"I'm worried about Naruto."

"What are you doing here Sakura?"

She watched the teen roll over in his bed, pulling a pillow over his head trying to block her out it seemed. She stepped inside his room from the window and pulled the pillow off of his head before hitting him with it three times.

"Will you listen to me?"

"Keep it down. It's….two in the morning?"

She rolled her eyes at the time and forced him to roll back over, sitting on the edge of his bed.

"Every day this past week he's gotten up earlier to train, eat breakfast, then train some more. We're supposed to start training as a team again tomorrow, or I guess today but-"

"Go away."

"Sasuke-kun!"

"It's a good thing that he trains. He wants to become Hokage remember."

"But-"

"What were you thinking sneaking out of your house to come into my bed?"

"I wanted to talk. There's nothing wrong with it."

"A fifteen year old girl climbing into bed with a fifteen year old boy. What will your dad think?"

"We're teammates."

With that she was pulled under him, their faces barely inches apart.

"Have you ever been kissed Sakura?"

She flushed and nodded.

"Inari."

She laughed as he flinched.

"That doesn't count."

"Do you want to be my first kiss Sasuke-kun?"

"I'll be your first everything Sakura."

Her breath caught.

"But not at two in the fucking morning. Either sleep or leave."

He turned off of her and proceeded to fall asleep. She crawled out of bed and turned to the window. Taking a deep breath she leapt out, a smile on her face.

xxXXxx

"Naruto's on his own mission?"

"Ah. I heard my father talking about it. He went with that pervert who writes the novels Kakashi reads."

Sakura sighed.

"I wonder what they're doing. Meanwhile we're all on assignment to clean up the village."

Sakura ate one of the sweets on her dish while Sasuke sipped his tea.

"Kakashi's beyond late."

"Maybe he got held up. Do you think he'll tell us where Naruto went?"

"You're obsessed with Naruto."

"Am not! I just care!"

"Too much."

Sakura threw a piece of candy at him, hitting him on the cheek. His frown deepened.

"Leave me alone."

"Hn."

She sighed and sipped her tea as well.

It was a few moment's later that Sasuke slammed his cup down, fists clenching.

"Sasuke-kun?"

"He's back."

She looked up to see red.

"Don't be activating your sharingan! Who's back? Don't tell me-"

"Itachi!"

He hissed and stood up suddenly, disappearing from her sights.

"Hey! Damn it, don't go rushing to get hurt again!"

She thanked kami he wasn't using chakra. She chased him in the streets, shouting apologies at the people he bumped into.

He threw open the door of a hotel and she had to open it after him. When he stopped suddenly, she almost barreled into him but it made her gasp none the less.

"Naruto!"

He didn't respond to her though, he was looking at the two standing in the hallway behind him.

Sasuke tensed up in front of her and she frowned. The blue skinned one was dressed the same as Itachi, with a robe of red clouds. But both of their hitai-ate were scratched, the sign of a traitor.

"Rushing here was wasting your energy Sasuke."

"Tch. Sakura, stand back."

"What?"

The energy around him started to spark and she backed up as was told, pulling Naruto behind Sasuke with her.

"This poses a problem Itachi. No one was supposed to know we entered the village."

"I know. I'll deal with it.

With that chakra formed on his hand, crackling like birds chirping.

That's what Kakashi-sensei taught him.

"Sasuke-kun, that's dangerous!"

"Hey, Sasuke! Teme, what are you doing?"

His hand went to the wall, breaking the material along his run towards his brother. But in a second everything changed. An explosion resounded, filling the hallway with dust for a brief moment before it settled.

She felt the air shift behind her and saw Naruto was gathering his chakra.

"Don't!"

A slam was heard and a wince.

Itachi had Sasuke against the wall with his hand on his throat.

"Stop it!"

With one hand she kept a hold of Naruto's jacket. But she moved only a foot closer to the pair of thugs and Sasuke.

"Not good enough."

A voice was by her ear and for a second she panicked.

Until something was in front of Naruto, and pushing her out of the way. A clink was heard and she saw a frog in front of Naruto, arms bracing against the blue man's sword.

"Ero-sennin!"

Sakura blushed realizing who the man was.

He's one of the densetsu sanin.

But what's he doing here?

Looking past Itachi, she saw Sasuke on the floor, glaring up at his brother.

"Jiraiya. Step aside."

"I won't let you take Naruto."

Sakura froze.

What could Naruto have done to them?

"We are under urgent orders to take Naruto from the village."

"Orders from the Akatsuki I presume. What is this Itachi? You come back after declaring your separation from the village you called home on orders from thugs."

"Do not talk as if you know Jiraiya."

"It can't be helped."

The air was thick with tension, and confusion was written all over the faces of team seven.

"Why waste time talking? Let's grab the kid and let's go!"

The blue man was getting impatient, and becoming even more dangerous.

"I won't hand Naruto over to you."

"That's a problem."

"I guess I'll have to defeat you."

"Don't interfere!"

Her head snapped up to a wobbly Sasuke, getting to his feet.

"Sasuke-kun!"

"I will be the one to kill him!"

"Orokashii ototo."

Sasuke charged at Itachi only to get kicked back; his back hitting the wall with a crack in the material.

"You heard him."

The blue man raised his sword to Jiraiya in a challenge.

Sakura pushed Naruto back behind Jiraiya more and ducked behind the blue man in a flash before appearing before a fallen Sasuke.

"Stop it!"

His red eyes didn't intimidate her like they should have.

That was her second mistake.

When his fist connected with her gut she didn't hear anything.

"Sakura-chan!"

"Sakura!"

Instead her eyes met his one more time and she was thrown back, her own back hitting the wall and she slumped to the side, holding her stomach. Her breathing labored for a second before she decided to close her eyes for just a second.

xxXXxx

Sakura felt like she was running. Sasuke, Naruto, they were so close, but she wasn't reaching them.

'Sakura-chan! Let's go!'

'Why can't you just reach us already?'

'Sakura-chan? What's wrong?'

'You're getting weaker than the two of us.'

'Hey, Sasuke has a point! You should be able to at least follow us closer!'

'Sakura.'

'Sakura-chan!'

She sat up panting, realizing two others in the room fell on their buts at that moment.

"What the hell?"

"Hn."

Staring at the two, she noticed the annoyed look on Sasuke's face and the grin on Naruto's.

"Kakashi wants to meet with us!"

She frowned before rubbing the sleep out of her eyes.

"What are you guys doing here?"

"I just told you!"

Sakura sighed and nodded. Her parents left on a mission last night, so she planned on sleeping in after a month of nightmares. Naruto had left for two weeks with Jiraiya and retrieved the fifth Hokage.

But since the run in with Itachi a month ago, Sasuke hadn't been the same. She didn't know if his parents noticed because he hadn't invited either of them over since.

"When did you guys get here?"

"Ten minutes ago!"

She sighed and nodded before running a hand through her pink hair, which was barely growing out. The fifteen year old became deep in thought before Naruto shook her out of it.

"Come on let's go Sakura-chan!"

"Alright. I'll be dressed in a second."

xxXXxx

"Obaa-chan! Where's Kakashi?"

"He's not coming with you on this mission."

Sakura frowned before cutting off Naruto's rant.

"Hokage-sama, why won't Kakashi be with us?"

"He and the other jonin are on missions right now. The mission you have is B ranked, and it involved guarding a very important person. However I don't know who it is."

Sakura immediately cupped her hand over Naruto's mouth, thus ending another rant.

"What do you mean?"

She caught Sasuke's eye, but he just glared at her.

Geez, he hasn't seen me in a month and it's back to glaring.

Figures.

"In the allied Cha no Kuni there is an even called the Todorki Taisha dedication ceremony held once every four years. We have accepted a mission to guard the runner who will run in the race at that ceremony. However the messengers were defeated by an opponent's spy before they arrived here. That's all we know. You must be there by the end of the day. Dismissed!"

xxXXxx

They traveled for three hours before the arguing started.

"But I'm hungry!"

"We're almost there you idiot. It can wait."

"Can not! Sakura-chan, aren't you hungry?"

"No Naruto, I'm on a diet."

"Kunoichi shouldn't diet Sakura-chan! Let's eat!"

"Naruto has a point.'

"Look there's a tea house! Please?"

"Fine!"

Sakura giggled as Sasuke huffed, clearly annoyed with the whiny ninja.

When they sat down, they were offered green tea and placed their orders of Oshiruko for Naruto, Odangos for Sakura, and Tokoroten for Sasuke.

Once they finished eating however, the unknowingly met their client.

"Konoha must be at peace right now."

They all looked up to see a kid a year or two older than them sneering down at them. But it faltered when he locked eyes with her, giving her the willies.

"Oh, I didn't know such a cute girl lived there though."

He leaned down, bumping Naruto out of the way to look at her at eye level. She felt his eyes take in her features, and she blushed none the less.

"Get away from Sakura-chan!"

"Sakura hm? A cute name to match. Meeting like this must be fate. How about we go somewhere else and talk about our future."

"Future?"

"I'm talking about you quitting your job as a ninja and becoming my bride."

The heat grew stronger and a hand hit the table with a loud sound.

Looking up she saw both Sasuke and Naruto with their hands on the table, glaring at the boy who openly flirted with her.

Ah, they're overdoing it.

"Quiet flirting with Sakura-chan!"

"Suit yourself, but when you're done with whatever business you have here, come find me."

Then, it was like he disappeared.

"Where'd he go?"

Sasuke ducked underneath the table and put his ear to the pavement.

That's when Sakura snapped her fingers.

"Guys, I think that's the guy we're supposed to protect."

"NO WAY!"

Sakura slammed the money plus a tip for their meal and ran out following the other two. He may have been fast, but it wasn't hard to track him. He wasn't light on his feet, and there were snapped twigs everywhere.

Until there wasn't.

They landed on a tree branch and looked back.

"Weights."

Sakura nodded at Sasuke's word.

"We won't catch up to him without using too much chakra. Let's find the man in charge."

"Oh come on! I can still see him!"

"Naruto!"

"Fine!"

xxXXxx

"Listen up, listen up!"

Sakura winced as Naruto started another rant. Sasuke just sighed and crossed his arms beside her.

"I am from Hi no Kuni, Konohagakure no Sato, I grew up with Ichiraku ramen! My surname is Uzamaki and my name is Naruto. People call me-"

"A dumbass."

"A dumbass. NO! THEY DO NOT!"

Sakura laughed at the two before apologizing to the daimyo whom appeared to find the exchange funny as well, for he was chuckling under his breath.

"It's alright, boys should be this energetic. But, down to business I can see. I'm sure Tsunade-sama told you about the ceremony, but it's much deeper than words. The port village of Dagarasi is home to two rival clans, the Wasabi family and Wagarashi family. There is a feud only a few truly know the meaning behind, but a decade or so ago it escalated into war, involving innocent citizens. So the families eventually made a pact, every four years a person of each family would become the daimyo. The contestants of the race are form either family. We of the Wasabi family ask you to guard the runner, Idate and ensure our victory. Last race the other family hired a ninja, so to level the playing field, so did we."

That's just stupid.

But Sakura held back what she wanted to say and just nodded like the other two.

"Leave it to me!"

xxXXxx

Sakura ran a brush through her hair, frowning at the length as Sasuke read scrolls from across the small room. It was all they were given, but it had a bathroom as well so they didn't complain. Three mats lay in the middle of the room along with one mirror, and nice paintings of the port village.

Naruto was on a food run with Idate, whom reluctantly went as Sakura refused to guard him and Sasuke was conveniently no where to be found when they decided who would head outside to the market.

"I'm going out."

She stood up to leave, packing away her brush before she felt a shift in the room.

"Hey, I can go by myself you know."

Sasuke just walked on past her and in front of her. Sakura sighed and exited the motel with him, her eyes already catching the tourist venders.

She picked up a coin purse that was dark blue with a boat etched into it and fell in love. Until she saw the price.

"I'm sorry it's so expensive."

Sakura gave a kind smile to the older woman and shook her head.

"It isn't."

That's when the idea popped into her head.

"Sasuke-kun!"

Turning around she saw what he did just in time, but he was much quicker. In the blink of an eye Sasuke intercepted a punch from a shop keeper with an obvious attitude.

"Oh no!"

"Don't worry ma'am."

The shop keep covered her eyes as punches were blown, but she opened them when Sakura started laughing. The three men walked away bruised and battered and another, the one on the ground thanked Sasuke openly while counting the money he was obviously owed.

"Amazing!"

"Sasuke-kun, I paid for lunch so you have to buy me this okay?"

The whole street saw Sasuke nod and follow her into the store, already grabbing for his wallet.

xxXXxx

End!