Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto.

Recap:

Sakura's eyes widened as she stopped running, trying her best to hide in the dense foliage.

"Yeah. The chakra feels so... familiar," said Naruto, his eyes squinted together in concentration, trying to figure out who it was.

"Sasuke," the two ninja whispered simultaneously.

They looked down from the branch that they were on to find their former teammate walking out of his hideout, hidden in the leaves of a bush.

End Recap.

Sakura and Naruto stayed frozen in the thick canopy, hoping the spring leaves would be dense enough to hide them. They tried to conceal their chakra as best as they could, but they're eyes never left the young Uchiha.

'Holy shit, we found Sasuke! Dammit, he looks a lot stronger... and taller.' Naruto let out a silent sigh, 'I finally thought I was the tallest now and he has to go and ruin it...'

'What the hell, we found him that easily? I thought that he turned into this psycho-killer-ninja guy. I thought he would have sensed us earlier... or maybe he wanted to see us...?' Sakura thought.

'Well, I don't know which one it is but who cares? Do you see him? He's smoking hot and muscular and OMG his eyes! How can you be thinking about the mission when THE Sasuke Uchiha is standing in front of you? You and Naruto are probably the first people to see him in five years. OMG, I can see his muscles through that thin, black shirt... ooh, it looks like he got a little bit tanner over the years too... yummy,' Inner Sakura rambled with a twinkle in her eyes.

'Would you just shut up already? Your giving me a head ache. But... he is kinda... hot... Ah, look what you did to me! Shut up!'

Naruto and Sakura were so deep in thought and surprise that they barely avoided the kunai's that was being thrown at them, aimed perfectly at their hearts. They barely avoided the attack, pulling out their weapons just in time. A sharp, metal-to-metal clank was heard before two kunai's fell to the ground. In the distance, birds were flying away, some chirping frantically.

"I know you're there, so come down," said the stoic Uchiha.

'This chakra... it's so familiar...,' thought Sasuke, 'But it can't be them. They're probably still as weak as they were before I left. Hn,' he said, mentally smirking to himself.

Naruto and Sakura both landed on the ground softly. The old team seven- minus Kakashi- was just staring at each other, the occasional morning breeze breaking the tension. The wind blew Sakura's hair away from her face. Bright pink petals were blown off of a nearby tree, swirling in the wind and landing gently on the wet, morning grass. The sun was just coming up, making a speck of bright, orange light run between the leaves of the trees. A big gust of wind caused Sakura to shiver, although Sasuke took it another way.

"Hn, still scared and weak, huh Sakura?" Said Sasuke with his legendary smirk.

Five years ago, that smirk would have melted her heart, but Sakura has changed.

'Come on girl! Show him what you got!' Cheered Inner Sakura.

Sakura glared dagger at him while rolling her hands into fists, getting ready for a fight. The breeze was now getting stronger, the leaves were swaying above them. The morning sun made the shadows of the leaves dance around them.

"Sasuke, we're here to bring you back," Naruto said impatiently.

"Why? Does Sakura miss me that much?" Sasuke said, his smirk growing larger.

"Not in a million years, asshole," Sakura said, anger flashing in her eyes. She started clenching and unclenching her fists. She still couldn't forgive him for leaving.

That definitely caught Sasuke off guard.

'Did Sakura really change that much? Did she change so much as to have no interest in me anymore? Damn, when did she get this hot?' Sasuke looked away for a second, trying to dismiss his last thought.

'Sakura, you know you still love him... and it's pretty obvious too,' Inner Sakura said.

'For the thousandth time, no I do not. Now, just let me do the talking,' Sakura thought.

'You already do do the talking... haha do do...,' chuckled Inner Sakura.

Sakura let out a sigh.

"Sasuke, come back to the village before we force you to," Sakura said forcefully.

"And why should I?" Sasuke questioned.

'Honestly, I have no idea...,' Sakura thought.

'Oh come on! You do know why!' Inner Sakura said.

Sakura mentally arched an eyebrow.

Her inner let out a frustrated sigh and said, 'Because you love him! That's why. Think about it, Sak.'

And Sakura did think about it. She thought about how they were best friends as kids, almost inseparable. She would always go over to his house; his parents were always welcoming and kind. Itachi was like the older brother that she never had. Sakura remembered, every weekend, Sasuke's mother would always make cookies, making the house smell deliciously like chocolate. She knew that Sasuke didn't like sweets, which make her curious enough to ask. His answer was simply, "Because my mom made them". She remembered promising him that, one day, she would give him a sweet that he would love too.

She also thought about how they used to pretend that they were the strongest ninja in the whole land. His mother would always get mad when they used the chopsticks as senbon. She thought about all of the times where Sasuke would get jealous of Itachi and ask her to train with him. Her heart always fluttered, and her stomach always did back flips whenever that happened. Sakura thought about how, even though they grew apart as they got older, she had fallen deeper in love with him.

Sakura thought about the night he left. She thought about how her pain-filled heart constricted with every breath she took. She thought about all of the hot, hatred-fill tears that slipped from her glassy eyes, while looking into his onyx ones...; his beautiful, mysterious onyx eyes. On that night, she also remembered the pain and sadness that filled his eyes. She remembered the sincere 'thank you' he gave her. Sakura remembered the faint 'I'm sorry' and 'I love you' that she heard before she lost consciousness. She remembered crying for him every night, wishing that he hadn't left. Maybe Inner Sakura was right. She was in love with Sasuke Uchiha.

"Well?" Asked Sasuke, waiting for an answer.

Sakura stepped closer, and was now about two feet from him. She could feel Naruto go into protective mode behind her, getting the kunai in his hand ready.

"You should come back because...," started Sakura, she let out a deep breath and then looked directly into his once-alive, but now curious and dark, eyes, "... because I love you."

Thanks for reading Chapter 3.

E person :)

4-5-11

edited on 6-18-11