Previously on Shattered...

Temari's forest green eyes narrowed. "Hatake Kakashi was also not potentially insane."

"While that could have been debated on many grounds," Neji stated curtly, his eyes focused on the Kazekage. "Haruno Sakura is not insane. She is damaged but by no means does she warrant that diagnosis," he finished, glaring once more at Temari.

"Then what is wrong with her?" Gaara questioned, leaning forward in his seat once more, his eyes sharp with concentration.

"She is incapable, at this time, of maintaining emotions any longer, particularly those that revolve around emotional pain," Neji stated, his voice softening as his brow furrowed in deep thought.

"What happened to make her this way?" Temari asked curiously, for once sounding concerned, as her green eyes softened slightly.

"With respect, ambassador, that is not my place," Neji responded, his gaze refocusing on the people in the room.

Gaara nodded, having received the information he required. "You are dismissed, Hyuuga Neji. Temari, please escort Hyuuga-san to his quarters at the estate."

Temari nodded curtly before walking from the room, Neji in tow. Once the sound of their footsteps had receded entirely, he signed heavily, brow furrowing. Collapsing in a very un-kage-like fashion on his desk, he closed his eyes. He could feel a migraine coming on, but that was pushed to the back of his mind. He had more pressing matters to attend before he could succumb to such a frivolous thing.

Gaara opened his eyes slowly, pondering the source of his problems at the moment: Haruno Sakura. He fingered the scroll before him and searched for her name before tracing the figures. Closing his eyes once more, he sighed heavily, worry etched across his face and brow, openly displayed for the empty room to see.

When he spoke, it was barely above a whisper. "What happened to you… Sakura…"

Updated: 11/12/15

A special thanks to: Far2addicted, for betaing this fiction.

You make me look like a pro.

Disclaimer: Naruto, in all facts and facilities belongs to Masashi Kishimoto. I just borrow them for a while. All emotional rollercoasters, heartbreaks, pent up suspense, plotlines, and what have you belong to me. Enjoy.

A Challenge

The sky was black as thunder rolled, echoing throughout an expanse that seemed endless in all directions. A cold, strong wind billowed around her, seeming to rip through her usual attire and seep into Sakura's core. Raising an arm to shield her eyes as her hair flailed around her face wildly, the wind growing more violent, her emerald eyes scanned the darkness for anything discernable.

Disoriented, she took a step forward before a great roar of flames resounded behind her. Pivoting on the ball of her foot, Sakura spun around quickly to see a white, two-story, house completely engulfed in angry, red flames. Her emerald orbs widened, a look of sheer horror clearly displayed in their depths, as a shrill scream ripped from deep inside the house.

"No," she whispered brokenly before launching herself into action, hurtling toward the burning building.

She was scarcely a foot away from the structure when its integrity finally gave way to the destructive force of the fire, and the second floor fell completely into the first, collapsing into a flaming pile of rubble. Sakura watched helplessly as the building fell, the agonized scream ringing in her ears.

"No!"

Awakening with a start, a wide-eyed Sakura sat straight up in her bed at the Sabaku estate, a light film of cold sweat coating her body. Peering around her, she recognized her surroundings and sighed as she fell back onto the bed, closing her eyes as her quickened breathing began to calm.

Reopening her eyes, Sakura stared at the ceiling with an empty gaze as her pulse calmed. It was the same recurring nightmare that she'd had since that night two years ago, varying in intensity each time, but always the same. Always ending in a collapsing building that she couldn't ever reach in time, and a scream, his scream, which would forever haunt her subconscious.

Turning her head to the side, she peered around the room she'd been occupying for the past week. The Third Kazekage had spared no expense when building the house for his children, just as the Fourth hadn't in providing for the Konoha nin's needs during their stay.

Sakura was housed in a second story room with a pleasant view of the village from her bed, and in the bathroom, which connected to her room; she could peer out at the desert itself. It was an exquisite sight.

The room was cream in color with black crown molding and baseboards, and floored with lush carpeting. There was a dresser and desk made of dark oak, most likely imported from Konoha, and the bed was placed against left wall and centered in the room, adorned with black sheets and a deep red comforter bordered along the edges in black satin, the pillows lush and easy to fall into. The room itself was spacious with enough floor room to perform her katas if she so pleased. The Kazekage really had tried to make their stay as comfortable as possible.

Glancing at the clock on the wall that read twelve in the afternoon, she rose from her bed and made her way to the bathroom. Pulling down her half mask, she splashed her face with cold water to awaken herself further before starting the shower. Her shift started in a few hours.

Since arriving in Suna, she and Neji had taken upon seeing to the personal security of the Kazekage in shifts. Neji would accompany him throughout the day to his meetings, standing guard in his office and acting as his silent shadow, while Sakura would take over at four or six in the evening for the night shift. It had worked smoothly so far.

She peered out of the window momentarily, taking in the orange, warm looking sand, and her thoughts wandered. Her eyes narrowed in thought as she braced her arms against the white porcelain of the sink. The acute control she maintained over herself, even in an unconscious state, was slipping, but why? She glanced up into the mirror before her taking in her reflection for the first time in a long time. If she were completely honest with herself, she didn't recognize the person staring back. But why should she?

Quickly standing, Sakura dismissed her line of thought. She had made her decision and she wouldn't go back. It was for the good of the village; she was more useful to them this way. In the past two years, she had accomplished more than she ever did while entertaining the luxury of emotion. She had done more for the village, as a whole, serving with the iron fist of indifference, killing many men, and defending countless targets. But why, now that she was charged with such a high-risk mission, were her ironclad walls threatening to chip away into non-existence? It was unacceptable. The Kazekage's life depended on her ability to maintain a calculating and cold indifference. Her eyes hardened once more; she would not fail.

Refusing to allow her mind to wander any further in any direction, and after reaffirming her beliefs solidly in her mind once more, Sakura moved to remove her garments, then turned to step into the shower.

Gaara was signing a piece of paper for a new irrigation program when he felt her chakra spike. Sea foam eyes narrowed as he glanced in the direction of his home.

'Sakura?'

He made to stand, but Neji's voice stopped him.

"She's fine."

Gaara glanced at the Hyuuga, who had his Byakugan activated and was staring intently in the direction of the estate.

"Are you sure?" Gaara inquired, his eyes still narrowed as he sent minute amounts of his own chakra toward her location.

The Hyuuga leaned against the wall in a relaxed posture and nodded, crossing his arms and closing his eyes. "I'm sure."

Gaara studied Neji's figure for a few moments longer before turning back to his paperwork.

Sakura had been quiet at best for the past few days. Gaara had attempted to start conversation with her several times, but it had only lasted a few sentences before silence had ensued once more. However, with the Hyuuga it seemed to be different. They didn't speak, but they did communicate. At first, Gaara had equivocated it to the fact that they were on an Anbu team together, and on missions they had to communicate in silence; he was certain they had mastered that art by now. But, as time had gone on, he had begun to suspect that it was more than that. With understanding shared in glances, posture, eye contact, and gestures. They seemed to have their own language, and the Hyuuga seemed to know her almost on an intimate level; he could read her perfectly and she him.

Gaara's sea foam eyes narrowed on the sheet before him. Could it be that they were in some sort of relationship that Naruto had overlooked? It was highly possible.

Gaara was no fool. He knew he still harbored feelings for Sakura, but it seemed she no longer did for him. The last thing he wanted to do was mix emotions into the situation when he was suppose to be helping her. He had decided the best course of action for now was to wait, especially since he wasn't sure of her current relationship with the Hyuuga, if there was one at all.

Glancing once more at the Hyuuga, Gaara felt his insides clench. He'd have to inquire about the possibility of such a relationship if he were to help Sakura. If his assumptions were correct, this coupe would be all for naught. It would mean her departure, and as much as he didn't want to admit it, he knew it would be quite painful to see her leave again.

But if his suspicions were true, the eye contact she'd made with him the night of their arrival made no sense. He had felt her emotions that night, before some unseen force had halted their existence as soon as they had appeared. But why had they disappeared?

Neji was slightly concerned. It was normal for Sakura to have nightmares; she'd had them since the attack. Within the last year, though, they had lessened in intensity, but since their arrival in Suna, they returned with a seeming vengeance. He could see it in her posture, her responses, and the slight changes to her mannerisms. It was getting to his partner, and that was what bothered him.

It wasn't long before Temari decided to walk into the office with another stack of papers, nearly a mile high, for the Kazekage. Neji saw the slight slump in his shoulders as he took in the sheer magnitude of paperwork to be done, and had to suppress a smirk. To anyone else watching, the Kazekage's body language wouldn't have changed, but Neji had spent enough time with him as of late that he was beginning to pick up on these small indicators.

"I'm sure it's just signatures they require, Kazekage-sama," Neji offered sympathetically, closing his eyes again.

He heard a slight sigh and smirked. At least he didn't have that job.

The sun was near setting when the trio set off from the Kazekage's tower with the Sabaku estate in mind. Halfway into their travel, the black clad rosette met them, inclining her head in greeting.

"Haruno," Neji greeted as her beryl orbs scanned the three shinobi quickly. It went unnoticed by the other two, but Neji knew the purpose behind such looks. The medic she once was had been so ingrained into her by the Fifth Hokage that it was nearly second nature. She'd always held that compassion, and even her change in character could not seal that away.

"Hyuuga, Kazekage-sama, Sabaku-san," she intoned flatly before falling in step between Neji and Gaara rather easily.

Seafoam eyes scanned her countenance. She seemed unphased from whatever had her chakra spike earlier, but it only left Gaara curious if whatever it was happened regularly. At the time, the Hyuuga had seemed unconcerned by it, so perhaps he was just being paranoid with Naruto's mention of instability in mind.

"How did you sleep?" Gaara inquired amiably with a hint of curiosity.

"Well, Kazekage-sama," she replied unflinchingly.

Gaara's eyes narrowed infinitesimally. "Did something happen at the estate earlier today?"

Sakura felt and heard, more than saw, the scene from her waking terror pass through her mind, and out of reflex she subdued the shudder that threatened to rack her system at the mere mention of it. "No, everything has gone well, Kazekage-sama," she replied, nearly monotone.

The slight hesitation didn't go unnoticed by either male, who were now peering at her curiously. Meanwhile, Temari was stewing by Gaara's side. She couldn't understand how someone went from being so in love with an individual to near emotionless the next meeting, even years later. She had seen the letters and the reactions they had elicited from her brother. If it had been a one-sided affair on his part, she would have been more understanding, but she had read those letters and knew for a fact that the feelings were reciprocated at one point...

Temari had been working with Gaara for days in preparation of negotiating with the village elders on a new irrigation system that would be cost efficient and not tax the life out of every Suna civilian in the process. The elders, set in their ways, weren't budging on anything, and though Temari and Gaara had reworked the plan several times to add in their many "conditions", they had yet to give in; Temari was about to give up.

Sighing, the blonde peered over the piece of parchment she held in her hands at her Kazekage and brother. He was working tirelessly around the clock in order to meet demands and appease the council, all in an effort to provide a better quality of life to his people. A small smile appeared on her face, and her eyes softened as she took in the stalwart determination displayed on his face, which was construed in a mask of pure concentration. She was proud of him, of the man he had become. Their mother would have been too.

Temari's gaze saddened slightly as, not for the first time, she wished her mother were here to see just how far Gaara had come, from the dark, twisted monster their own government had created him to be to the good, loyal, loving Kazekage and man he had grown into in his own right.

Attempting to refocus her mind, Temari shifted the paper back into her line of sight as Kankuro strode into the room, quite nosily, causing an agitated tick to appear near the bridge of her nose. Fully intending to give him piece of her mind, Temari lowered the piece of paper in preparation to chew him royally before she took in the scene before her.

Kankuro stood in front of Gaara, leaning against the desk toward him with an envelope pinched tightly between his forefingers and thumb, an eat-shit grin displayed broadly across his face. His eyes held the mischievous spark they had lacked since early on in their childhood, and all of this was directed entirely at Gaara. The aforementioned individual was clearly not amused by his brother's antics.

Gaara held onto the opposite corner of the letter in the same manner as his sibling, his sea foam orbs impassively staring into Kankuro's mirthful chocolate eyes. His posture was more rigid, his elbow rested firmly on the desk before him, evidence that his hands had once been laced together before reaching for the offered letter. Obviously whatever he observed in Kankuro's behavior had set him on edge.

Thoroughly confused, Temari rose to her feet, planning to question both of the men before her until Kankuro finally spoke.

"It's from her, isn't it?" His tone was mirthful with a slight undertone of joy.

Gaara kept his features schooled into a mask of indifference as he retorted in his airy tone whilst managing to maintain his impassive gaze. "I wouldn't know, since you haven't given me the letter yet."

Unimpressed with his little brother's reaction, or lack thereof, Kankuro released the envelope with a, "Tch," before making his way toward Temari, calling over his shoulder, "You're no fun, Gaara."

"I'm the Kazekage," Gaara muttered while turning his chair from them to open the letter. "I don't get to have fun."

As Kankuro reached her side, Temari leveled him with a confused look? "What was that about?"

"Just watch," Kankuro muttered with a smirk as he crossed his arms and leaned against the wall beside her.

Curiously, Temari stared at the back of Gaara's chair as the sound of ripping paper filled the quiet expanse. It was a few moments before Gaara turned his chair around to lay the three-page letter on the desk before him, his eyes seemingly drinking in every character on its surface, oblivious to the world around him. Whatever was on that paper had captivated his entire attention.

Temari's brow furrowed more as she continued to observe his peculiar behavior, and, when a genuine smile broke across his normally neutral façade, her eyes widened. Glancing to Kankuro in question, who was now genuinely smiling at his brother, Temari could only utter a single question.

"Who?"

Kankuro's smiled widened slightly as Gaara's shoulders finally relaxed. After days of being overstressed and overburdened, Gaara had managed to finally find the one thing that relaxed him:

"Sakura."

Temari had never seen her brother react to anything in such a way, before or since. Sakura had meant everything to him, whether or not she had known it at the time.

Temari herself had spent extended time with Sakura during the war, and liked to think she had become friends with her, or, at the very least, knew her personality enough to see when she was being genuine; those letters were sincere. The girl wore her heart on her sleeve, and, undoubtedly, was the same way in her letters. Well, she used to be.

Now, here she stood, two years later, showing nothing, and Gaara…. Gaara was hurting. Whether or not he said it aloud, Temari could see it in the way he looked at her. It was in his eyes; he was still in love with the medic. Even if he had pushed that notion from the forefront of his mind, it was still there, like a thready pulse waiting for the heart to jump back into rhythm.

The fan master's temper was rising to a boiling point with the seemingly unfeeling kunoichi from Konoha, and Neji was aware of it. Her posture screamed hostility, yet Sakura remained unresponsive to it, as if she were expecting such treatment from the blonde. However, Sakura knew more about the sand siblings than he did. Maybe this was just normal for Temari.

The rest of the walk had been spent in silence until they reached the outskirts of the Sabaku estate, where the blonde finally put a voice to her rage.

"What is wrong with you?" Temari growled through gritted teeth, her green eyes pinning the rosette with a glare.

No emotional change was present in Sakura's face as she returned the eye contact nonchalantly; posture was relaxed as if Temari posed no threat to her.

"Temari," Gaara stated airily, eyeing his sister in warning.

"No Gaara," she spat back, her green eyes sharp as she looked upon her brother. The edges softening slightly, she continued quietly, "She has no idea what she's doing to you, but I do."

Gaara's eyes narrowed as he was about to respond, but her voice cut them both off.

"Would you like to spar." It was not voiced as a question, rather more of a statement, as if Sakura knew that a fight was what Temari was looking for.

Both siblings turned to look at her as a Suna wind whipped up around them, setting her strawberry locks swaying in the ponytail she now kept them in, the short bangs ruffling in front of her forehead, accentuating the purple rhombus. Her eyes were almost dead looking, resigned to an unspoken fate, and her stance was relaxed and calm but confident.

It was the first time Gaara had really seen Sakura since her arrival. The dimly lit office that night had not done justice to all the changes in her, most prominent being the look in her eyes that he saw so clearly now. Something exponential had changed in her life, had changed her. But what?

Temari's eyes narrowed before she moved to stand before Sakura, attempting to bore holes into her skull with her glare. It enraged her that Sakura showed no animosity back, that she wasn't reacting. Why didn't she feel?

Neji, who had been merely observing the entire exchange, moved to stand next to the Kazekage. "If you were looking for the changes in Haruno, now would be the time to pay attention," he hinted, his gaze never leaving the two kunoichi.

Sea foam orbs acknowledged him before turning back to the 'spar'. It had yet to start, both kunoichi just staring at each other.

After analyzing her opponent, Sakura opted not to use any substantial weapons. Temari was a wind wielder, which meant fire jutsu would have been her best option. However, she negated that too as she shucked her vest, tossing it to the side, where a plume of sand burst forth into the air upon impact.

Temari smirked haughtily reminiscent of the look on her face during the chunin exams against Shikamaru. "Is that supposed to impress me?" she queried condescendingly.

Sakura just leveled her with an emotionless gaze as she took her stance in a taijutsu manner that was very Lee-like, one hand before her and the other behind her back. It was the ready stance. She was going to allow Temari the first move.

'Your mistake,' Temari thought, opening her fan to show three Suna moons. She wasn't going to hold back.

Sakura hadn't expected her to.

Wind Release: Great Task of the Dragon.

Sakura glanced skyward as storm clouds appeared above her, followed by the funnel of the tornado that descended upon her seconds later. She braced upon impact as sand whipped up around her, threatening to sweep her away. Peering up into the eye, she saw darkened sky on the other end and only smirked.

Gaara glared at Temari for using such a strong technique. Sand moved swiftly in order to diffuse the tornado when he felt a hand on his arm, and he glanced over at the Hyuuga to see his Byakugan activated. "Just wait."

Seconds later, there was an earth-shaking implosion from within the tornado as earth shot out from all directions, dissipating the wind altogether. Sakura leapt from the top of the cyclone toward Temari, fist at the ready.

Temari's eyes widened as she managed to dodge out of the way just as Sakura's fist made contact with the ground, shattering it and sending sand shooting out in all directions. In the next breath, Sakura was up and charging Temari once again.

Gaara watched on in silent concern, his arms crossed. "Don't worry," the Hyuuga spoke again. "She's holding back. She won't kill Temari."

Temari grimaced at being on the defensive for the past two minutes while barely managing to dodge every fist Sakura directed at her. In this moment, she began to remember why Sakura had garnered such a reputation during the war, and such fear.

'She's holding back?'

Gaara looked on, semi-shocked that the battle prowess displayed was merely a fraction of her actual ability. Temari was a skilled kunoichi in her own right, maybe even the strongest kunoichi in Suna, and she was entirely on the defensive against Sakura, who looked every bit as calm and collected as she had when the battle began.

Gaara looked over at the Hyuuga curiously, who was focused on the battle at hand, and decided it was as good a time as any for his inquiry.

Neji, feeling the Kazekage's gaze upon him, met his stare. However, his next words were not what he expected.

"What is your relationship with Haruno Sakura?"

During the next dodge, Temari sent more chakra to her, feet clearing a greater distance to grant her more time.

Wind Release: Great Cast Net.

Blades of wind raced toward Sakura and struck her dead center mass before a poof of smoke was seen and a log fell in her place. Temari's gaze narrowed as she looked around her.

'Substitution. A genin technique, but efficient nonetheless. Where is she?'

As Temari turned, Sakura appeared behind her, sending a swift kick to her head that was blocked by the fan at the last second. Temari's eyes widened slightly.

'She's gotten faster.'

Temari grimaced as she blocked the next two consecutive kicks, sliding backward on the sand even after reinforcing her footing with chakra.

'When did she get this strong?!'

Sakura sent one last kick at Temari, causing her to slide back several feet, and Sakura landed crouched with one hand on the sand for balance. Her expression was concentrated and serious, but her eyes still held that dead look in them. Temari just didn't get it. Did she ever show emotion anymore?

"My relationship with Haruno Sakura is purely professional, Kazekage-sama," Neji assured Gaara after recomposing himself from such a question. "We were, are, on the same AnBu Squad and are friends outside of work." He regarded the battle once more before turning back to the Kazekage. "I have no intention of taking her from you, Gaara."

Gaara winced slightly, nearly unnoticeably, from the blunt confession, but his eyes still searched the Hyuuga's. There was something more that he wasn't sharing.

Neji sighed, wondering if he should impart this information to the Kazekage, and decided that it wouldn't harm anything if he withheld certain details. "I was present when the 'incident' happened. This could explain her current 'attachment' to me. I understand what happened more than anyone else for only the fact that I was there."

Gaara studied the Hyuuga and decided to believe him. There were none of the usual ticks that followed a lie present in his countenance, nor did he hesitate in his pattern of speech. An unknown weight on his shoulders lifted at the information; there was no romantic competition to be had from the Hyuuga.

Gaara had turned back to the battle when the Hyuuga spoke next. "Never before had I thought it possible to see someone's soul...shatter."

The Kazekage glanced back at Neji, who seemed to have that same far away look in his eyes that Naruto had expressed when recounting the memory of Sakura from that night. His eyes narrowed in concern. What had happened to her?

Neji returned the Kazekage's gaze. "Trust me when I say death would have been kinder than her current condition."

The conviction in the Hyuuga's gaze gave him pause. He turned back to the rosette kunoichi, who was in a crouching position facing off against his sister. Brow furrowing in concern, he wondered for the upunteenth time what could have possibly broken the strong-will woman he had once known into so many little pieces.

"How does one get close to her now?" he questioned curiously, momentarily not recognizing his own voice due to its aged sound.

Neji glanced sidelong at the Kazekage. "Through training."

Sakura waited a few seconds before pushing off of the ground and charging Temari once more. The wind master glared at her wearily.

Wind Release: Air Current Wild Dance.

Temari held her hand out before her as an air current shot out at the ground before her, kicking up the sand in a blinding dust cloud, and with a movement from her hand, she caused it to swirl around Sakura. The strange movement of the sand in the air around her gave her a sense of deja vu for some reason, but she quickly shook it off before performing several hand signs.

Temari glared into the dust storm before her with intense eyes, seeing no movement from within, which only caused her to become more suspicious. She had taken a single step forward when she felt her fan being wrenched out of her hand. Glancing backward she saw Sakura standing beside a hole in the ground where her fan was now lodged.

'Headhunter Jutsu. Clever. A second or two sooner, and that would have had me.'

Sakura rushed Temari, sending a barrage of punches and kicks her way in a near leisurely manner. However, the hits landed heavy on Temari's end, which caused her to grimace. She was losing and she knew it.

"Kiba and Lee are the second closest to her before Tenten," Neji continued, noticing the spar was drawing to a close. Temari hadn't received a single mark from the entire ordeal, but that was just a show of how precise Sakura had become with her attacks, or lack thereof.

"Not Naruto?" Gaara inquired, his own gaze riveted on the exchange before them.

Sakura had grown. Every move she made was executed with a timed accuracy that not many could master. She had purposefully never laid a single mark on Temari. For a person without feelings, her actions betrayed otherwise.

Neji almost smirked at the question. "The Hokage's duties keep him busy on most days, and then if, for whatever reason, he manages to escape those duties familial clan responsibilities limit his time further. I imagine the Hokage hasn't sparred with anyone in quite some time, much less Sakura, who is almost never present within the village walls."

Gaara cast the Hyuuga a questioning glance to which he responded, "Haruno is one of the few qualified for solo S-ranked missions within the village. One of the few we have left in any case."

Gaara felt for his friend. He knew Naruto loved Sakura like a sister, and now knowing that he'd had no time to try and reconnect with the kunoichi, he could understand his desperation in seeking his help. But how? How could he reach her? Someone who, supposedly, had no existing emotions?

Gaara's gaze hardened once more as stress gathered in the back of his skull that would later undoubtedly result in a headache. He sighed for the first time since the spar had started, feeling as if he'd undergone a fight of his own. This 'favor' was getting more and more difficult by the second.

Temari grimaced as a punch nearly broke through her defenses, but it was unlike others directed at her. Sakura seemed to be lowering the intensity of her attacks as her opponent weakened, giving her just as much as she could take, no more and no less. It would be an excellent training technique if employed correctly.

A split second, that's all it took. Temari had been distracted by her thoughts for a moment too long, and when her eyes refocused, Sakura had a kunai held six inches from her throat. All the anger within the blonde had long diminished by now, and had been replaced with questions.

Temari wasn't just angry because Sakura had hurt Gaara, because she had stopped responding to his letters, or that she hadn't inquired any more than she had with Kankuro. Temari was angry because she didn't care anymore, not just about Gaara and Kankuro, but also about her.

During the war, she and the pink haired medic had bonded tightly, and for a few months it was like Temari actually had a family. The atmosphere with Sakura around was jovial and light. Sakura had cooked. Kankuro cracked jokes. Gaara had even laughed. And Temari had never felt more at home in her life than in those tents on the front lines, when they would all gather in the Kazekage's tent after dusk for mission reports, food, and quality time with those they cared about most.

No, Temari wasn't angry. She was heartbroken, and anger was the only way she knew how to express what she felt. The normally stoic, hardened blonde felt the beginnings of tears well up in her eyes and could just make out Sakura lowering the kunai. An emotion flashed across beryl eyes as Sakura continued to gaze into her own forest-green orbs. Not a word was spoken. No one moved.

Temari could feel the knot in her throat tighten. She could lose her own life. She could handle Kankuro being in a coma. She could deal with Gaara's constant mood swings had their correspondence been one sided, but she could not take losing Sakura like this.

She raised her deep green eyes to level Sakura with her gaze as countless emotions, unbidden, flashed across her own face. There was only one question forever drumming in her thoughts, and with a soft, barely audible tone, she voiced it.

"Why?"

In that moment, a change occurred in the other kunoichi. It was fleeting and small, but the depth of the emotion Temari had seen behind those beryl orbs struck a chord within the fan master. It was not just pain. There had been a deep anguish that she would ponder for hours after Sakura, so obviously broken now that Temari wondered how she had missed it before, voiced a simple reply before she turned and walked away.

"All of you are better off without me."