Author's Note: This chapter is shorter than the usual length, but I didn't want to drag it out. Is this it? The moment we've all been waiting for? Does Sasuke confess? Enjoy!

Sasuke helped Sakura off of the ink bird.

It was the last day that they were given to reach the location where everyone would meet up. Sasuke had kept his word in saying that he hadn't upset Sakura since his previous episode. Honestly, he had set his mind on making sure not to frighten his friend even before Ino had said anything. It destroyed him inside whenever Sakura was not happy or at least in a decent mood, especially if it was his fault.

Now, the Uchiha's biggest struggle was the other thing that the Yamanaka had mentioned. Did he really have those kind of feelings for Sakura? All the signs pointed to yes, but it was still nearly impossible to believe. That was because romantic love was a completely unknown emotion for Sasuke.

"How close do you think we are to the meeting place?" Sakura asked the others.

"Not too far," Sai responded, taking out a map.

"We should be there in another hour or so," Ino added. "That is, if we only take a short break here."

Setting their things down, everyone ate lunch and chatted. Everyone except for Sasuke, who was sitting a good distance away from the other three. He had already finished his meal and he was momentarily enjoying the cool breeze passing through. The Uchiha's thoughts were constantly invaded by his feelings for Sakura. "I guess that I do feel some sort of attraction towards Sakura. If everyone else thinks that I feel that way, then I must be..." Sasuke sighed and glanced back at his comrades. "I know that I don't deserve her, but Ino was right. Sakura's always going to love me, no matter what I say or do. And, if I actually do feel the same way, then wouldn't that make both of us happy?" Daisuke's words made their way to the front of his mind. "He told me not to wait until it's too late. I don't have a clue what the literal thing feels like." He barely held back a growl of frustration. "What am I supposed to do?!"

He continued to argue with himself even when they had arrived at their destination, concluding the search. Now, they just had to wait for the others. They were the first ones to arrive. The shinobi had split into two groups to search the perimeter, checking it see if any of the others were close. Sai and Sasuke had taken one side, Ino and Sakura the other.

"Do you think that there is a possibility that everyone fought Kenshi?" Sai asked.

"Hn, I've been wondering the same thing myself," Sasuke answered.

They had been patrolling for about an hour now; no sign of their companions. It was strange that no one else had made an appearance yet. Both men thought the exact same thing.

"Maybe it was because we traveled by air?" Sai suggested.

"Perhaps."

Another silence followed. The only sounds were their rhythmic breathing, not even a rustle or twig snapping was heard.

They walked for a few more minutes before Sasuke thought of something that he wanted to ask the former ANBU. He hesitated, thinking that it would destroy his pride. "If I really want to know how I feel, then I have to ask."

Sighing heavily, Sasuke twisted his head towards the other male. "Can I ask you something?"

Sai had a curious look on his face. "You want to ask me something?"

"Yes."

"Well... Then I guess you should, as a normal person would say, ask away."

Taking a deep breath and swallowing, the Uchiha said what was on his mind. "Do you feel, different, when you're around your girlfriend, uh, Ino?"

Sai was clearly shocked by the question. "Do you mean like in a romantic sort of way?"

A nod.

The male being questioned took out a small notebook. He flipped through many pages, scanning each one.

Sasuke was beginning to regret his actions. However, he was glad that Sai wasn't jeering at him for the question.

Finally, the pale ninja stopped at a page that was covered in notes. Sai cleared his throat as he studied the page. "Yes, I do feel different. According to my notes, it is the emotion love."

"Hn..."

Sai put his notebook away and they walked in silence for the next few minutes. When they had passed a small river, the former ANBU put an end to the soundless moments. "By the way, are you asking because you need help expressing your love for Sakura? If so, I could be of assistance."

Sasuke immediately became flustered, turning a dark shade of red. The Uchiha glanced around in all directions, making sure that the girls were no where in sight or earshot. He calmed himself down while crossing his arms, sighing. "You, too?"

He looked to be slightly taken aback. "What do you mean?"

"Why are all of you so concerned about me and Sakura?!" he angrily whispered.

The pale shinobi scratched his head. "Well, I thought it was quite obvious that you have some sort of attraction towards her. Everyone else seems to have noticed as well."

"No kidding..." Sasuke muttered under his breath. "I don't need your help with it."

"So does that mean you were already planning on confessing your feelings?"

Growling, the Uchiha quickly retaliated. "I don't have any feelings to confess!"

Sai had returned his expression to normal, appearing to be unfazed by his comrade's outburst. "I read somewhere that people who hide or have trouble expressing emotions will often lie to themselves when they feel a strong emotion, saying that it is impossible for them to feel that way about it."

Sasuke did not have anything else to spit back. Instead, he considered the male's words greatly. Even Sai of all people was saying that he thought Sasuke and Sakura both had feelings for each other.

"Just stay out of it. I can handle things on my own."

"I would've thought that at least one other group would be here by now," Ino stated.

"Same here," Sakura agreed.

By now, it was late in the afternoon and both groups had searched for hours. Their initial thought had been that the others were just running late, but there hadn't been a single sign of them all day.

"Do you think we should head out and search for them?"

Sakura shrugged. "I don't know. Maybe we should give them some more time."

"Yeah, I guess so. Wanna head back to the main area? We've been looking all day."

She nodded.

Ino smiled suspiciously as they turned around. "You know, I can tell."

The Haruno frowned and raised an eyebrow. "Hm?"

"I can tell that Sasuke feels the same way about you."

Sakura huffed. "Would you stop going on about that?"

"I'm only doing it because I'm positive that he loves you, too. Yesterday, I asked him a bunch of stuff about it."

"You did what?! Why?!"

"Would you just shut up for a minute Forehead! Ugh, as I was saying, Sasuke loves you."

Sakura turned her head so that she was facing away from her friend. "Did he say that directly?"

"No, but-"

"See! He doesn't so just leave him alone about it! While you're at it, don't say anything about it to me either!"

"SHUT IT BILLBOARD BROW!"

Nearby birds flew away from the loud outburst. Sakura stared at Ino in surprise, too.

The Yamanaka took a deep breath. "Sorry about that. Will you just hear me out?"

Slowly, Sakura nodded and they continued to make their way back to the main meeting area.

"I asked him a lot of things that tell if you're in love or not. He said yes to all of them."

Sakura gazed at her friend from the corner of her eye. "Sasuke asked me what it felt like to be in love a while back."

Ino raised her eyebrows in shock. "He did?!"

"Yeah, he said he was just curious though."

"Just curious? Ugh... Anyway, there was one question I asked that I really wanted to tell you about." Ino excitedly ran in front of her best friend, making her stop walking. "He said yes when I asked him if he'd ever wanted to kiss you besides the arena."

Sakura gasped and immediately turned a dark shade of red. She replied shakily, "I think we've almost kissed for real a few times."

"Then what else do you need to be convinced that he's in love with you?!"

Sakura shoved Ino aside and walked at a fast pace. "It's just... I don't know. I guess because it's not Sasuke."

She ran to keep up with her friend. "Even people like him have to show emotions sometimes."

"Can we stop talking about this right now?"

"Why?! You should be happy and excited about this!"

"Shut up!"

They both froze, the whole world seeming to have stopped as well.

"Sakura?"

"Why? Why are all of you so concerned about us?"

Ino was still confused as to why her friend was currently being so defiant with this topic. Over time, Sakura had become an incredible kunoichi. In fact, she had become more daring and bold. Everyone loved to be around her if she wasn't in a bad mood. However, whenever Sasuke Uchiha was involved in a conversation or she heard a small mention of the man, it was like she became someone completely different. Sometimes it was even more cheerful than usual, sometimes miserable. Sakura was always serious when it came to Sasuke though. But, why wouldn't she be happy that he might finally admit that he loves her? Ino smiled sadly. "Because it seems like you're the only one that never gets a happy ending..."

Sakura's voice was hardly a whisper and Ino had to strain her ears to hear what her friend was saying. "I don't think that a true happy ending is possible in this world. It's never perfect."

Ino struggled to find the right words. "Well, maybe nothing is ever perfect... But, if anyone deserves to be happy, it's definitely you. You've had to put up with so much crap. And, after all you've been through..."

"I want to focus on the mission right now. At the moment, we should continue to wait for the others. We'll have to do something if they don't come." After this, Sakura left Ino standing where she was, utterly baffled and shocked.

"Sakura, what happened? How come you're acting like this?" Ino sadly thought to herself.

The four shinobi looked at the setting sun. In a few minutes, it would be gone and the moon would rise. Ino, Sai, Sasuke, and Sakura shared the exact same thoughts. What the heck had happened to their comrades?!

"Should we search for them now?" Sai suggested.

The others shared a long glance. Sasuke was the one who answered. "Not yet."

"Yeah, maybe we should give them a little more time," Sakura added.

And so, they waited longer. As the moon rose, they casually chatted.

Sasuke was wondering what he should do about his confusing feelings towards Sakura. He had been thinking about it all day, contemplating whether or not he should discard the emotion or embrace it. "I know that I don't deserve her, but what's the point if we both feel the same? I mean, I would hurt her more by keeping this a secret. If I really do feel like that... What do I tell her?! Just come right out and say I love you?! No, that sounds way too desperate. Hm..."

"I'm getting worried," Ino said. The others nodded in agreement, all except for Sasuke, who looked to be deep in thought. "Bet he's thinking about Sakura," Ino said to herself, smirking. She peeked at her best friend and noticed that she still looked slightly depressed from their conversation earlier on in the day. "I guess I went a little overboard with everything. Sorry Sakura."

By now, the moon had fully risen. They had decided not to make a fire in case any enemies were close by.

Sasuke twisted and twirled his fingers around unconsciously. He had been considering the outcomes of each conclusion nonstop. He was barely aware of the others sitting and talking around him as he thought. Finally, he looked up and turned to face Sakura. She was sitting a few feet away, discussing something with Ino and Sai. "Should I tell her now? Heck, should I tell her at all?" His heartbeat was rapidly accelerating. "Yes, I-I think that I really do feel that way. I can't do this with them around though." Sasuke swallowed.

Sakura sighed and looked in all directions for the millionth time. There was still no sign of even one of their friends.

"S-Sakura?"

Her head tilted towards Sasuke. "Hm?"

He scratched his head. "Will you go on a walk with me?"

Turning red, she hesitated to reply.

Ino and Sai had stopped talking, watching the scene unfold in front of them.

"Oh, um, sure."

They stood and began to set out. Sai turned to Ino with a questioning look. "What do you think that was about?"

Ino shrugged and smiled. "Not sure, but I have a couple of ideas."

"So, what's on your mind?" Sakura asked.

"Hm?"

"When you asked me to go with you, it sounded like something was bothering you."

He scratched his head quickly. They had been walking in silence for about a minute, long enough to distance themselves some from Ino and Sai. "I actually do have something that I want to tell you."

"What is it?"

The Uchiha stopped walking. "I can't say that right off. It would sound weird. What do I say then?!" He scratched his head again, hand shaking.

Sakura also stopped walking, giving him a concerned look. "Sasuke, are you okay?"

He nodded quickly. "Hn, I'm fine. Listen. I-uh. You and-" He paused, trying to gather his calmness. He couldn't stop himself from grabbing clumps of his shirt out of nervousness and frustration.

"Hey, you should sit down."

"No! I-" Breathing deeply, Sasuke put his shaking hand by his side and pieced his thoughts together. "You and I, we've known each other for a long time."

Sakura hesitantly nodded, an eyebrow raised. "Yeah?"

Sasuke fumbled with his shirt once more, turning his gaze to the ground. "And, um, we're close friends. Uh, good friends."

Sakura was beginning to turn red again. "Is he-?"

"Just tell her already! Spit it out!" He could hear his own heart pounding in his ears. "W-What I'm t-trying to say is..."

"Are you sure you're fine?" Sakura asked worriedly, advancing towards him.

He nodded and moved out of her reach. "I'm making a complete fool of myself! Just say it already!" Gulping, he closed his eyes and tried again. "I..." Sasuke thought that he was going to pass out on the spot. He'd never felt this horrible when talking to someone. This time though, it was so different from a normal conversation. The Uchiha never imagined that saying this would be so hard and complicated. "All you have to do is say I have feelings for you. That's it! Now get it over with!"

"Sasuke?"

He was snapped out of his inner thoughts. This was it. Right here, right now, he was going to tell her how he truly felt. "Sakura, I have feeli-"

"Help!" came a weak cry from somewhere beside the pair. They revolved around, looking to see where it had come from.

"There!" Sakura said, pointing to a bush that was moving around. "Who's there?"

Sasuke activated his Sharingan and gasped when he saw who it was. Lee and Tenten crawled their way out of the cover of the bushes, basically dragging each other along. Both appeared to be in as bad a condition as Ino and Sai had been when they had first met up, possibly even worse. Sasuke and Sakura were frozen solid at the sight of their comrades. The two members of Team Gai collapsed, pulling the others out of their shock.

Author's Note: Lee and Tenten, I know you're like REALLY injured and all, but couldn't you have waited just a second longer?!

OTHER UPDATES

The second chapter of Family Struggles should be out by now.