Chapter Two
Sakura quickly made her way to the upper levels of Headquarters, her boots padding quietly along the polished floors. She reached up, releasing a heavy breath as she brushed her fingers through her hair. It had grown quite long in recent months, falling past her shoulder blades, which was longer than she had kept it for several years now. She kept most of it out of her face by wearing her hitai-ate as a headband most days, only allowing her bangs to frame her heart-shaped face. Aside from how long her hair had grown over the last few years, there were several things that had changed about her since the departure of her previous team.
Having officially been an ANBU Operative for a few years now, the rigerous and continal training, as well as frequent, difficult missions, had trained and toned her body rather quickly. No longer did she resemble the skinny, whiny twelve year old that she had once been upon graduating the academy, determined to win over Sasuke's affection. Instead, she walked with a predatory confidence, accentuated by the lethe muscles that corded her arms and legs. Beneath the ANBU uniform, her body had developed into that of an athletic eighteen year old with the seductive curves of a young woman.
She had noticed the sudden changes within the last few months, especially during training, when they were not required to wear their typical ANBU armor. While training with her teammates, Hyuuga Neji and Aburame Shino, she often felt the watchful, and appreciative, eyes of the other operatives - male and female alike. She would occasionally see her partners, Neji especially, glaring over her shoulder to whomever had paused long enough to watch, but never made a point to do anything about it. There wasn't anyone in ANBU whom she felt threatened or uncomfortable by. Most were smart enough to realize that if they tried anything she would punch them hard enough to send them flying across the entire city. And aside from that, she was also their medic. She had several different means of making someone's life rather difficult if they decided to get on her bad side.
It didnt take long for her to arrive at her exam room, the door shut and locked as she had left it prior to leaving for her mission. Above her head, her name and title lay enscribed on the plaque hanging from the doorway. Sakura paused outside the room, brows furrowed as she glanced to her right and left, finding an empty hallway surrounding her. Sighing through her nose, she released tendrils of chakra, flaring out and searching the room beyond the doorway, and the office that adjoined it. Her chakra brushed over the doorway, spreading into the room, searching every nook and corner, before reaching the security pad of her office. Finding nothing amiss within the exam room itself, Sakura slipped inside, still stretching her chakra out into her office as she flicked on the light, her eyes roving over her surroundings. Finding nothing, and the exam room set up as she had left it prior to her mission, she slowly padded towards her office door, entering the security code and stepping inside at it's beep of confirmation.
Upon first glance, everything seemed to be in order. The stack of papers still remained on her desk, the curtains drawn over the small window overlooking the city, the drawers of her desk and the cabinets on the back wall shut and locked. A thin layer of dust coated the furniture after her week away, the slightly stuffy scent of the office shoving its way up her nose as she stepped inside, leaving the door open at her back. She hummed under her breath, moving to draw open the curtains and crack the window, letting in a rush of fresh air. She turned towards her desk, moving to pull out her chair when she saw it.
Beneath the stack of papers and folders, the dust had been disturbed.
Her eyes snapped up, scanning the desk and narrowed in on the lack of dust beneath the picture frame on the opposite side of the wooden furniture. Her head snapped to the left, to the bookshelves and cabinets along the back wall, zeroing in on the handful of places where the dust had shifted, the books having been pulled from the shelves.
"Fuck," her fingers curled into the fabric of her chair. Sakura's eyes shut tightly, head tipping backward as she focused on breathing deeply. As she allowed her eyes to open once more, she turned her head towards the large photo on the opposite wall. The painting was simple enough: an abstract depiction of the Hokage mountain and the city of Konohagakure framed in dark wood. It wasnt the painting, however, that had enraptured Sakura's attention. Choking down the adrenaline that had her heart leaping into her throat, Sakura padded across the small room, glancing towards the door of her office as her fingers slipped beneath the painting, drawing it away from the wall. Beneath it, lay the plain, white paint of a solid wall.
Or, at least, that is what her genjutsu wanted it to look like.
Dispelling the jutsu quickly, a small safe appeared embedded in the wall, complete with a security pad and finger-print reader. Quickly entering the code and pressing her thumb to the pad, the door opened with a quiet beep and the click of the lock released. Sakura all but yanked the door to the safe open, her wide green eyes landing on the stack of files within, and breathed a heavy sign of relief. Looking over her shoulder once more, she yanked the stack out of the safe, quickly flipping through each of the folders and confirming that all of the information was present before shoving it back into the safe, locking it once more and replacing the undetectable genjutsu over the wall. She turned, sliding down the wall until her ass hit the floor.
"Thank god," she muttered, running her hands over her face, "thank fucking god."
She didnt have long, however, to soak in her relief before the sound of her exam room door opening caught her attention. Nearly scrambling off the floor, she dusted herself off, yanking the white coat off the hook hanging on the back of her office door and shoved her arms through it. Two familiar faces greeted her as she stepped out. Uchiha Shisui leaned back against door, one foot kicked up behind him, arms crossed over his broad chest. He looked over, shooting her a flirtatious grin that had her rolling her eyes and turning towards his cousin. Itachi had already moved to her exam table, seemingly resigned to get this appointment over and done with, already yanking the dark, spandex shirt over his head. Sakura moved to the counter on the back wall, quickly washing her hands.
"So," she drawled, drying her hands and moving to where he now sat stoically upon the metal exam table, watching her with a blank expression, "wanna tell me what happened?" The slight flicker in his dark eyes was the only indication that he resented being there with her, and would have rather hid the injury until it had healed itself. The Uchiha's in particular were notorious for playing the big, bad tough guys that didnt need any healing. It was why they had come to learn to drag themselves to her office if she noticed them injured, having been tracked down in the compound one too many times to prevent eternal embarrassment among the clan. It was a lot quieter, and easier, for everyone involved, if they came to her willingly.
Itachi said nothing as she stepped up to his side, falling into the familiar professionalism that came with being a medic-nin, her eyes locked on the long incision along his ribs. Sakura wouldnt deny that Uchiha Itachi was probably the most attractive operative that she worked with, with his cousin being a very close second. Being so close to him, touching him, had her heart stuttering slightly in her chest, but she shoved it down, away, to the far reaches of her mind as the medic in her stepped forward, pushing anything irrelevant aside.
"We got ambushed," Shisui answered for him, watching as Sakura poked and prodded the injury slightly, brows furrowed. She nodded, acknowledging his response, understanding it was probably the most she would get from either of them, before her small hands began to glow a pale green.
She could feel both of their gazes on her, as they usually where whenever she would heal one- or both- of them, and did her best to ignore it. It was sometimes hard being around them, especially Itachi. He looked, and often acted, so much like his younger brother that it would send a stabbing pain through her chest. To be honest, she had always liked him more than Sasuke, once she had gotten over her childish crush, but his one-word answers often grated on her nerves in the same way that it did with his younger brother when she was on his team. Shisui had always been the more conversive of the three, and easily the most flirtatious.
"Did you just get back from a mission, also?" Shisui questioned as the skin of his cousins ribs began to knit back together. Sakura nodded once.
"Right before you did."
"I can tell," he drawled, "you dont have any candy out." Sakura's eyes flicked up to her right, a smirk curling on the corners of her lips as she found him pouting towards the small bowl sitting on the table beside the door, empty.
"Neji probably ate it all while I was out," she muttered, "he has a rather large sweet tooth." Shisui smirked as she turned back to his cousins injury, and she could feel the way that Itachi watched her, sensing the slight sketch of a brow in mild interest. "I have some more in my drawer."
"You had a solo mission?" Another nod.
"I was gone for about a week." Her chakra flared slightly as the last of the injury stitched itself together, leaving nothing behind except a thin, white scar. "Dont move," she ordered, her emerald gaze flicking up to meet his, anticipating his movement to snatch his shirt and hop off her table. The Uchiha's eyes darkened slightly.
"Hn." Sakura rolled her eyes, stepping away towards the counter behind her. Pulling a set of keys off of the belt at her waist, she moved to unlock one of the drawers containing a mild numbing agent to help with any residual pain and internal bruising, her fingers halting just before the lock. The two men noticed her sudden movement, their eyes snapping in her direction and eyeing the surrounding objects, brows furrowed. "What is it?" Itachi's deep, velvetty voice sent a shiver up her spine that had her blinking rapidly, a flush staining her cheeks as she glanced quickly towards his cousin still leaning against the door. Shisui's brows had come to knit together, watching her with mild concern, his eyes still locked on her hand that hesitated before the unlocked drawer.
"I-," she swallowed thickly, and quickly forced a smile to her face, "it's nothing!" She shoved the keys into the pocket of her cargo pants, quickly opening the drawer and snatching the vial of anesthetic and a sterile syringe. With a very quick glance, nothing in that particular drawer seemed to be missing, but the entire cabinet had been unlocked. Turning back to her patient, she purposefully avoided his overly-observant eyes, filling the syringe and removing the air bubbles. "You know the drill," she informed him, "this will pinch."
Another, "hn," was his only response, but Sakura could feel the way he watched her, feel the way his eyes moved over her from head to toe, studying the micro expressions she made beneath the trained mask of a smile. She injected the anesthetic, placing her glowing hand over the area for another heartbeat to help it begin spreading through the area before she finally stepped back once more, dropping the used needle into the red sharps bin. She turned her attention to the man leaning against the door, placing her hands on her hips and giving him a knowing look.
Shisui blinked, then smiled, holding up his hands. "Im fine, promise!" Sakura's head tilted to the side, brows furrowing. "Really! Ask him," he motioned to his cousin, who was quickly pulling on his black shirt. Sakura shot Itachi a glance, enough to notice the way his chin dipped ever so slightly in confirmation.
"Fine," she sighed, turning away. She moved to the cabinet near the door, eyes already focused on the locking mechanism, noticing it didnt seem tampered with. Quickly opening the bottom drawer, she smiled widely as she grabbed a paper bag of wrapped sweets, dumping a handful into the small bowl beside the excited shinobi, who didnt hesitate to grab a few. Sakura rolled her eyes, dumping the bag back into the drawer and kicking it closed with her foot. She didnt bother to say anything else as she went about, double checking the locks on the cabinets, drawing the paper off the exam table and leaving it bare to deal with the next day. Itachi had already moved to the door, waiting somewhat impatiently beside his cousin, but his dark eyes followed her through the room.
"You're not staying?" Shisui questioned, as he too noticed Sakura drawing her white coat off as she moved to her office. She frowned, glancing over her shoulder.
"No, Im not on today," she explained, tossing her coat onto one of the guest chairs in the office, "but I noticed a certain patient of mine who is notorious for not getting help was injured," she shot Itachi a pointed look over her shoulder, one hand on her office door, "dont let it happen again. I dont want to have to start hunting you two down after missions just to make sure you dont have any injuries." Itachi gave another monosyllable hum of acknowledgement, already halfway out the door, while his cousins dark eyes glittered.
"You can hunt me down anytime, darlin- shit!" The older Uchiha ducked just in time to miss the kunai now embedded in her doorframe, the sound of her office door slamming shut echoing through the exam room.
Tsunade's office door was already open when she arrived. Rapping her knuckles on the doorframe to catch the Hokage's attention, Sakura waited patiently for her mentor to look up from the letter in her hands. "Come in," the blonde muttered, seeming to sigh heavily as she pushed the document to the side, looking up to find her student shutting the wooden door behind her, "ah, just who I was looking for." Sakura gave Tsunade a somewhat amused smile, bowing her chin respectfully as she stepped up to the desk and took a seat in one of the chairs.
"I apologize for the delay," she explained, "I ran into Team One on my way out of Ibiki-sensei's office." Tsunade smirked.
"And let me guess, at least one of them was injured." Sakura rolled her eyes, reaching up and brushing a pink strand of hair out of her face.
"A certain Uchiha." The Hokage nodded as she reached down into one of her drawers.
"Sounds about right," she muttered as she pulled out the familiar scroll that Sakura had procured the night before, placing it on the desk between the two women, "Im sure he had been hoping to avoid running into you." The pink haired kunoichi grinned wickedly.
"Always." The two chuckled under their breaths before turning their attention to the scroll between them. The smile immediately fell from the younger kunoichi's face as she remembered everything that went into obtaining the item, and shifted slightly in her chair. The blonde haired woman watched her for a moment, before her honey-gold gaze fell to the scroll once more.
"I trust you," she spoke, her voice barely more than a whisper, "I would suggest that you break the seals within Headquarters. Make sure that seal off the room." Sakura nodded once.
"I already have a room in mind." It was deep. Deep within the Hokage mountain, where the ANBU Headquarters spiraled like an underground tower into the earth. There were several interrogation rooms deep within the underground building, and there were a handful that were rarely used- partially forgotten.
"Good," Tsunade nodded, "I trust you to learn everything you need to from this, and quickly." Another nod, before honey-gold met emerald. "When youre finished," Tsunade whispered, "burn it."
"Yes, Hokage-sama." Sakura replied automatically. She had come to refer to her mentor in such a way when it came to highly important tasks and missions. A sign of respect, but a larger sign of understanding. Tsunade nodded once more, pushing the scroll across the desk to her student, who took it and tucked it within the folds of her clothing.
"I know you," she explained, leaning back in her plush, leather chair and crossed her arms over her voluptuous bust, "you're going to go work on that now." Sakura blinked, but didn't deny what the Hokage already knew, and allowed her to continue. "When you're finished, let me know. Then take a few days off," amusement sparkled in the older woman's eyes at the way that Sakura immediately moved to object, "you've earned it, Sakura."
"My ANBU patients-" Tsunade sketched a brow, quickly cutting her off.
"Hikiko can handle it on her own for a few more days." Sighing heavily, Sakura realized that she would not benefit from arguing, her chin dropping slightly.
"Yes, shishou." Tsunade smirked once more. As Sakura turned towards the door, however, her eyes snagged on the letter that she had received not long before her student had arrived.
"One more thing." Sakura paused, turning over her shoulder with a frown. Tsunade had picked up the letter once more, her face having fallen into a contemplative frown. After a moments silence, she let out a heavy breath, dropping the letter once more and steepled her fingers in front of her face, elbows resting on the desk. Sakura furrowed her brows, recognizing her mentor's tell-tale sign of bad news, and adjusted her stance. "I just received word this morning," Tsunade started, holding Sakura's eye contact, "that the Akatsuki has successfully been dealt with and is no longer a threat to us or any other village."
Sakura blinked, the words settling over her like a heavy weight that nearly had her grip slipping off the scroll. Tsunade watched as the blood drained from the young girls face, before she clenched her jaw tightly, green eyes hardening. "Which means-"
"Which means," the Hokage continued with a nod, "that Team Seven is on their way home."