Sorry this took so long, but like I said, I'm on vacation. I'll be back by Wednesday, so I'll probably post something before then. But this will have to do for now. I'm sorry, by the way. You're all going to be pissed. But the deal with Hiro was in my original plan of the story… so… yeah.

I wake up with a start around midnight, knowing something is wrong. I kick Kakashi and he grunts, then rolls over to go back to sleep. "Kakashi!" I hiss, gripping his shoulder. He finally opens his one onyx eye, watching me. "I forgot to tell you… Zen… she-" He closes his eye, rolling back over. "Ame," I hiss. "That's the place we have to attack."

He looks back at me when I say that, sitting up. "I'm sure this can wait until morning, Sakura," he mutters, rubbing his eyes.

"I might forget," I say with a pout. He rolls his eyes under mostly closed lids and motions for me to continue. "The whole thing is underground, except for in Ame, where it has to go through checkpoints. Ame is the key. If we take down the, I don't know, center of operations, in Ame, then the whole thing will fall apart."

"She told you this?" He asks, raising an eyebrow.

"Kind of," I hedge, biting my lip. "It was in code, but I'm sure that's what she meant."

"I'll have Shikamaru send Tsunade a message," he says, lying back down with his back to me. "In the morning."

"Kakashi," I whine, poking his shoulder.

"There's not a lot we can do right now anyways," he groans, moving his shoulder to push my fingers away. "I was having a very nice dream, Sakura, I'd like to get back to it," he's already half asleep.

I can't believe the shock of jealousy that runs through me, just at the fact that he'd rather dream than be with me. "Most men wake up from a dream like that and go find the nearest woman, not go back to it." I say, rolling to the furthest edge of the bed to go back to sleep.

"It wasn't that kind of dream," he says into his pillow. "It was just a nice one."

I sigh at that, feeling very stupid, and slightly relieved. "What about?"

"You," he says.

I smile. "Yeah? What about me?"

"You were being quiet." A second later Kakashi finds himself on the floor. "I was kidding," he grunts, pulling himself up to crawl back into bed.

"Couch," I growl, not daring to do so much as look at him.

"Oh come on Sakura," he sighs, climbing onto the bed anyways. "It was a joke, lighten up."

"Couch," I repeat, acid dripping from my tongue.

I feel him pause, hesitant to piss me off. "Seriously?" he asks after a moment.

"Couch."

"Fuck," he mutters, moving off the bed and limping over to the couch. "Can I have a pillow?" One hits his face with a satisfying smack. It may have been helped along by my arm. "Blanket?" I roll my eyes, pulling one of the sheets off the bed and kicking it to the floor. He carefully pulls it towards him, not wanting to get within arm's reach of me. I fume for a bit, staring into the darkness before Kakashi speaks again. "I'm sorry, Sakura. I love when you talk at odd hours of the night."

"Save it," I growl, pulling the blankets tightly around me.

"I love you," he whispers. I roll over, holding a pillow over my head. He continues to speak to me, and though I can't hear his words, his low tone is amplified to a low hum by the pillow pressed around my ears. He falls silent after a while and I pull the pillow away to his even, deep breathing. It wouldn't surprise me if he was already asleep; he had gone all the way to Iwa and back in less than one day. And he had been in bad shape when he left.

I sigh, getting up from the bed with a sheet wrapped around me, and shuffle over to him, watching him as he breathes loudly, right on the edge of snoring. "You can come back," I say, my voice thick. He can't sleep on this couch; he'll wake up sore and angry. I sit on the edge of the couch carefully, touching his face gently. I smile softly and lean forward, kissing him, only to have him pull me flush against him. I almost fall off the couch, but Kakashi pulls me on top of him, so the sheets around each of us merely drape over my back and to the floor.

"You're easy to break," he mutters against my lips, smiling.

"Fine, stay here then," I scoff, moving to get up.

He laughs, pinning my knees to his sides so I can't move. "Only if you stay here too," he whispers, leaning up to kiss me. His lips begin to move away, so he can hear my response, but he then seems to change his mind, shifting his arms away from my hips to support himself so his lips can reach mine more comfortably.

I groan against his lips, leaning down and forcing him back against the couch cushions. "It'd be more comfortable on the bed," I point out, kissing his neck.

"It's not worth it to move now," he says, allowing me to feel his vocal chords hum as he talks.

"So lazy," I scold quietly.

"No," he argues, running his hands over my back, holding me tightly to him. "I just don't want you to stop."

A thrill runs through me at that, making me regret the fact that I now straddle the man as my body seems to be screaming at me to use the situation to my advantage. I bite his neck gently, swallowing my own moan by enticing one out of him. His hands follow the curve of my back, trailing over my butt before he pulls me down, so I sit directly over the growing proof of his arousal. "Kakashi," I whisper, voice weak. He doesn't say anything, just lifts his hips against me, making me groan. I glance over at the bed in longing, but Kakashi doesn't seem to notice, he just lifts his hips again. I pause, my eyes falling on the empty tea cup beside the bed. I remind myself of the dangers of getting too carried away on this mission, too caught up with our marriage that we ignore the mission.

With a sigh I slide down Kakashi, moving my hips away from him. He moans in disappointment, trying to pull me back to him, but I swat at his hands, continuing down his body, shifting so I lay between his legs. I feel every muscle in his body tighten when I hesitantly dip my fingers into the waistband of his boxers, waiting for his response. "Sa-Sakura," he stutters, looking down at me in surprise. I take that as a good sign, pulling off his boxers slowly and taking a hold of him, ghosting my fingers over his hot skin. He groans loudly, bringing a fist to his mouth to bite at his knuckles. "Kami" he gasps out as my hands become more confident. I bite my lip thoughtfully as he trembles beneath me, but he's not looking at me, he's staring at the ceiling, eyes wide. I do it quickly, so I don't have time to get embarrassed, flicking my tongue out so quickly I'm not sure he could've felt it. He feels it alright. He jerks so violently under me it could be confused as a seizure. "Fuck," he groans, one hand twitching towards me, then retreating again. "Sakura, don't…" I trail my tongue up the side of him as he speaks, and he trails off, groaning. "You don't have to-"

He's cut off when I place a kiss against his tip, and his hand isn't all that twitches. "What were you saying, Kakashi?" I ask; my voice low and breathy.

"Um… You don't-" I give him another kiss and he stops, "-have to-" I open my lips this time, taking only his tip into my mouth and swirling my tongue around it. "Fuck…" he groans, moving his hips up towards me slightly.

"Now now," I scold, shaking my head at his movement as I push his hips down. "Be patient, I'll get to that."

He groans, keeping his hands away from me with some added effort. "Please, Sakura." He practically begs.

"Please what?" I ask playfully.

He groans and sits up, resting on his elbows. "Sakura, for the sake of my sanity, please." I smile softly, licking him again before pulling him into my mouth. He gasps, letting his head roll back. "Kami," he grunts, his hips giving a little involuntary jerk. As I start to find a slow rhythm, bobbing and sucking only slightly, Kakashi's hand drifts to the back of my head, pushing me down a little further.

"None of that," I growl, pulling away.

"Sakura," he whines.

"Come back to bed," I murmur, "and there, and only there, will I do what you want."

He picks me up in a moment, wrapping me in his arms and carrying me back to the bed. "What I want," he growls in my ear as he lowers me onto the bed, "is to give you exactly what you want."

"So cliché," I joke as he kisses my neck, trailing kisses down so my bosom.

"So true," he argues, sucking at my skin, nipping and biting on occasion. I squeak in surprise as he trails lover, touching the edge of my panties. "Shall I return the favor?" He asks with a silly grin.

"But I didn't finish with you yet…" I argue, resisting the urge to squirm under his intense gaze.

"Later," he mutters, moving the thin cloth down my legs. I do squirm now, feeling more than a little awkward with his face so close to me. "Calm down, Sakura," he says with a small laugh.

"I've… I've never…" I blush furiously, looking away.

Kakashi grins, showing his straight, white teeth. "Genma never ate you out?" He asks.

I blush at that, burying my face in my hands. "No," I groan, shifting uncomfortably.

"Thank Kami," he mutters, "I was thinking you'd always be comparing me to him. Do you have any idea how annoying it is to be compared to him?"

"You're better," I say without hesitation.

He grins, climbing back up my body to kiss me sweetly. "Thank you."

"And bigger." I say, trying to will away the blush on my cheeks.

"I knew that," he says with a wink, working his way back down my body. So much for wishing away the blush.

"That's you, my gay fiancé," I say, rolling my eyes.

"I think bi is a more appropriate term," he sighs, kissing my stomach as he works his way back down my body.

"Or just horny," I sigh, taking a deep breath to try to calm myself.

"That too," he mutters, probably not even listening to me anymore. I gasp as he kisses the inside of my leg, bending my legs and coaxing me to lift my hips slightly.

"Kami," I mutter, blushing like crazy as he trails his kisses further up the inside of my leg. Just as he gets high enough for his cheek to brush against my soft curls he pulls back, starting at the knee on my other leg and working his way down again. As his lips trail down his hand lightly squeezes the inside of my other thigh, dusting his fingers over my skin lightly. He pauses for a moment, looking up at me questioningly. After a moment I nod in reassurance. A second later I'm trembling just as Kakashi had been under me, my fingers gripping at the sheets. I lift my hips a bit more and he smiles against me, grabbing my hips possessively to pull me closer. "Kakashi," I gasp, reaching down to grab his hair. "Please… I want you."

He pulls away from me, climbing up my body again, and kisses me. I moan at my taste on his lips, threading my fingers through his hair, trying to pull him closer, but he pulls away. "You're sure?" He asks, making me frown. "I mean… I don't have anything… I thought maybe that's why you…"

"I have more of that tea," I say quickly. He sighs in relief, kissing me again.

I wake up to frantic knocking on my door, and quickly roll over, trying desperately to ignore the annoyance. I'm brought back to attention by Kakashi's soft laugh, and then a sudden absence of his familiar warmth. "You're not going to answer that, are you?" I ask, clutching the sheets to me as he stumbles towards the door.

"It could be Shikamaru," he says, almost tripping over a pile of clothes we had shed last night. "Or news about Shinji."

I sigh, pulling the sheet over my head. "You might want to put on pants." I mutter into the mattress.

"Right, yes," he says with a small laugh, looking through the pile of clothes for something suitable.

"Mask," I mutter, as he reaches the door.

"Good idea," he sighs, turning away from the door.

"You alright?" I ask, smiling.

"Just a little scatterbrained," He says, his eyes landing on the mask I hold by one finger. "That looks so scandalous," he teases with a sloppy grin, coming over to take it from me. I pull it back, and he smiles, leaning forward to kiss me as he takes the mask from my hand. He's about to pull away to don the mask, but I pull him back, kissing him again with a little smirk. The knocking returns on the door and he rips his lips away from mine. "Hold on!" he growls, kissing me once more and then putting on the mask. I watch from the bed as he opens the door, keeping the person on the other side hidden from view. "What the hell do you want?" He asks; a growl to his voice I haven't heard since I accused him of betraying Konoha.

"Kakashi," the silk tone to her voice sends shivers up my spine. "Your girl here?"

I slip from the bed, keeping the sheet against me as I move so I can see Zen in the doorway. "What do you want?" I ask, biting my lip.

"To thank you," she says with a smile. "You did a good job cleaning up my messes."

"Shinji's safe for now," I say clearly.

"Not just that," she says with a smile. "But also the tunnels. Thanks to your flooding them business is down, and you cleaned house with my staff as well. And since Hiro is strangely silent on the subject of his ruined hot springs all seems to be well in the world of me."

"I don't understand you," I say shaking my head. "One minute you're creating the ultimate way to destroy Konoha, the next you're thanking me for saving it."

"The ultimate way? Thank you, I didn't think it was that great…" She says with a fake humble tone. "What can I say? I got in over my head," she smiles brightly, shrugging. "A bit like you two did with your little game."

"Kakashi," I say, turning to him, "she seems to be obsessed with the idea that we've been sent on a mission from the leaf." He nods knowingly, stepping out of the way and beckoning her into the room. She smiles, stepping in. Once Kakashi closes the door behind her she turns and plops onto the bed. "So what now?" I ask Kakashi.

"I could kill her," he says with a shrug. "She's behind the assassination attempt of the lord's younger brother."

"I am not!" She protests, though there's no worry on her face, just amusement.

"No one else knows that," I say softly, leaning against the dresser. She raises an eyebrow at me, amused.

"One thing you have to understand, Zenitha," Kakashi says clearly, coming to sit next to me. "This isn't just a mission anymore. If you become a danger to our mission, or to our marriage… I'll kill you."

"Oh I know you will," she says with a smile. "Nothing to stop you now, I mean, now that you've found a new Rin." Kakashi flinches next to me. "Except it's the other way around these days. You love her… she doesn't love you." In Kakashi's defense his jaw only tightens slightly. "What was it you said, Sakura? 'I have no love for Kakashi?' was that it?"

"That sounds like it," I say with a nod. "I was playing a spy against Konoha," I say to Kakashi, who nods knowingly. "Don't turn this on us Zen," I spit. "Tell us about the trade rink."

"I told you everything you need, and all I know," she says stubbornly, leaning back on the bed. "It's all underground. In Ame it surfaces. Bring it down there, and the whole thing will fall. This bed smells like you, Kashi."

"Bitch," I hiss, balling my hands into fists. To my surprise Kakashi doesn't tell me to calm down, but just shakes his head. "Get off my bed, get out of my room."

She smiles, sliding off the bed and brushing past Kakashi as she leaves. He doesn't even flinch, just stands there stoically. "Congratulations, love. You'll make a decent husband, and a wonderful father."

Kakashi's eyes go wide in shock as she leaves the room, and he turns to me. "Kami, Kakashi calm down. It'd be too early to know anyways, she's just messing with you," I say, rolling my eyes as I go to my pack, grabbing some new clothes. "Shower?" I ask, flirtatiously.

I sigh as I look over Shinji slowly. He's much better today, and even though Hinata worked on getting some of the blood out of his lungs, he's still breathing harshly. He smiles up at me as I thread my chakra through his lungs, having to work in between breaths so I don't alter his already harsh breathing pattern. "Better?" he asks, still smiling.

"Yeah, you won't be running any marathons any time soon," I say with a scoff.

"Thank you, Sakura," he whispers, reaching up to touch my shoulder.

"It wasn't just me, Hinata helped, and your brother too," I say softly, glancing to the doorway where Kakashi stands, keeping Hironori out while I work.

"Yeah, he wouldn't want to lose his only chance at keeping the family name going," Shinji says through a series of coughs.

"Shinji," I scold, glancing up at him, "don't be ridiculous, he was really worried about you." He scoffs, crossing his arms. "He cried," I whisper, leaning close.

"No," Shinji gasps, eyes wide.

"A lot," I say, nodding.

"That's quite enough," Hiro says from my elbow.

"Kakashi," I mutter. "You were supposed to keep him out of the room." Kakashi just rubs the back of his neck nervously.

"So, how is he?" Hiro asks, crossing his arms. "Will he live?"

"He'll be alright," I say with a smile. "He should be out of bed by my wedding actually, if you want to come." Shinji smiles sadly, nodding.

"I'll be there," he says, coughing. He leans forward, whispering in my ear. "Just for you though."

"Shinji," I scold, smiling. "Hinata was helpful too." Shinji starts to laugh, but ends up coughing. Hiro moves beside me, seeming to want to do something, but stops, taking a step back. "I'll see you tomorrow then," I say when he stops coughing.

"Tomorrow," he promises, pulling me down to kiss my cheek.

To Kakashi's credit he doesn't do anything more than clench his fists. When we leave Kakashi does take my hand in his though. "You're acting very mature," I say as he leads me down the hall.

"Yeah, well Shinji didn't have hot shower sex with you this morning, so he can kiss you on the cheek all he wants," he says, raising my hand to his masked lips.

I sigh, rolling my eyes. "Ok, you're acting somewhat mature," I mutter. He just smiles happily. "Oh, so your cousin has a very interesting tattoo," I say with a smile.

"Which tattoo?" he asks, narrowing his eyes.

"Apparently you made a very big impression in his life, scarecrow…" I say with a grin.

"Damn it, why did you see him naked?" He demands, stopping in the hall way.

"When I emptied his hot spring," I say with a smile, "he happened to be in it."

Kakashi sighs, shaking his head. "He got that tattoo after I brought Zenitha here. Her name is written on the back of his neck."

"So your name is on his hip, in such an intimate spot, while hers is on the back of his neck…" I edge. Do I smell incest?

"It's more likely people see him naked than see the back of his neck." I raise an eyebrow at that. "His hair has been that long since he was a kid, but he's a bit of an exhibitionist."

I snicker, biting my lip as we come into the kitchen. I make a cup of the tea sent by Tsunade and we head out to the garden. "Two days," I say carefully. If he asks what's in two days I think I'll throw him through a wall.

Thankfully he doesn't let me down. "Sakura Hatake," he says with a smile, turning me to face him. "I kind of like the sound of that."

"Me too," I agree, wrapping my arms around him, smiling. I lean up to kiss him. "I wish I could say what I feel," I say softly. "Who would've guessed the reclusive porn addict can say how he feels before me?"

He just smiles, that eye crease I've known so well for so long. "I told you, don't worry about it."

"I worry about it," I admit, biting my lip. "What if I can't say it because I'm not really-"

"You can't say it because you're scared," he says quickly. "You strive for the approval of others, you always have, and you know that being with me isn't something others would approve of, you'll be fine once Tsunade says she's ok with it." As if to prove this is true he places a kiss on the tip of my nose. "You love me, and I know it."

"How conceited are you?" I tease, rubbing my nose with a playful sneer.

"Oh please," he scoffs, "How could you not love me?"

I smile, snuggling into his arms. "Yeah, how could I not?" I agree, closing my eyes to feel his arms around me.

I pull away from him when a cough sounds out from the doorway. "I don't mean to interrupt…" I turn around, seeing Shikamaru standing there sheepishly. "Tsunade says she'll take care of it, she seems to think the information you've discovered at this point is sufficient and with the destruction of what seems to be their main head quarters here is enough. She wants Zen left alone, due to her connections with the leaf, and she… she wants you to come home as soon as possible." My heart falls to the floor, along with Kakashi's hand from my waist. "I'm sorry guys."

"Right," Kakashi says after a moment. "We'll start packing. Thank you for your help, Shikamaru." Shikamaru ducks inside, smiling wistfully at us. "You ok, Sakura?" Kakashi asks. I wish he would reach out and take me in his arms, tell me this doesn't change a thing, and we'll stay for two more days until after we're married. Of course he wouldn't do that though, because this changes everything. "Sakura?" He asks again, looking awkward.

"Fine," I say with the brightest smile I can muster. "Just surprised, that's all. I can't wait to get home!"

"We can't go home yet," he mutters, looking at the ground. I look up in surprise, but he just shakes his head. "Hinata and Naruto should get married her to avoid any complications at home."

"Oh," I whisper in half disappointment. "Right," I agree.

"I'll talk to Hiro, see if we can move up the date," he says, voice still soft.

"Ok," I say, speaking softly so my voice doesn't waver. "To tomorrow?"

"I was thinking tonight," he says just as softly as I. "Then we can leave in the morning."

"I'll go tell Hinata and Naruto," I say simply, turning to leave.

"Sakura," his voice stops me, using the tone he used when I was a kid, whenever I was doing something wrong. I don't dare turn to see him, but I do stop moving, waiting for him to speak. "Don't do this," he says; his voice softer. "Just… don't."

"The mission's over, Kakashi," I say weakly, keeping my back to him. "We both know what that means."

"It doesn't mean anything, Sakura," he says clearly. "I still love you."

I bite my lip, holding back tears. "I'll go tell Hinata and Naruto," I say again, ignoring him when he calls me back. I've blinked the tears from my eyes by the time I reach Naruto and Hinata's room so I don't hesitate to knock when I get there. Hinata calls me in a few seconds later. "Hey," I mutter, closing the door behind me. "Naruto here?"

"He's… um… taking a shower," she says, blushing.

"Oh," I say, biting my lip. "Um… Kakashi wants to move up the wedding. We've been called home."

"Your mission's over?" She asks, blushing.

"You knew?" I sigh, turning away.

"I heard Neji talking about it," she says, blushing. "I thought it would be better not to say anything." She smiles softly, shrugging. "You were very convincing though; I would've believed it if I didn't know it wasn't true."

"Thank you," I say with a nod. "I'll come by and let you know what's going on." I slip from the room quickly and sneak back into my room, packing all my things and then slipping back out again, hoping I won't have to run into Kakashi.

Unfortunately just as I'm leaving the door opens and Kakashi blocks me in, grabbing me as I try to slip past him. "Now hold on, Sakura," he growls, pushing me back into the room.

"Don't touch me!" I hiss, tears springing to my eyes.

"Kami!" He growls, hitting the wall. "What the hell do you want from me? What do you want me to do? Tell me, I'll do it. You want me to stay here with you forever, I'll do it. You want me to marry you and stay home with the kids while you work at the hospital, I'll do it, happily. I'll hypnotize Tsunade into letting us be together. I'll give up everything for you Sakura; just tell me what you want!"

"I want you to leave me alone so I can forget about this," I sob, not realizing I had been crying so hard.

"That, I cannot do," he says clearly, shaking his head. He takes a step closer to me, reaching out to touch my cheek, but I flinch away. "I love you Sakura, why don't you get it?" He says, with a sadness to his voice that makes the tears in my eyes fall twice as quickly.

"It doesn't matter, Kakashi," I practically whimper, turning my back to him.

"It does," he whispers back, reaching out to pull me into his arms, pulling me back forcefully when I try to pull away. "This is the only thing that's ever mattered to me Sakura, the only thing that ever will."

"Just forget it," I whisper, shaking my head.

"No," he mutters, brushing my hair of my face. "I can't. I won't." He tries to lean down and kiss me, but I turn my head away, making him stop and sigh. "I knew you'd break my heart by the end of this," he sighs, shaking his head as he pulls away. "I'll see you tonight, we get married at sundown." I don't say a word as he leaves, and once he's gone I simply sink down against the wall, my sobs shaking my body.

My hand is shaking as I sign the papers set before me. Kakashi doesn't even look at me, and Hinata and Naruto are too caught up in their happiness to notice the tension between Kakashi and I. Hiro, however seems to notice. He catches my eye for a moment, and gives a soft scowl, but I cast my eyes down quickly. "Congratulations," he says to the four of us as the papers are all signed. "I wish you all luck."

"Thank you," Kakashi says, reaching out to shake his hand.

"Congratulations, Sakura," he says, holding out his arms to hug me. I smile softly, and hug him back. "You'll never know how much you've done for me," He says, kissing the top of my head and releasing me. Naruto and Hinata leave ahead of us, holding hands, and as we leave Kakashi takes mine in his. I resist the urge to pull my hand out of his, but judging by his grip I wouldn't have been able to anyways.

I stop at the door to look at Shinji, sitting next to Shikamaru. "Congratulations, Sakura," Shinji says, smiling weakly.

"Thank you Shinji," I sigh. "Now you need to get back to bed. You shouldn't have left in the first place."

"I said I'd be at your wedding, so here I am," he says softly. "You're leaving in the morning?"

"First thing," Kakashi confirms.

"Come say goodbye to me when you leave?" Shinji asks softly.

I nod, but Kakashi give a little tug on my hand. With a sigh I wave goodbye and ask Shikamaru to get Shinji back to his room before leaving with Kakashi. "Well Mrs. Hatake," he says, his voice rough. "How does it-"

"Shut up," I growl, yanking my hand from his. "When we get back to Konoha I'll be requesting our divorce papers, I suggest you sign them without confrontation."

Kakashi looks down, turning his head away. "If that's what you want."

I bite my lip, turning away. "Thank you." He doesn't respond; jut slinks off down the hall. I bite my lip, heaving a deep sigh. "You think he'll forgive me?"

"For breaking his heart? Not a chance." Shikamaru says from behind me. "But he'll never stop chasing after you."

I sigh, shaking my head. "You were right; I shouldn't have gotten carried away."

Shikamaru is silent for a long time, before he responds. "I don't get it, Sakura, why are you turning back now?" He shrugs slightly. "You're already past the worst part. I mean… people at home are accepting you two. You're both happy this way. Why rock the boat? If people want to believe you got together months ago and left the country to get married… let them. You're in love, that's all that counts."

"Men," I scoff, shaking my head. I want to explain that's not all that counts, but an ear-splitting scream cuts me off. With one glance at Shikamaru we take off down the hall. A maid is stumbling from the room, tears in her eyes, and once we get into the room Shikamaru captures Zen and Saito Hitoshi in his shadow, allowing me to check the rest of the room. My eyes widen in shock at the sight of Hironori in the corner, grasping his chest where a knife is buried. "Hiro!" I gasp, rushing forward.

"He surprised me," he laughs, coughing as I inspect the wound. "I thought he was dead… let- let Zen go, you stupid boy."

Shikamaru releases Zen with a glance towards me. "Let him go!" She growls. "Let him go so I can chop his head off."

"Calm down, Zen," I say, threading my chakra into Hiro's chest.

"It's po-poisoned," Hiro says with a weak laugh. "He got me, the son of a bitch."

"You'll be fine," I say with false certainty. "I thought he was dead. How did he escape the flood?"

"I had him bring you there," Zen growls. "He knew you were supposed to destroy the place. The little bitch."

"Zen we have bigger problems," I spit. "I think you should go get Shinji."

"No," Hiro says, shaking his head. "If I'm going to die, I don't want him to be here. Chances are I'll screw things up. Tell him I said something nice about him. Something insightful and brotherly."

"Well I'm not going to need to, because you're not going to die," I say, shaking my head.

"Not too good though, or he'll know its bull shit." He laughs slightly, wincing. "Just… let him know I love him."

I nod carefully, feeling his pulse weaken. "Zen," I whisper, "come here."

She is at his side in a moment, holding the man in her arms. "You stupid man," she whispers.

Hiro laughs softly. "I just never learned to duck."

Zen smiles, leaning down to kiss him sweetly. "I'll take care of your brother for you, and your father's country. I swear it."

"Keep your hands off of my father's country," he half jokes, touching her cheek. "Sakura, would you pull it out?"

"No," I say, shaking my head, "It'll kill you."

"That's the point," he says, still smiling. When I don't move he looks to Zen.

"No," I gasp, grabbing her hand. "Zen, you can't."

"He'll die anyways," she says easily. I can't claim it to be false. "Why not let him chose the way to go?" I sniffle slightly, and then nod.

"Thank you, Hiro," I say, kissing his forehead, before taking his hand in mine. "I'm sorry I couldn't help."

"Thank you, Sakura," He touches my cheek, smiling. "You made my cousin happy, you saved my brother's life, and you probably prevent war between Konoha and Suna. You did everything I couldn't." I can't speak anymore, my voice is lost, so instead I just nod, tears in my eyes.

"See you around, kid," Zen says with a smile, kissing him as her hand tightens around the knife, giving one quick tug.

We stay for three more days. Hironori was cremated and Shinji and Kakashi threw his ashes over the waterfall at the lake. Hinata and I worked on getting the remaining liquid out of Shinji's lungs, while Shikamaru and Zen continued fishing out all the remnants of Zen's underground trade rink. By the time we left Shinji was completely healthy and all members of the trade rink were dead or sent home.

Now, only a few hours away from Konoha, Kakashi and I still haven't spoken more than two words to each other. Shikamaru has been leading the way, while Naruto keeps nearby him, speaking in hushed voices. I stay with Hinata, under the pretense of making sure she doesn't tire herself out. Kakashi stays behind us, reading Icha Icha. I only realize I still have the one about us when I see he's reading an older one. I think about giving him back our Icha Icha, but I don't want to speak with him. I don't want to have that conversation. So instead I ask Hinata how she's going to tell her father that she's married and keep going.

When we reach Konoha Tsunade had sent Anbu to pick us up. Kakashi, of course, evades, leaving us before anyone can say anything. So Shikamaru, Hinata, Naruto, and I head to the Hokage tower. Tsunade shoots me a dirty look when I come in, but I ignore it and instead go to stand by the window. I smile when she shouts at Naruto and Hinata, Naruto yelling back, Hinata nearly fainting. She eventually just laughs and shakes her head, telling them to go home. She then calls Shikamaru and I forward. I take a long moment to take a few deep breaths before I turn around to go stand beside Shikamaru at her desk.

"Where's Hatake?" She asks, lacing her fingers.

"Kakashi-sensei's cousin was killed over the course of the mission," Shikamaru says when I don't respond. "I'm sure he's probably mourning the loss."

"Yeah, he's big on the mourning isn't he?" She shakes her head, looking at me. "So, Sakura, what do you want to do?"

"I wanted to request divorce papers," I say clearly, trying not to let any emotion into my voice.

"You're sure?" She asks, raising an eyebrow.

"Yes, since the marriage was consummated I assume you can't annul it?" I say carefully, hoping she won't try to kill someone.

She sighs, shaking her head. "Sakura," she says slowly. "You'll have to get Kakashi to sign them. We both know he's not here because of you, not because of the death of a cousin he spent a few weeks with fifteen years ago."

"He'll sign them," I say without pause. "He said he would."

"Shikamaru, you can go," Tsunade says, still, staring me down.

"With all due respect, Lady Hokage," Shikamaru says with a sneer. "I tried to talk her out of it too."

"Go, Nara," she says, scowling. He leaves without another word. "Sakura, you don't have to get a divorce if you don't want to. Half of our ninja stay married after missions like these. If you two are really-"

"I want a divorce," I say clearly. "Give me the papers, I'll sign them, Kakashi will sign them. This whole thing will be done with."

Tsunade watches me for what seems like hours before she sighs, shaking her head, and pushing a file of papers across her desk. "I already took the liberty of writing them up for you." I take a step forward and reach out to grab the paper, but her hand doesn't move, holding it to her desk. "It doesn't make me happy, Sakura, for you to be with Kakashi. I find the whole idea very upsetting. But the idea of you being unhappy because you aren't together is even worse. As much as I hate to say this… don't do what I want you to do; do what will make you happy."

"This is what I want," I say, tightening my grip on the papers.

"Is it what makes you happy?" She presses.

I don't respond, but just take the papers, from under her hand. "May I leave?" I ask through clenched teeth. She sighs and waves her hand dismissively through the air. I leave in a second. I read over the papers as I walk, signing each of them without much thought. By the time I reach Kakashi's apartment my hands are shaking as I hold onto the papers carefully. All this for nothing. I bite my lip, reminding myself it's just a stupid mission and all of this was just pretend, and then raise my hand to knock on the door.

Yeah, sorry. I swear though, you're going to love this story line, it's all very cliché and you could probably figure out what's going to happen next, but I'm having fun with the idea of finishing a story the way I planned to. Anyhow, I'm working on my next chapter as we (I) speak (to you), it's a little awkward because I'm typing it in the hotel lobby… but yeah.

Review pwease!

PS- Sorry i didn't write that lemon, but like i said, hotel lobby.