Author's note: Hello, everyone. I've been exhausted after all that hiking, so I'm behind a chapter. So, here it is. Many days late, but at least it's here.
The plot begins to develop in this chapter, you'll get a glimpse of what Sasuke is feeling upon his return to Konoha, feel the suspense as Tsunade doles out the Uchiha avenger's punishment.
Gai/Lee-esque pose
And a cliff hanger ending. xD
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Nothing had changed in the past five days Sasuke had been at Konoha's hospital. Not even the menu Sasuke noted as he picked at his lunch. The ANBU stationed outside his doorway changed every morning and every evening at six. Tsunade walked past his doorway every evening at six, spoke to the nin standing outside his door then left. Sakura had come every morning to check his injuries, and once in a while made a surprise visit if only to keep him from slipping into the dull routine. Today, that dull routine would be broken. He was allowed visitors or as he referred to them, fans.
A shattered bone in his left leg had been reconstructed by a medic trainee, and after he had given the poor boy the Uchiha death glare Sakura pronounced it perfectly healed. The bloody gash that ran from his brow over his right eye to his jaw had been healed by Sakura, who had been avoiding her charge since he had denied ever loving her. Fortunately for him, she had agreed to heal it if only to keep him from murdering whomever else tried to heal it. Her flawless chakra control left no pucker in his alabaster flesh, only a faint pale line hinted at the violence he had been through.
The door was nearly ripped from it's hinges as the kyuubi-possessed Naruto bounded into the room. He received only a blink from the Uchiha, who had heard his boisterus presence before he had reached the door. Hell, before he even reached the fifth floor. Naruto's shock of untidy blonde hair was shorter than it had been in their years under Kakashi's tutelage, though it still spiked up above a black Konoha shinobi headband. And though the style and color of his jumpsuit had changed, he still wore that ridiculous bright orange that had become his trademark.
"Sasuke-teme! I finally kicked your ass! Are you better yet? I want another fight!" all these exclamations were shouted to Sasuke by an ecstatic Naruto, amidst the impatient bouncing of the bijuu. The Uchiha spoke up with a smirk, staring at Naruto in a reserved manner "Baka. Long time no see." the sound of light 'all business' footsteps at the door made both the Uzumaki and the Uchiha look up from their greeting and garbled arguments. A whole new bout of screaming began as Naruto leapt at the new arrival with her rose-petal pink hair. The patient watched the amusing scene unfold as Sakura broke free of Naruto's exhuberrant clinging, and gave the boy a stern glare. She then turned to Sasuke, her brilliant green eyes glazing over as she said "The hokage would like a meeting with . . . Team 7." both men noticed the hesitation in their team mate's voice as she spoke.
And then Naruto was once again all over Sakura. Every now and then a phrase relating to 'the victorious return of Team 7' could be made out of Naruto's babbling. As Sasuke watched the scene unfold from his bed, he saw the hostility and exhaustion that haunted Sakura's every gesture. But only when the hard, slate grey eyes of the Uchiha met the brilliant green irises of a certain Sakura Haruno did he understand. Whatever Tsunade had in store for the reunited Team 7, it would not be pleasant.
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Naruto and Sasuke shot petty insults back and forth as the trio walked down the hallway toward the elevator. Sakura remained silent, other than icily commenting once that walking would have been easier for Sasuke if he had accepted the pair of crutches offered. It wasn't that he really needed the aid in walking, his leg was healed thanks to Sakura's excellent control over chakra, but for the sake of keeping off of the limb she kept nagging. The ANBU officers shadowed the trio as Sakura lead them methodically through the corridors of Konoha's main hospital. It made sense that security had upped now that the Uchiha in question was walking about.
The oak doors leading to the Hokage's office in the hospital were far less ornate than those at her office for Konoha related matters. The carving was simple, exactly the same as the other office doors. The only difference was the sign mounted on the door, with 'Tsunade' scrawled across it in elegant script. As elegant as the legendary sannin who's name was inscribed on said plaque. The pale pink-haired kunoichi lifted a hand, the ANBU operatives slowed at this gesture taking there places on either side of the door. With that, Sakura's delicate fingers wrapped around the door knob and twisted. Naruto, who had been practically shaking with excitement, was far too impatient to wait. He gently batted Sakura out of the way, leaving her to catch herself just as Sasuke feigned a pivot as if to stare at the commotion. In truth, he had placed himself where if Sakura did stumble, he would buffer her fall. Then, the Kyuubi vessel practically tore the door off the hinges as he scrambled into Tsunade's office.
Sakura caught herself as she stumbled, glancing over her shoulder to find the sullen Uchiha practically breathing down her neck. Frowning, she turned back to the swinging door and walked through. Sasuke trailed behind his team mates after glancing at the two ANBU officers who's suspicious faces he could practically see beneath the masks. Not that two specially picked Jonin could phase an Uchiha. He was a descendent of one of the most powerful clans to inhabit Konoha. His Sharingan rivaled the Byakugan of the Hyuga, his physical abilities and stamina only curbed by drastic injuries. There was nothing that could dampen his will, his resolve. Nothing.
The trio filed into the office to find Tsunade tilted far back in her office chair, grasping the Sake bottle's neck as if she were strangling it. A look of frustration creased her pallid skin, making her elegant face look far more terrifying than a woman ever should. Shizune stood at her side, ramrod straight and as jumpy as hell. Whatever had irritated the Hokage had also succeeded in sending her staff members reeling. Not a good sign at all.
Naruto began to bombard the irritated sannin with questions, while Sakura cautiously made her way to Tsunade's desk, taking a place on the opposite side where Shizune stood. "Baa-chan! Why are we here?! What's got you so riled?! Did you know that Sasuke-teme is back?! Well, duh! Of course you did! You're the hokage! I'll be the hokage someday, BELIEVE IT!" the shatter of the Sake bottle acted as punctuation for the boy's nonsensical prattling causing Shizune to jump and Sasuke, who now sat in an extra chair, to raise his brow. Tsunade grit her teeth, her jaw clenching as she ground out "Sit down and shut up, Naruto." surprisingly, Naruto did just that. He sat cross legged on the floor, staring up at Tsunade intently. Apparently the Sakura-like act had knocked a decent amount of sense into him. Do or die.
The hokage waved a dainty hand at Shizune, sending her assistant scuttling from the room with a muttered farewell to team seven, off to find cleaning supplies for yet another mess. She then steepled her fingers, peering for a moment at her apprentice Sakura and then at the two young men in front of her. They were both so different from one another, it was what made them best friends and even better rivals. Now, she could practically see the betrayal in Naruto's eyes, the pain that laced into him every time he looked at Sasuke Uchiha. The friend, the rival, the man. The one who had attempted to kill him for his own selfish gain, to reach his goal of becoming powerful enough to in turn murder an Uchiha. His brother to be precise. As for Sasuke, Tsunade could see nothing in his face or his obsidian eyes. He was the picture of poise, the model of control.
With that, Tsunade reached out to Sakura, who handed her a scroll. She unfurled the parchment, squinting down at the different handwriting that marred the paper's surface "Sasuke Uchiha, it's been far too long." she murmured, turning the paper over to inspect it from a more favorable angle. Having found the line she was looking for, the kunoichi looked up at team seven, minus Kakashi Hatake. "Once upon a time, you three made up Team Seven. Though I'd like to welcome Team Seven back, it's time for it to end. Some of you made choices that affected the outcome of Team Seven," to emphasize her point she glanced at the brooding Uchiha "some of you didn't make the choices and therefore contributed to it's downfall." in turn, she stared at Sakura. This was an odd speech, considering they had been summoned to the Hokage's office to hear of Sasuke's sentence and not to receive a history lesson. Tsunade straightened, returning the scroll to Sakura, appearing to swallow hard on a non-existant lump in her throat "So I want you all to know that nothing is clouding my judgement, right now."
Naruto piped up, seeing this as his opportune moment to comment "Not even Sake?" three pairs of eyes glared down at the loud mouthed young man, sighs of protest heard all around in response to his toothy grin.
"No, nothing is clouding my judgement. Anyway, let me finish. I know you are all familiar with Sabaku no Gaara. He has suggested a sort of exchange program between Konoha and Suna, where we send one of our nin in exchange for one of theirs. They stay for training, and observe the going ons. All of this hinges on the friendship of the two villages, for us to refuse would be . . . impolite, to say the least." Sakura vaguely nodded, while Naruto appeared confused. For the first time since they had entered the office, Sasuke spoke "Sending me to Suna would be an unwise move, Hokage-sama. Though I doubt that's your plan." he seemed satisfied with himself, leaning further back into the cushioned fabric. Tsunade smirked at the raven haired man, crossing both arms over her ample bust in a haughty manner "Precisely. Sakura Haruno has volunteered to be the first to travel to Suna, and the Kazekage has agreed. This will be a good way for both villages to learn new medical techniques, and for us to have an extra shinobi with unique skills." the remainder of Team Seven appeared shocked, even Sasuke's jaw seemed to go slack for a moment. Sakura was only shocked because Tsunade was acting so positive about it. The kunoichi recalled quite vividly the afternoon she had proposed going to Suna to her sensei. Tsunade had outright refused her, claiming the members of Team Seven could rebuild their trust in one another, that it would only take time. But Sakura Haruno had given up on that dream.
Taking advantage of the shocked silence, the Hokage continued to explain the situation "We figured it would be beneficial to have new blood in the shinobi ranks, so we've made an addition to Team Seven. I've asked Sai to oversee a few solo missions to further his training, and perhaps visit the academy on occasion. With Sakura in Suna and Kakashi having returned to ANBU, that will leave Naruto and Sasuke. The elders are practically swooning now that they have in their village once again an Uchiha, so I'm afraid a death sentence is out of the question. Since both of you will kill each other if I pair you up, Gaara suggested a . . . erm . . . friend, of his." Tsunade unfurled yet another scroll, one that had been shoved aside along with a large pile of papers. Peering at it, she read aloud "Figured I'd balance you two boys out with another girl. Apparently she hasn't yet passed Chunin, some conditions kept her from participating in the exams. The Kazekage has expressed great interest in further developing her training, he claims she will be an asset to both Suna and Konoha if she can be curbed." Sakura had moved to Tsunade's shoulder, reminding those watching of just how close they were. Master and apprentice pouring over medical scrolls, reading through documents and claims until early morning.
Sasuke appeared more interested now, leaning forward as he mused aloud "Curbed? How so?" Sakura answered for her sensei, still absorbing information from the document. Her vibrant green eyes never meeting the piercing coal gaze of the Uchiha in question "Gaara doesn't say much about her history, other than the fact her parents were only guests in Suna and chose to leave their destructive child with the academy. Their exact whereabouts are unknown. The Kazekage forbid her to take the Chunin exams, which is why she is still a Genin. He states that her . . ." she trailed off, murmuring the rest under her breath as she raised both eyebrows before glaring down at Tsunade who was smirking at a portion of writing further down the page. The pink-haired kunoichi began ranting, shaking her fist every now and again for good measure "You're replacing ME with a CRAZY WOMAN?! Who's going to keep these two in line?! Not just ANYBODY can replace ME! And what about Sasuke? Who's going to keep track him? He's a missing nin, and a traitor! You can't trust him to 'curb' a crazy woman with DOUBLE PERSONALITIES!" Tsunade leaned back in her chair, appearing to want to get as far away from the screaming Sakura as possible. Naruto on the other hand simply stared dumbly up at the two women, so very confused that he began ruffling his shock of bright blonde hair. Sasuke on the other hand, seemed as close to grinning as an Uchiha could be. He would have a longer leash to do with as he pleased. He would meet a new member who wasn't completely wary of him from all the stories of how terrible he was. Hell, he should be worried about her.
"Hokage-sama, I think it's an excellent idea. I doubt I'll be taking my liberties with that character. I am hoping to live long enough to revive my clan." Sakura bristled as Sasuke spoke, the malicious flow of his deep voice though terribly delicious was almost hurtful. He wanted her to leave, he didn't even want to see her as a friend. Maybe it was just her emotional female self, but that was how she felt "You. Shut up. I don't want to hear another word about how 'excellent' it will be. The council may be smitten with you, but I am not." Her teeth gnashed as she barley managed to restrain herself. Naruto stood up, holding out both hands as if holding back the two oncoming ex-team mates with a chakra shield "I'm sorry, Sakura. I agree with Sasuke." As Naruto paused, Sakura mumbled 'Of course' "But it will be good for you, for us, for the Suna kunoichi and both villages. And besides, I can watch Sasuke-teme here. After all, I will be the sixth Hokage one day." Tsunade decided not to speak as Sakura lunged at Naruto. Wrapping her muscled arms around his rib cage, sobbing into the simple black and orange jumpsuit he wore. When Naruto stared at the hokage, looking quite helpless, she motioned at him to stroke Sakura's back. He seemed rather apprehensive, but did as he was instructed. This would be a hard goodbye.
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Author's note:
This took SO much longer than expected. I'm sorry everyone! I had writers block for a while, but my creativity is back so I'll make sure to post more often now.
Thanks!