The Awakening

by stones

Day Four

On the fourth day she was interested in the similarities.

Now that she had spent two days with this man, this killer, she found that she could loosen up. Not completely. No, never completely. But she had learned that he would always stare, always smirk, and always snort. She had learned that he was cheeky, stubborn, and sarcastic. She had learned that he was confusing and challenging. She had learned he was like his little brother. He was like Sasuke.

Sakura woke from her bed and reluctantly left the warmth that it surrounded her in. The feeling was familiar. It was a feeling of loss and the cool chill in the air teased her, causing her to hop over to her dresser with faster steps. Instead of skipping her breakfast like usual, she took the time to open the fridge and search for some food that would satisfy her morning cravings. In the end, she fished out a piece of bread and stuffed it quickly into her mouth.

Then a thought had hit her. How she was about to skip out on another nutritional breakfast. How many kids were starving in the streets. How Uchiha Itachi had not eaten in two days. But she knew she couldn't feel sorry for that man. Even when he crossed her mind, all she could associate with him was anger. Anger and hate. Anger, hate, and Sasuke. With that, she sauntered over to the stove and set some water for tea. She wondered if he would favor raspberry or green tea.

She didn't ponder on it, but in the back of her mind she knew this tea wasn't for Uchiha Itachi. No it was for his younger brother.

It was for Sasuke. Everything was for Sasuke.

"Morning," she greeted as she neared the guards. They eyed her suspiciously, noticing she was carrying more than just her medical kit and clipboard. She had a bag that hung on her shoulder and in it, they could tell, was something unnecessary. Unnecessary and foolish. She sat quietly as they inspected her things, nibbling on the tips of her fingers nervously. She would have bitten her nails, but as it were, they had already been chewed off after she had found about her job to heal Uchiha Itachi.

"Your compassion is really cute," one of the guards scoffed, rotating the thermos in his hands. She eyes it greedily as he held it in his grasp. It made her angry that he was so mockingly displaying it in front of her. She knew it was stupid and incredibly childish, but did he have to go so far as to make her redden completely with embarrassment?

"It's for me," she lied, crossing her arms with irritation. "I've been feeling sick lately. Tea always makes me feel better." She unraveled her arms and held one out, beckoning for him to hand over her precious tea.

"Drink it out here," he challenged, not yet ready to hand it back to her.

"This is ridiculous," she huffed, letting her arms fall in defeat. The other guard at the door observed the scene in front of him with a raised brow. "It's tea. Not a freakin' detonator. What harm is it going to do?"

"Orders are orders," the man countered, shaking the thermos so that they could hear the liquid splash around inside. As he continued to shake, she grew even more frustrated. The fact that he was throwing her emotions around without a second thought cut her deep. "Nothing goes in that doesn't need to go in."

"He hasn't eaten in days," she insisted. The man scoffed and looked away for only a second. She could tell that he saw this as incredibly immature. He was a murder, a villain. The last thing he deserved was food or even tea. She knew this. Knew this but at the same time, pushed away her knowledge to act on instinct.

"That's not my or your concern," he replied, lowering his hands.

"On the contrary," she countered, going to take the thermos back. He pulled away when she had gotten close enough to snatch it back. "I am his medic. It does concern me."

"No tea," was all the man said and she understood that this was final.

"Fine," she said, shoulders slumped in clear defeat. She watched the thermos with a solemn expression as the man set it on a nearby table. It teased her greatly. "Well, then I suppose I shouldn't even go in there."

"What is that supposed to mean?" the man asked, finally retreating back to his position.

"Is it really necessary for me to go in and heal him if he's not even going to be fed?" she explained. "It's pointless."

He sighed and she could tell he was clearly annoyed by her constant nagging and bantering but that was what she was aiming for. If the man was going to give her trouble for her tea, she would give him all the crap she could muster up. Because after all, she was a pro at this. Being annoying. Annoying.

You're annoying.

Suddenly she quieted and looked away. "Just let me go in."

"You're a roller coaster of emotions, you know that?" the man asked, taking the keys from his pocket to finally unlock the door. He opened it slowly and Sakura looked inside the gray, dull room to see him looking back at her. She stood for a second, not quit sure what had just happened. Had she really expected to give this murderer some tea? Had she gone crazy? "Sorry, no tea."

"It better not be gone when I'm done," she said, reluctantly taking her eyes off the Uchiha to look at the guard once more. "I didn't make it for you."

"No," he agreed, lifting his arm to softly nudge her inside the room. "I suppose only it's only for criminals."

"Funny," Sakura huffed, finally taking the final step from the threshold to enter the room. The door closed behind her and the lock clicked. At first they just stared once more. It was becoming more of a ritual than anything else. She shifted the bag on her shoulder in anxiousness and cleared her throat. He nodded in acknowledgement and she found it almost weird that he would greet her. He barely did, but still. He did greet her.

"Hi," she said pathetically, the words coming too soft for her liking. She walked further into the room and set her back next to his cloak. He raised a brow at the bag, wondering what she would possibly need that for. "Let's do this."

He said nothing as she neared him and crouched. Her hands reached out and she lifted his clothing to look at the gash. She smiled in satisfaction when she realized the infection had significantly reduced, enough for her to start her stitching anyway. She turned on the balls of her feet to shuffle through her bag. With a annoyed grunt, she fished out her medical kit and set it on the metal table.

"You brought tea for me," he finally said and she froze at his words. She brought her attention away from the open medical kit and turned to look at him. He didn't look amused or annoyed. In fact, she couldn't quite tell what he was feeling. She supposed all Uchiha's were like that.

"No," she lied, looking back to her medical kit. She lifted a package of sterile needles and thread. She would have liked this to take place in the hospital, in a cleaner environment. She supposed she was the only one who cared. Instead she was doing this in a dingy cell filled with cobwebs and covered in dirt and dust. There was a small rusted sink and she doubted it even worked. "I didn't bring it for you."

"Oh, then for who?"

He could not let this go, could he? "For me."

"That's very selfish of you," he said, clicking his tongue. Now she was sure he found this funny. This was not a happy thought. He found her despair funny.

"Don't even get me started on selfish," she said, taking out a pair of latex gloves to peel them over her hands. She opened the package of needles harshly and a few fell to the ground in the process. That was when she realized the room was so quiet that they could hear them fall.

"You're nervous," he said too simply for her tastes

"No," she insisted, determined to keep her mind at the task at hand. She unraveled the thread and grabbed a needle. "I'm just tired."

"I believe I told you to get a good rest."

"Silly me for not following your orders," she replied dryly, readying the needle and thread.

"Your attitude isn't needed, Sakura."

She dropped the needle from her hands and gripped the edge of the table until she was sure that her knuckles had turned white. She didn't dare turn around. She didn't dare to see his face curl up in that smirk that she suddenly found so disgusting. The way he had said her name. It was as if he had something purely evil. That was how it sounded coming from his mouth. Then it hit her that he actually knew her name. The thought was incredibly nerve-racking and overall frightened her so much that her fingers shook.

"W-what?"

"Is something the matter?" he asked, a smug look on his well defined face. She could tell that he knew what he was doing. He knew what buttons he so daringly pushed.

"My name," was all she said and needn't have said more. So many questions buzzed through her jumbled mind: why did he know her name? How did he find out what it was? What was the point of knowing her name?

"My brother's old teammate," he explained with short words. He watched as her mouth opened and closed. She was trying to find something to say but seemed that the words were lost in thought. "I know more about my brother than you think."

"Your brother?"

"Yes, my brother," he said, face turning suddenly serious. She had no doubt that he had gotten annoyed that he needed to repeat himself. His voice dropped lower and maybe even a little quieter. All this he did for one reason: so she would listen. "Or perhaps you have forgotten about him?"

"Never," she snapped without second thought. Quickly, she shut her mouth. Her reaction had been too sudden, too drastic. No doubt her quick answer had given away her extreme devotion to the younger Uchiha.

"Is that why you are so upset around me?"

"No," she hissed, finally turning to face him fully. She bore holes into him but he seemed even calmer than ever. He hadn't moved once since she had entered and she damned him for his calmness. For the way he could control every emotion so that his weaknesses were not displayed. She damned him for not showing those emotions that she knew were bubbling inside him. She damned him for not embracing the feelings that coursed through him. She damned him for being who he was and what he had done. "He is not you."

"We are more alike than you think," the Uchiha countered quickly, not missing a beat. This kept Sakura on her toes and she rose to her full height. Perhaps she supposed that this would boost her confidence. She was so much higher than him when he was sitting. So much taller. "Has he not left this pitiful village for more power? Has he not betrayed everyone who had set him on such a high pedestal."

"He didn't kill his family or his clan!" she yelled at him, emotions clearly running high. They stared at each other and everything grew silent. She hadn't noticed because inside her head, she continued to curse at him. Itachi observed the girl in front of him. The way she continued to glare at him. The way her upper lip lifted only slightly. The way she continued to grip the table. The way tears formed in the corners of her eyes.

"He didn't have a chance to."

Sakura said nothing.

"Because I beat him to it."

Sakura stared at the coffee in front of her that had already turned cold from the neglect. With a heavy sigh, she blew the stray strands of hair from her face and dug her head deeper into the hold on her hands. Her heavy head was lifted and she surveyed her surrounding in the nearly empty café. She wondered if she should just go to the Hokage and ask to be put back in the hospital. Healing the Uchiha had become so much more complicated than Sakura had guessed it would. The tears that she had just shed a couple minutes ago had proved that.

Their little spat was suddenly interrupted with a knock on the door. It was time for questioning and no doubt the guards had heard the little scuffle and decided to act. She didn't want to ponder the conversation she had had with him any longer. Later she would recall those moments as The Awakenings. Yes, the similarities were there. She couldn't deny that. The words he had spoken were laced with reality and they unraveled her foolish lies and fantasies until all that was left was the bare truth. But even the truth she had decided to ignore.

Ignorance is bliss, after all.

"Hey there, Billboard-Brow," Ino said, taking a seat next to Sakura with a smile expertly placed on her feminine face. Sakura nodded and mumbled an incoherent word that the other girl had accepted as a greeting. "Something the matter?"

"No," Sakura grumbled, lifting her head from her hands to recline back in the wooden seat. "Just reminiscing."

"Your childhood wasn't that bad I'm hoping," Ino said, taking off her jacket to become more comfortable. She hung it on the chair and ran her hands through her ponytail. "Well, I was sort of a bitch to you when were little."

"Apology accepted," Sakura said, finally taking the cup of coffee to her lips.

"Hey, I never said I was apologizing," Ino said with a smirk. "Besides, you were just as bad as I was."

"What did we even fight about?" Sakura asked after taking a long gulp of her coffee. She forced herself to drink the liquid although she detested cold coffee.

"Do you even have to ask?" her friend said across from her, her voice dropping low.

No, she didn't.

"He always ruins everything," Sakura said, tracing the little designs on the cup of coffee with her finger. "And he doesn't even have to try. He doesn't know he's even going it at all."

"Well then, don't let him then," Ino simply said, allowing this answer to suffice as excellent advice. Sakura looked at her incredulously. If only things were as simple as that. If anything, Sakura had learned they were quite the opposite. There was a significant silence and Sakura added another packet of sugar, intent on making the coffee taste better. "There's a rumor going around that he's near."

Sakura stiffened at this and rose in her seat. "Yeah?"

"Well, what would you expect?" Ino asked, getting annoyed at her friend's sudden interest. "His brother's here, isn't he?" That was right. Sakura almost forgot about the older Uchiha she had been healing the past couple of days. "Looks like it's over."

But no, it was never over.

Sakura nodded, allowing her friend some satisfaction from her words. She looked away to the door. The thought was exciting. She could feel it run through her veins and gather in her head, making it feel heavy and weak.

"And you are not going to run off to go find him," Ino said, breaking Sakura from her trance. Sakura gave a fake look of confusion, which Ino brushed off. "We both know your crazy enough to do it. You can't. You'll ruin everything. You'll die."

"He wouldn't kill me," Sakura said quickly, her hands moving unsettlingly in front of her.

"Don't be so sure," Ino said, standing up to wrap her coat around herself. "He's not the same."

Sakura couldn't help but agree. Nothing was the same.

A few hours later and Sakura found herself staring at him again. The chains and bindings reassured her there was nothing he could do to hurt her physically. But mentally, he had already succeeded. Her eyes burned and she knew they were red and puffed, a sure sign that she had been crying. He took this in without even blinking.

"How was questioning?" she asked, making friendly conversation. Her words were soft and light as they left her lips and entered his ears. She made her way to him, slow and delicate strides guiding her.

"Questioning?"

She paused and nodded her head with a smile. He clearly saw that she was nervous and perhaps regretted her little outburst earlier. She was acting as if nothing had happened. As if she was a little kid who had thrown a tempter tantrum and suddenly was trying to repent for her actions. "Weren't you just questioned?"

"Sure. Questioned."

She could sense that sarcasm dripped from these words. He didn't even need to snort for her to understand that he was amused. She brought out the needle and thread once more, bent on finishing these stitches soon. They had been drawled out for so long and it needed to be done. Her hands came out once more to lift his clothing and what she saw sickened her. The gash did not look any better. It was bleeding profusely. She then noticed the scratches on his face, small trickles of dried blood lining his cheeks. Instinctively, she reached for his once broken arm and was a tad bit relieved when she found that it had not been taken out of the socket or broken once more.

"What is this?" she asked after inspecting him. Instantly, she went to for more bandages to help stop the bleeding from the large wound on his stomach.

A cynical snort was heard. "Questioning."

"Wha-"

"Do I have to spell it out for you, girl?" he hissed and suddenly Sakura had remembered who he was and what evil things he had done. She backed away from him and his sudden outburst.

"Torture," she said, answering her own unspoken question. His muscles seemed to relax. She kept it in mind that he was on edge and should not be provoked. He was in a horrible, horrible mood and Sakura did not want to be the one to push him over the edge. So they sat in silence and she resumed his bandaging, being more careful than ever. This would certainly set them back. His stitches would have to be set back another day or so. And that was only if the gash would not become infected. This was ludicrous. The whole idea of it. Why did they expect her to heal him if they were only making it worse?

"It doesn't make sense," she said out loud in a low whisper, one that she only met for her to hear. And if it hadn't been for the silence, he probably would have missed it.

"What doesn't?"

She did not jump at his voice even though it so loudly invaded the silence. Instead, she bit her bottom lip in contemplation and stopped her bandaging to look up at. "Why do they want me to heal you?"

"They don't," he answered. Clearly this girl was too naïve for her own good.

"They don't?"

"They want you to keep me alive."

Sakura said nothing but her mouthed opened in an understanding 'oh.' Yes, that did make sense now that he pointed that out. But this, this made her angry. She was a medic. She healed. She saved. She did not keep people alive just for them to suffer. No, it was her job to take that suffering away. In a way, she felt as if she was the one torturing him. After all, she was the only one allowing this all to happen. "Keep you alive to hurt you."

"No, my dear, to question me," he said although mockery was clearly intended. She decided to let this slip. He was still very tense and she did not want to be the one to wake the sleeping beast. "I believe they mean no harm."

"Uchiha," she said with a huff of a laugh. "Your attitude is not necessary."

"I do not have an attitude."

Sakura laughed. Actually laughed. And maybe she was going crazy, but thought she heard him give a deep breath that sounded like a mix of tension release and maybe a hint of a dry chuckle.

"You had extended feelings for him," he said as she removed the bandaging only a couple hours later. The bleeding had finally stopped and she was proud to say there was no infection. If she hurried, she could manage to put a few stitches to fix the damage that had recently been done. If she worked fast enough, she would be able to heal some of the gash before they questioned him again with the stitches and some of her chakra.

"For who?" she asked, half dabbling into the conversation. Her attention was more fixated on her plans for the rest of the night—how she was going to try to beat odds and go past her limit to help this murderer.

"Medic," he said, trying to pull her from her thoughts. She mumbled something that he couldn't quite catch. He watched for a few more moments as she fumbled with the bandages. She was hurrying and tripping over her own fingers. He ignored the pain that her fumbling fingers had caused. "Sakura."

She looked up at this and raised her eyebrows. "Y-yeah?" It was incredibly weird that he would use her name. It was wrong that they had skipped the formalities. It was almost as if they were something more than mere acquaintances.

"I do not repeat myself," he said, the stubborn parts of his personality shining through.

Her thoughts backtracked to what he had said, but all she could think of was his gash and stitches and bandages. He had something about feelings. Extended feelings. Whatever that meant. But she wasn't stupid and she knew what he was talking about. He meant his younger brother. He meant Sasuke.

"Sasuke," she repeated out loud. He nodded only slightly and the air grew thick. It was hard to breathe. It was the first time his name had been spoken between them and this held so much weight. It was crashing down on her back, weighing down her shoulders.

She didn't answer her question because she really didn't need to.

He sat perched upon a tree, looking down at the village in the distance. Without a doubt, this stupid village held so many memories and bonds—ones that he thought he had thrown out when he had left. Red eyes narrowed dangerously.

"What do we do?"

He didn't turn his head, keeping his attention on the village. There had been rumors and whispers. The clan killer, the murderer, the monster had been captured. Captured and taken back to Konoha. It was fucking ironic. It really was.

"We wait."

Sakura yawned again. There was no sign of the outside world from this cell, but she had no doubt it was late. Maybe even so past late that it was morning. She punctured the skin with the needle and pulled the thread through. Small trickles of blood dotted his skin. Some was even smeared on her hands. Funny. His blood on her hands. Never in a million years would she have predicted that. Never in a billion years would she have predicted that any of this would happen. The mood had lightened considerably into indifference. They bathed in the silence for the past hour and now Sakura silently worked away while he continued to stare at her.

She figured she had just gotten used to it. It didn't bother her as much as it had before. If she didn't look at the red eyes, she would be fine. She wouldn't get lost in them. She wouldn't lose her cool. And most importantly, she wouldn't think of his younger brother. She wouldn't think of Sasuke. But even this, she realized, was a lie.

"Just the way I want to spend my night," she said, sticking the needle through his skin once more. It had proved to be a bit more stubborn and she was forced to roughly push it through, which earned a small grunt from the man. "Sewing with an Uchiha."

"I'm flattered."

She smiled and continued her work until it was done. The minutes had ticked away quickly and she could tell her was exhausted and bored when she backed away. There were dark circles under his eyes and heavy lines running down his worn face. His growling stomach just added to it. With an exasperated grin, she turned to fish a soldier pill out of her medical kit.

"Dinner's ready," she sang, bringing the pill to his lips. Once it had disappeared in his mouth, she followed it with water—this time making sure to keep it from spilling all over him. She brushed her hands off, signalizing a job well done. She was exhausted. There was no doubt about that. There was a sense of pride that coursed through her while she examined her work. His stomach was neatly stitched, granted a few mistakes here and there. She had been working in such a frenzy, but nevertheless, managed to stitch up his gash. The cuts on his face had been cleaned off and bandages neatly covered them. Bruises still adorned his whole body, making her wince.

She nodded to him, showing that she was done for tonight. He noticed her proud smile on her face and nearly rolled his eyes. Hadn't she realized she had done all this work just for it to go to waste? She might as well have saved her energy. Heavens knows it would all be ruined tomorrow.

"Do I get my kiss now?"

She was at the door, looking back and shaking her head with a smile. "You're crazy."

He would have shrugged if not for the binding chains. "Maybe."

She stiffened in realization as he said those words. She had tossed the word around carelessly, but when he had admitted that he might be crazy, a big boulder had suddenly hit her. A big, big boulder called reality. Before she would have been the first to call him crazy. Maybe insane. And here she was, pushing herself to do anything in her power to help this man, this murderer. It was wrong. Terribly wrong. He was crazy.

But then again, so was she.

"Don't tease me, Uchiha," she warned, her hand lazily set against the cool metal of the door.

"Wouldn't dream of it."

She was too tired to do anything. "Well, it's time for me to go," she whispered and bit her lower lip. It all reminded her of a scene in a movie. The one awkward moment after a first date when the boy and girl would end up on her front porch. They would say their goodbyes and the girl would say that she needed to go. The boy would nod and after a few silent moments would lean with a stumble and the girl would meet him halfway.

Yes, it was most certainly like a scene from a teenage drama. But her world was anything but. She opened the door and looked back at him once more.

"Get some sleep."

She nodded quickly and left the room.

That night she hardly slept. Instead she stared once more at her favorite spot on the ceiling. She played images in her head and refused to call them fantasies. Instead, she would call them 'what-ifs.' She would play this game every night.

What if Sasuke never left? What if he was lying next to her, snaking his arm around his waste? What if she would call it cuddling and he would snort and say that it was not cuddling—it was called holding her still so she wouldn't toss and turn and piss him off. What if it were Sasuke in that cell and not him? What if Sasuke had asked her for a goodbye kiss and what if she had given it to him? What if Sasuke came back? What if he would reject her once more?

She ended her game and snuggled closer to her pillow. "It's foolish to think of such things."

He lay in the grass, facing the starry night. It was childish of him, but he played a little game of connect the dots using the bright stars. He could hear talking coming from the fire. Most likely the girl bitching. He was beyond annoyed when she had chosen to come to him. He heard her feet shuffling in the grass from a distance. She laid down next to him, back facing the sky, and he chose to ignore her presence.

"Star gazing?" she asked, head resting on her arms.

"Hn."

He could hear her stretch and move to lazily lie on her back. Her head was turned so that she could look at him but her fingers played with a few loose strands of grass.

"What if they kill him before you do?"

There was a heavy silence and it drawled on for so long that she was getting ready to get up and retreat back to the fire. When she was on her feet and brushing her clothes off, he finally spoke.

He looked away from the stars, ending his game. "It's foolish to think of such things."

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A/N: I used to write way too much in these notes. Well, thank you for reading and please review.

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