gestured to the city around them. "Japan is my home now I suppose."

"And before?"

"England. I was raised there, but born here." She smiled to herself and reached in to the neckline of her top, pulling out the long chain she had worn constantly for the past month. She kept her hand clasped around the two gold rings that dangled on it. Though the warmth of her parents' flesh had faded from the metal, she still liked to feel as though they were with her.

"My father was from Tokyo. He met my mother while she was here on holiday. They fell in love and she never left. When I was born I guess she realised how much she wanted to be with her parents and so my father agreed to move us to England. I grew up there... guess that's why my Japanese is so poor, I only ever really used it when talking to my grandparents over the phone."

"Why did your parents decide to move back?" Sasuke asked.

"They didn't." She whispered, opening her hand and letting him see what was dangling from the necklace. "They died a couple of months ago."

"I'm sorry."

Sakura found it odd how often people apologised for death when it was not their fault – unfortunately there were some things that an apology could not fix. She dropped the necklace back inside her top and sighed. "Thanks."

"Did you choose to come here then?"

"Sort of. I was old enough to live on my own but... I don't know, I guess leaving a place I'd known for my whole life was less scary than having no one. I'm living with my Aunt at the moment. She was my dad's older sister and the only person I have left in the world."

"I hope you come to like it here." Sasuke intoned quietly.

She glanced at her companion and offered him a lacklustre smile, the topic having taken its toll on her. "Me too."

The rest of the walk home was more light-hearted when Sasuke took it upon himself to quiz her knowledge of Japanese.

"You want to do what to my goat?" He sniggered as Sakura finished replying to one of his incomprehensible sentences.

She looked at him horrified. "I did not say any such thing!"

He shrugged, amused look still on his face. "If you say so, just perhaps stay away from any petting zoos."

The walk was going by quickly, and Sasuke assured her the walk wasn't all that long. Sakura was enjoying herself for the first time in a long while and she continued their conversation, turning the tables.

"So what about you?"

Sasuke raised an eyebrow. "What about me?"

Sakura pouted. "Well I've shared my story so I guess it's your turn."

She could see the smirk on his mouth. "Not much to tell, just a guy born and bred in Tokyo."

"Are you in school?"

"Nope."

"University then?"

"No, I didn't go to university. Spent a lot of my high school career being home taught too." She mirrored his quizzical expression from earlier and he shrugged. "I travelled a lot... still do actually."

"Sounds..."

"Exciting?" he supplied.

Sakura shook her head. "A bit depressing." She glanced at him. "You know a couple of months ago I would have thought travelling the world would be amazing but now... I don't know, I guess the idea of having a home appeals to me more."

"Understandable." Sasuke nodded.

"So what do you do on your travels?"

"A little of this, a little of that."

Sakura rolled her eyes. "Okay fine, keep your secrets."

They turned a corner and Sakura brightened. "Hey! I know where I am now. Thanks Sasuke."

"Let me walk you the rest of the way, It's getting dark."

Sakura didn't protest, she had enjoyed his company greatly.

They came to a stop outside her Aunt's house and Sakura smiled at him "Sorry for taking up so much of your time."

"No problem." He hesitated a moment before digging a hand in his pocket and pulling out a shiny, black phone. "Perhaps I can have your number... in case you ever get lost in Tokyo again?"

Sakura smiled and nodded, reaching for the phone before a thought struck her. Sighing, the smile slid off her face. "I haven't got around to getting a phone contract here yet. I have my old phone but... well it's not much use outside of England."

Sasuke nodded and quirked the corner of his lip upwards. "No problem. I'll ask again when you have a new phone. See you."

"Hey, you aren't walking all that way back are you?"

"I'll call a lift."

"Why do you hate the subway so much? Claustrophobic?"

"Something like that." Sasuke laughed, waving once more before disappearing around the corner.

Sakura was very puzzled by the man and yet undeniably pleased that he seemed to be planning to see her again.

Sakura sat on her bed, headset on and eyes fixed to the computer screen. She had figured out that it actually drove her crazy to sit around doing nothing. Deciding to put her free time to use, she had loaded a language course on to her laptop and was currently brushing up on her Japanese.

She was pleased that she had been able to fly through the beginner levels – that would have just been embarrassing – but at least this would keep her busy for a while. Her Aunt was at work at the hospital and was away for long stretches of time. Sakura had insisted she would be fine on her own – she had already eaten up too much of Tsunade's time she felt.

The sound of the doorbell broke her from her thoughts and she glanced towards the stairs, as though her mystery guest would suddenly appear there. Pulling the headset off, Sakura trotted down the stairs and glanced through the peep hole. Her eyebrows disappeared in to her hairline when she saw who was there.

"Sasuke?" She asked, opening the door.

"Good morning." He said.

"Erm... do you want to come in?"

He nodded and Sakura let him pass by her. She waited as he toed off his shoes and followed her to the kitchen in his socks.

"Drink?"

"Mizu."

Sakura smiled. "I actually understand that one."

She walked over to the fridge and placed a glass under the water dispenser, filling it with ice-cold water. She moved over to Sasuke she placed the water in front of him and he nodded in thanks.

"So to what do I owe this pleasure?" She was glad he had took his glasses off, and even his hat this time. She admired the shining ebony hair atop his head and the casual disarray of spikes that it took.

"I brought you something." He dug around in his pocket ad withdrew a nondescript black carrier bag, wrapped around something tightly.

Confused, Sakura took the bag and opened it. Inside was a small box, the picture on the front letting her know exactly what was inside.

"A phone?" She looked up at Sasuke who was eying her expectantly. "Are you crazy?" She almost screeched. "You can't go about giving people phones!"

"Why not?" He asked simply.

"Because you just met me."

"You didn't have a phone."

Sakura huffed and sat opposite him. "I wasn't hinting that I wanted you to buy me a phone. I would have gotten around to buying one eventually."

"Now you don't have to."

Shaking her head, Sakura began to open the box. "You're impossible."

Sakura observed the phone in the box and felt nervous to touch it – it seemed to be quite similar to the one she had seen Sasuke with yesterday, but was white instead of black.

"You just keep getting more mysterious you know. Please take it back?" She looked at him beseechingly.

"No." Sasuke crossed his arms. "Think of this as a purely selfish motive – you're the first person in a while I've enjoyed talking to."

"How honoured I am." Sakura muttered, switching the device on, surprised when it didn't take an age to start up.

"I already put my number in."

"Now you're beginning to scare me." She joked, placing the phone on the table. "So, what were you are you doing today?"

"Talking to you."

"Har har. What about afterwards?"

Sasuke shrugged and took a sip of water. "I haven't got plans yet."

"No job needed to pay for all that travelling you do?"

"It's... part time."

"I bet." Sakura muttered, her mind beginning to hurt keeping up with the strangeness.

"What were you doing?" Sasuke questioned.

"Trying to brush up on my Japanese."

"You'd learn better out there actually talking to people." He pointed out.

"I bet I would, but I would have no clue what they were saying to me most times."

"Sonogo, nihongo de hanashimashou."

Sakura blinked at the sudden change in language but understood that he was suggesting they talked in Japanese. She smiled and nodded.

"Īdesu ne." She agreed.

They spent a long while speaking – mostly in Japanese, though Sasuke was gracious and translated some things for her – and Sakura felt her tongue loosening up by the time Sasuke stood to leave.

"Thank you for coming to visit... are you sure you won't take the phone back?"

He sent her a mock glare. "Keep it. I won't be around for a few days so it could be useful."

"Travelling eh?"

"You could say that. I'm sure you don't want me to be alone on the road do you? A text or phone call could be all the difference in my happiness."

"You are an idiot." Sakura couldn't quite fight the smile tugging her lips. "Okay I'll hold on to it for your benefit. When will you be back?"

"At the end of the week... maybe Monday at the latest."

"Well, have fun... wherever it is you're going."

Sasuke nodded and stuffed his hands in his pocket. "Try not to wander too far in to Shinjuku again... I won't be there to help."

Sakura barely left the house that week if she was being honest. Tsunade had took her shopping once and showed her the subway route she would need to take if she ever needed to get to the hospital to find her aunt, but other than that Sakura stayed in the house. She made an effort to read the local newspaper every morning, trying to bring her reading skills up to scratch.

She watched television and listened to music, soaking up what was popular. The radio was almost constantly on in her room and she found herself falling in love with the music she heard. She was gaining a particular affection for J-Rock and in particular a band called Shinobi. She noticed their songs were played quite often and she made a mental note to Google them.

She had tried keeping up a good flow of contact with her friends back home, but the time difference and the fact that they were gearing up for their Fresher's year at uni left Sakura leaving a little isolated.

After spending a riveting Saturday in her room watching old sitcoms on her laptop Sakura decided that she should look in to getting a hobby – she needed friends other than Del Boy and Rodney after all.

Seeing how much Tsunade worked was almost enough to persuade Sakura to change her career plans but she didn't mind having the house to herself and not have to watch her Aunt studying her – checking to see if she was about to break in to tears.

Her parents were a crisp picture in her mind, her memories of them clear as day. It seemed a scarily long time since she had seen them. A couple of months should be no time at all, and yet she felt she had changed as a person – she was coping on her own in ways she would never have imagined she could before.

The tears still came at random moments – such as remembering how her mother had plaited her hair while she sat in front of her mirror one morning – and she was not always able to sleep peacefully. All in all however, she was feeling like she had found her feet in her new world… even if just a little.

Sakura woke up on Sunday morning to an annoying buzzing in her ear. Groping around blindly, she grasped the phone she had placed under her pillow. She peered at the screen seeing Sasuke's name on the screen. She slid her thumb across the screen to accept the call and brought the device up to her ear.

"Sasuke?" She stifled a yawn. "It's Sunday morning, what are you doing up so early?"

"I just got back to Tokyo. I thought you may want to see me... unless my absence has caused you to move on."

"Dork." She snorted. "Doing something sounds good though. Like what?"

"Think you could meet me somewhere?"

The 'and not get lost' was unspoken but Sakura heard it loud and clear. "I'm sure I could manage that."

"Meet me in Shinjuku, the Golden Gai neighbourhood."

Sakura searched around for a pen to write that down. "Golden Gai. Okay."

"Just take the East exit of Shinjuku Station. I'll meet you from there."

"Shinjuku Station, East exit. Right, got it. What time?"

"Whenever you're ready."

"Give me an hour or so." She said before disconnecting the call.

Sakura hopped out of bed, feeling a lot more cheerful now that she had plans... and perhaps also because of Sasuke too. She opened her curtains and peered outside. The sky was a bright blue and there didn't seem to be a breeze to stir the trees. Opening the window she stuck her head out and felt the gentle warmth of the early morning sun on her face. It seemed like it was going to be a beautiful day.

Opting in that case for a dress, Sakura got ready as quietly as she could, knowing her Aunt would still be in bed – she had worked the late shift the night before. Sakura headed down in to the kitchen and had a glass water and grabbed an apple from the fruit bowl, writing a message to Tsunade on the dry wipe board next to the fridge.

'Gone out to meet a friend. Will be back later xx'

Satisfied that she was good to go, she threw her apple core away and grabbed her bag from where it was slung across one of the kitchen chairs. Making sure she had her phone and purse, she sat on the inside step to put her trusty white converse on and headed out of the house.

She walked to the local train station, taking a train to Shinjuku Station. She hadn't gone to Shinjuku Station before and it was quite overwhelming. Back in England you used the trains on a Sunday at your own risk – it was never any fun when you found out your train was cancelled because of repair works – but there seemed to be no such issue here. If this was a Sunday morning, Sakura would hate to be here during the week in rush hours.

Busiest station in the world, she mused to herself, I can believe that.

It was also confusing trying to the right exit she needed but was buoyed when she left the station and saw a nearby sign pointing towards Golden Gai. She walked for a few minutes, eventually coming to narrower alleyways and ramshackle buildings unlike the skyscrapers she had left behind.

"I'm impressed," a voice called out and she looked to see Sasuke leaning against a nearby building. "You actually made it here."

Sticking her tongue out, Sakura approached him and smiled. "Never underestimate me. It's good to see you, good trip?"

He shrugged one shoulder. "Can't complain."

Sakura looked at the street ahead of them. "Cool place."

Sasuke nodded. "It is. Come on." He took her hand and led her down the road.

Sakura trying not to blush as his strong hand enclosed her smaller one. She looked at the buildings as they walked and noticed a lot of them appeared to be bars. "You're not trying to get me drunk are you?" She joked.

He glanced back at her. "Wasn't planning on it. You're not old enough anyway right?"

"I am in England." She sniffed.

"Well it's twenty years old here so no beer for you."

"Or you," she sniped. "From what I recall you're still a few months short."

"Why are we talking about this? I didn't bring you out on a Sunday morning to go to a bar." He came to a stop at the corner of a road where there stood a building, a bit run down like the others, but the door was thrown open and music was drifting out.

She cocked an eyebrow in question.

"This neighbourhood is where the musicians and artists hang out. It's a good place to hear real music."

"This early on a Sunday?"

He nodded. "The weekends are busy the whole day through. People like sharing when they can."

They walked inside and Sasuke pulled off his hat. The man behind the bar nearby gave Sasuke a nod and Sasuke led Sakura to a table in a dimly lit corner.

"You sound like you're speaking from experience." Sakura noted.

He nodded, sliding off his glasses too "I used to sing here a few years back."

"You sing?" Sasuke nodded and Sakura smiled. "You don't come here to sing anymore though?"

He shook his head. "I don't get the chance to anymore."

Sakura glanced around the club. There were quite a few people around considering how early it was but no one paid them any mind.

The man from behind the bar came over to them, his grey hair flopping over in to one eye and a surgical mask over his face. Sakura had seen this enough to know that it wasn't unusual for people to cover their faces if they were feeling unwell - it was consideration and prevention all in one.

"Sasuke," the man greeted and began to talk quite rapidly in Japanese. Sakura picked up on a few of the platitudes – the man was asking Sasuke how he had been but she had obviously missed something because the man was soon looking at her expectantly.

"This is Sakura," Sasuke said in English, drawing the man's attention back to him. "She recently moved here from England. Sakura, this is Kakashi. He owns this dive."

The man chuckled and stuffed his hands deep in his pocket. "Watch it kid, you're not too much of a hot shot to get a smack."

Sakura was relieved that Kakashi had also now switched to English.

"Nice to meet you, Sakura. So are you a big Shinobi fan?"

Sakura found the question abrupt and odd. "Shinobi? That's a band right? I think I've heard a few of their songs on the radio recently."

Kakashi's visible eye appeared to widen in surprise and when Sakura glanced at Sasuke she saw him giving the older man a glare.

"Ah," Kakashi laughed nervously. "I'll go grab you two something to drink." He retreated back to the bar quickly and Sakura watched him go.

"That was odd." Sakura mused, turning to Sasuke. "Why did he ask me about Shinobi?"

Sasuke shrugged, eyes darting over her shoulder and back again. "They were discovered in this bar. I guess Kakashi just likes to brag."

"No shame in being proud of something." Kakashi had returned, two glassed of cola on a tray. "Right, Sasuke?"

The teen grunted and reached for his drink.

"Well it should get busier pretty soon. I hope you enjoy yourself, Sakura."

Sakura thanked him and complimented him on his bar in Japanese. Kakashi's eye crinkled up in to a smile and he ruffled her hair before he left.

"Your Japanese is improving." Sasuke observed.

"I've been practicing. I had to do something with my time."

"You missed me that much?" Sasuke smirked."

"My heart was broken. I could not go on." She said in a deadpan voice.

Sakura enjoyed her day immensely, sat watching people drift in and out of the bar, sharing songs or just listening. It did get busy just as Kakashi had promised and eventually it was standing room only. Sakura applauded and laughed along with the other patrons, and even Sasuke seemed a little more animated than usual.

It was late afternoon before they left the club, waving goodbye to Kakashi on their way out. Sakura saw that the roads outside had also gotten busier as people were filtering into the other bars on the street.

Sakura glanced at Sasuke and smiled. "I think you forgot something."

"Hm?"

She tapped her head and he froze. He looked back at the bar they had left before shaking his head.

"It doesn't matter." He grumbled.

"Why do you wear it all the time?" Sakura asked. "Is it lucky or something?"

"Something like that." He agreed.

Sakura noticed a few people giving them second glances as they walked back to the train station and she began to feel self-conscious. Maybe that was why Sasuke liked to wear his hat and sunglasses, to divert the appreciative looks from strangers?

They paused outside Shinjuku Station and Sasuke sighed. "Want me to walk you back again?"

Sakura shook her head. "It's fine, the train will get me there in no time. Plus you look exhausted. Did you even sleep after getting back to Tokyo?"

Sasuke made a noncommittal noise in his throat and Sakura shook her head in exasperation.

"Well I'd best go. Thanks for today, Sasuke. I had a lot of fun."

"I did too" He seemed to hesitate for a moment before leaning in and kissing her on the cheek. "See you soon."

Sakura watched him saunter away and brought a hand up to her cheek. What in the world? She smiled at his retreating back and headed in to the station.

In her happy mood she didn't notice the man stood close by, looking like his Christmases had all come at once.

"Sakura? Wake up Sweetie."

"Hmm, mom?" Sakura grumbled rolling over in bed.

It wasn't her mother's blue eyes staring down at her however, but her Aunt's tawny ones.

"Tsunade-obasan?"

Tsunade's face was concerned and a little haggard.

"Shouldn't you be in work?" Sakura asked sitting up in bed.

"I was going but then I saw the paper and well..."

She passed a folded newspaper to Sakura who, confused and still half-asleep, opened the sheets flat. It took her a while to see what was laid out in front of her but when her brain clicked she gasped.

"What!?"

There on the front page of a national newspaper was a picture of Sasuke kissing her outside of Shinjuku Station.

Bewildered, she scanned through the article, picking out most of the key points.

'Sasuke Uchiha... lead singer of Shinobi... kissing mystery girl... seen together in Golden Gai... confirmed as British girl, Sakura Haruno.'

She looked up at her Aunt in shock. "He's famous!?"

Tsunade frowned. "You didn't know?"

Sakura shook her head. "No. I got lost one day and he walked me home. We've kept in touch ever since but he didn't say anything."

It all seemed to make sense in her mind now – the hat and glasses, not wanting to get on public transport, the love of Kakashi's bar. Thinking back he had seemed surprised when she had first met him – he was obviously hot property and yet she had no clue who he was.

'I wonder if that's why he kept me around.' She thought glumly.

"It's not just that..." Sakura eyed Tsunade warily and waited for her to finish. "There are a couple of people outside who apparently know you live here."

Sakura groaned and threw herself back on to the bed, burying her face in the pillow. "Kill me now. Only I would be able to walk around with a superstar and not know. His fan girls are going to gut me."

Tsunade rubbed her back comfortingly. "It will all blow over soon. They'll get bored, it's just that this boy is usually impossible to track down and now he's popped up with a girlfriend."

"He's not my boyfriend!" Sakura protested. "He's just a friend."

Tsunade smiled and tapped the photo on the front page of the paper. "Does he know that?" She glanced at her watch. "Sorry Sakura but I really do have to get to work. Just please don't attempt to go outside and don't let any of those lowlifes outside in the house."

Sakura nodded and curled back up on her bed. She fished her phone from under her pillow and hesitated for a moment before writing a text.

'You have some serious explaining to do.'

Sakura sat at her window, pillow hugged tightly to her chest as she peered down at the pavement below. The steady tap tap of rain hitting the glass was the only sound in the room. It seemed that even the dismal weather couldn't deter the mass of reporters milling about below.

She hadn't been out of the house since the newspaper report came out days before.

Someone out there was apparently very good at digging up private information on people and within no time her address was common knowledge, and the caravan of paparazzi and tabloid reporters had made their home on her Aunt's doorstep.

Her Aunt had been furious. But even all her yelling and threatening fist waving had not been enough to get the vultures to fly away.

Sakura sighed and pressed her cheek against the window. She was bored... and annoyed. While she could have happily lived in her room for a long time, it was getting old not being able to go for a walk or to explore the city she now had to call home.

She was even too scared to use her computer. She had logged on to it the afternoon of the newspaper-debacle, and had been struck dumb by the amount of messages and friend requests she had gotten on all her social media sites. It wasn't just nice messages though, some were downright terrifying. Crazed fan girls (and guys) threatening to rip her face off if she was seen with Sasuke again.

Sakura had suspended her accounts, making herself as invisible as possible until things cooled down – at least she hoped they would cool down.

She had curiously entered her name in a search engine and instantly received thousands of results discussing her relationship with Sasuke. The photos from the image search were those that had been in the newspaper. It had been the last straw for her and she had refused to open the internet browser since.

As it was her laptop was currently sat on the bed, screen brightening the otherwise gloomy room.

There was a knock on her bedroom door. "Sakura?" her Aunt called. "I have to go in to the hospital. Are you sure you'll be okay?"

"I'll be fine, Aunt Tsunade." She called back, closing her eyes against the cool glass. She did not hear her Aunt's footsteps retreat so she waited with open ears.

"Sakura, I know you haven't wanted to read the newspaper since... well since all this." She heaved a great sigh. "But I think you should look at today's. I'll leave it just here by your door."

Sakura was silent and Tsunade left without further hesitation. Sakura kept her position at the window until she saw Tsunade battle her way through the reporters outside. Her lip twitched in to a smile when she saw her Aunt 'accidentally' elbow a particularly eager photographer in the ribs.

Sakura glared down at the reporters once more before standing up. She really couldn't see what the big deal was. Was Sasuke Uchiha that famous that anyone he interacted with instantly became the most interesting person in the world? She shook her head and padded over to the door, her socked feet sliding unwillingly across the wooden floor.

She opened her door and found that morning's newspaper waiting for her, the top half of the front page facing up to meet her. A quick glance told her that the top story wasn't about her and she was grateful. Sakura sat on her bed and unfolded the paper, a small article at the bottom of the front page immediately drawing her attention.

"Sasuke Uchiha's Secret Lover's Secret Heartache". She read aloud.

Her eyebrows furrowed and she skimmed through the short bit of writing, finding it was just recapping the events of two days previous. A footnote promised the full story further in the paper however, and Sakura immediately skipped ahead to the pages mentioned. Her breath left her in a gasp.

Her own face smiled up from her and while she had become disturbingly used to seeing her own photo in the news, the other two people pictured either side of her were faces she was not prepared to see. Her parents faces stared out from the middle of a sea of black and white print, smiling and eyes sparkling with life.

Sakura's eyes filled with tears as she began to read, still not the quickest at reading in Japanese at the best of times. It was slow-going, but she gathered enough to learn that once the press had found out she was originally from England, they had traced her old address and in turn they had found out about the accident that had killed her parents. There were even interviews with people that she had considered her friends.

'Well,' she thought viciously, flinging the paper across the room and out of her sight. 'They aren't friends anymore!'

They had spilled her secrets and opened her private life for the world to see . She felt so betrayed, and the more she thought on it, she realised she felt betrayed by Sasuke too. He had not replied to her text from two days earlier and she was beginning to think that he had only wanted the anonymity that she provided him. And now he had left her to face the fallout on her own.

She sat on her bed for a long while. The storm outside getting worse and the room growing darker. Her tears dripped from her lashes and landed on her legs as she stroked the two wedding rings strung around her neck with reverence. Her silent contemplation was cut short by a cheerful ringing tune coming from her laptop.

A screen had popped up – someone wanted to web chat. Sakura frowned; she rarely chatted over the computer... and honestly there wasn't anyone she really wanted to speak to at the moment. The ringing kept up and she grit her teeth.

She looked at the user name – CrimsonAvenger and shook her head. She hadn't a clue who that was. Had someone leaked all her contact details already? Sakura rubbed at her eyes furiously, angry at herself finding that they were filling with tears again at the sheer injustice of things.

The cheerful tone had become obnoxious and Sakura hit cancel. There was blessed relief for a moment before the screen popped up again, with the same person trying to contact her. Sakura grit her teeth. Her finger hovered over the 'block' button before she changed her mind and hit accept – may as well shout at someone who deserved it. Her mouth opened promptly dropped as she saw the face staring back at her.

"Sasuke?"

He nodded, a smirk on his face for a moment before it morphed in to a frown. "You've been crying."

She looked down in embarrassment. "Well it's not been an easy couple of days." She glanced up. "How did you get my Skype name?"

He lifted an eyebrow teasingly. "I have my ways. I'm sorry I haven't been able to talk to you since... things happened. I've been barricaded in my house and I wasn't sure how to handle things."

"I know the feeling." Sakura muttered. She glanced at Sasuke shyly. "I'm glad you called. I missed talking to you."

Sasuke's smirk was undeniable now. "Good. Now let me in."

"What!?"

Sasuke turned the phone he was calling from in his hand and pointed it to the side of him. Sakura could see a swarm of excited reporters through the tinted glass and, beyond them, the familiar sight of her Aunt's house.

"What are you doing here? They'll pounce on you."

"You had best come open the door quickly then."

With that Sasuke disconnected the call and Sakura cursed, jumping off the bed and dashing over to her window. She saw the black car parked along the curb and watched as the door opened. A familiar head of black spikes stepped out on to the pavement and there were blinding bursts of camera flashes and a cacophony of shouted questions. Sasuke ignored them and pushed his way through the crowd and up the path towards the door.

Sakura was struck senseless for a moment until the doorbell snapped her out of her stupor. She skidded out of her room and down the stairs, her feet slipping as she reached the front door. She was suddenly aware that she wore only a pair of pyjama shorts and an oversized hoodie. She clenched the sleeves that fell beyond her fingers for comfort and took a deep breath.

She opened the door a little, keeping herself as hidden as possible and peered around the gap. She flinched as the cameras started flashing again and Sasuke smiled sadly at her. He slipped through the gap as best he could and then shut the door with finality.

Sakura could still hear the reporters calling their questions outside and groaned. Sakura found it suddenly very difficult to look at him and instead focused on his feet. She saw the droplets of rain that clung to him fall off and hit the floor steadily and she nodded to herself.

"I should get you a towel."

She retreated upstairs and to the airing cupboard, pulling out a warm, fluffy towel. She turned and saw that Sasuke had followed her up the stairs, his eyes observing he intensely. Sakura passed him the towel and entered her room, the man following her like a lost puppy.

Sakura sat on her bed and fiddled with the hem of her hoodie while Sasuke rubbed the excess water from his head. When he was done he knelt on the floor in front of Sakura and caught her eyes.

"You are angry with me." It wasn't a question.

Sakura's lips curled minutely and she shook her head. "Not really. I'm annoyed you didn't tell me but I understand why." She gestured at the window in explanation. "And honestly, I felt hurt that you seemed to abandon me these past two days."

"I'm angry with myself."

Sakura raised her eyebrows at that. "Why?"

"I should have known that this would happen. I did know that if someone spotted me with you they would hound you over this. But I was selfish. I enjoyed speaking to you."

"I enjoyed it too." Sakura whispered. "It's the happiest I've been since..." She trailed off and Sasuke picked up the newspaper from where it lay on the floor.

He looked down at the picture spread out for the world to see and shook his head. "I would never have put you through this willingly. If I could change things then I-"

"I wouldn't change it." Sasuke stared at her and she offered him a weak smile. "Like I said, I don't regret things. I enjoyed getting to know you. I could do without the mob outside but hey ho."

"It doesn't bother you that I'm famous?"

She shrugged. "Why should it? I liked you before I knew about that. It didn't bother me then that you weren't famous...well at least as far as I knew. It doesn't bother me now that I know you are."

Sasuke snorted at her logic but shuffled closer to her on his knees. Grasping her hands he looked up at her blushing face. "Then say you want to get to know me better still." He glanced towards the window and pulled a face. "If they want a story I'll gladly give it to them. I'm used to dealing with those leeches. Let me protect you from them too."

Sakura's eyes were stunned. "You... are asking me to date you?"

"So much more than that." Sasuke said, shifting further up on to his knees and bringing his face level with hers. "You are the most genuine person I have ever met. Getting to just be me and not The Sasuke Uchiha was amazing... you are amazing. I have had to give up a lot of things because of the constant press intrusion in to my life. I refuse to give up you."

"This is crazy." Sakura whispered. "You barely know me."

"Honestly," Sasuke said, leaning in a little closer. "You know me better than anyone has in years."

Sakura's eyes grew misty yet again and she shook her head. "You don't mean that."

"Why don't I?"

"Rich, famous heart-throbs don't mix with ordinary girls like me."

"Says who?"

"Says life." Sakura jutted her chin out stubbornly and Sasuke laughed. It had been so few times that she had seen him so carefree that Sakura was speechless, committing the mirth on his face to memory.

"You," Sasuke said, face straightening out once more. "Are emotional and impulsive. You can be short-tempered and you are extremely annoying at times."

Sakura frowned at him as he rattled off her apparent faults and she opened her mouth. Sasuke placed a long finger on her lips and shushed her.

"Plus you always have something to say." He removed his finger, letting the tip trail over her jaw. "But you are beautiful, inside and out. You are an amazing listener and you always know what to say. You are kind and you exude a comforting aura. I've never seen someone draw people to them like I have you.

"You are smart and I could talk to you forever and you would still surprise me."

Sakura wiped at the tears that escaped her eyes and sniffed. "What script did you steal that line from?"

Sasuke barked out a laugh. "Haven't you heard, I'm a singer, not an actor." He trailed his hands over her shoulders and leaned towards her. "So? What do you say?"

Sakura realised that as scary as what faced her was, it seemed infinitely worse to lose Sasuke. She threw caution to the wind and leaned forward, pressing her lips to his.

"I say , call me annoying again and you'll be untangling your toes from your tonsils."

Sasuke smirked and captured her lips again. "Deal." He mumbled.

The room had well and truly grown dark. The reporters outside must have been have been torn between disappointment they didn't get another glimpse of Sasuke, and also glee that Sasuke had been inside the house for hours. Sakura could just imagine the headline tomorrow. In a stark change from that morning however, she couldn't bring herself to care.

She found herself reclined on her bed, a pair of strong arms wrapped around her. She played with Sasuke's hand, tracing the lines on his palm as the room grew dark and silent around them. They had talked for hours, everything in the open now, about their lives before they had met, what they wanted from the future... with each other.

"I guess I should take you on a date huh?"

Sakura smiled at his words. "What about the trip to the Golden Gai?"

Sasuke scoffed. "Please, I can do better than that."

"Okay," Sakura agreed. "Know any deserted islands?"

"Hm." Sasuke pondered, tapping his free hand on his chin exaggeratedly. "I think all the ones I know of are in use. How about a very private house – I make a good katsu curry?"

Dinner at Sasuke's sounded heavenly and Sakura snuggled closer to him, murmuring her agreement. The quiet was interrupted by the suddenly renewed frenzy of shouting from outside.

Sakura glanced at the clock on her bedside and sighed. "My Aunt is home."

She made to get up but Sasuke held her held her tight. "Not yet."

"Sasuke..."

Before Sakura could protest further, a short knock came from her bedroom door before Tsunade poked her head inside. She eyed the two teenagers , taking in their clothed position above the sheets before her face relaxed.

"I brought dinner back with me." She looked at Sasuke. "There's plenty."

With that she left the room and Sakura rolled on to her stomach, peering up at Sasuke. "How about moving that dinner date forward? We order a mean takeaway in this house."

Sasuke smirked as she turned his earlier words around on him and allowed her to get up. Sakura felt his hand slip in to hers and smiled to herself.

She wished her parents were still with her and would always miss them... but the man next to her may have made life in Japan seem a lot brighter.

Ah pure soul-enriching fluff. All wrapped up in a damn long chapter.

Forgive me for the Japanese translations and blame Google if they are wrong. I tried to make it clear what was actually being said without putting the English in brackets next to it etc. so I hope it was clear enough to follow.

Also, I have not been to Japan so if the descriptions etc. in the chapter are off the mark then I apologise.

Hope you enjoyed this one. It gave me a good opportunity to listen to copious amounts of J and K-Pop.

Until next time when there will be another instalment for Arabia me thinks…