Note: OK, so here's the chapter where I branch off from the current manga story-line, so don't freak out. Also some things I have to change for the sake of the plot (like Kakashi knowing more than I think he actually does in "Naruto" reality). Oh, and I've only gone over this once checking for mistakes so there probably will be some, just so you know _

Disclaimer: The only thing I own is the rites to my own imagination.

Chapter 2: Deception

It felt like only a couple hours after Tsunade-sama had woken up that she was on her feet and heading off to meet with the other kages. In reality it was 3 days.

During that time I barely saw my friends. Occasionally when I did pass one of them on the street we would nod to each other or say a brief "hello," but that was it. Once Ino came and walked with me for a while. Neither of us said a word as we made our way through the part of town that was still in ruins from Pain's attack.

Everyone knew we could go to war any day now, and that was scary. Terrifying, actually, because none of us had any idea what to expect. Sure, we'd all passed the exams; we'd proven ourselves on our missions, but this was totally different. This was on a level that we weren't ready to face yet.

Honestly, I didn't want to think about it, so I tried to keep as busy as I could. I helped my parents around the house – weeding the garden, cleaning, learning to cook some simple dishes. I cleaned my room then decided to rearrange the furniture because I was done to quickly and I needed the distraction. When I went out I looked for all manner of small jobs or errands I could do. A lot of the time I went to help with the reconstruction that was always going on. That was where I ran into most of my friends.

Not once, though, in those three days did I see Naruto.

Last I saw him was when he was at Ichiraku Ramen, when I told him about Tsunade-sama's recovery. After that, it was like he vanished. I walked by his house several times but it was always dark.

Considering who he was, I had expected Naruto to be in the middle of everything, rebuilding, helping the villagers, arguing with Tsunade-sama, or at least on the training grounds preparing for his fight with Sasuke.

In a way I was glad I hadn't been seeing him because it was saving me the trouble of intentionally avoiding him. He probably thought horribly of me for saying and doing what I did. I felt horribly about it, because I hadn't meant to hurt him at all. I just couldn't – I couldn't feel guilty about that stupid promise anymore!

We weren't kids. It wasn't the same as it was back when Sasuke first left. This was serious. Sasuke was dangerous. It wouldn't be easy – in fact, I think at this point it might be impossible – to bring him back. If something bad happened to Naruto while they were fighting…if something truly terrible happened I would feel as if it was all my fault.

I could not live with myself with the feeling that I had caused Naruto, the hero of the village, to be –

I know it must have sounded cruel – and I was still being selfish – but that's not how I meant it to be. I had always known that Naruto had a crush on me, but I guess I never really knew how strong his feelings were until Sai told me.

Sai had only been around us for a couple months and he was still learning about emotions, but still he saw more than I ever really did. He just wouldn't stop talking – going on about how much Naruto cared for me, and how much he cared for Sasuke, how he was in pain and how we were all relying on him far too much, and it was true. It was all true!

For what felt like the millionth time, my heart broke to think of all he had done for us. He had given this village everything and what had we ever done for him in return? What had I ever done? I had never meant to hurt him and yet I had. I had been hurting him for years.

I was just trying to put a stop to it by telling him my – my feelings.

By this time my feet had carried me to the training ground where Team 7 had our first lesson from Kakashi-sensei.

I stared at the three wooden pillars where we'd had lunch that day. Closing my eyes I tried to picture how it had been: Sasuke on the left, Naruto in the middle and me on the right, from where I was standing. Naruto had been tied to the pillar, and we had passed by offering him food. We had passed because we had acted like a team for the first time.

It was a joke, now. Team 7.

No matter how much I wished, we would never be Team 7 again. Even if Sasuke came back; even if we were together again, going out on missions, it would never be the same.

I could feel my eyes sting as I tried to hold in my tears. I cried much too easily, and if I was going to be of any use to anyone, that had to stop.

"Sakura."

I started in surprise and turned around to see Kakashi-sensei standing a couple feet behind me, his hands in his pockets. Once he had my attention, he sidled over to stand next to me.

"Well, this brings back some memories," he remarked casually, glancing out over the training field.

"Yes."

He tilted his head to give me a sidelong glance. When I didn't say anything else, he sighed. "I actually came here to tell you something, Sakura."

Tell me this is all a bad dream. How about that, Sensei?

"It's about Naruto."

That got my attention. "What about him? I haven't – have you seen him? I haven't seen him in three days."

"He's around." One of his hands came out of his pocket to scratch behind one ear. "Sakura, you know there are only two jinchuuriki left – Killer Bee, the eight-tails, and Naruto, the nine-tails."

I nodded.

"And you know that the Akatsuki member who wears the mask is really Madara Uchiha."

Again, I nodded.

"Madara is trying to gather all the bijuu because together they form an entity powerful enough to rule the entire world."

"I know, Kakashi-sensei. That is what we are fighting to prevent."

"Yes, we are not going to allow this to happen." He turned fully towards me, then, and fixed his one visible eye on mine with such intent that I knew what he was about to say was serious and important. "This will be a difficult time for Naruto, in particular."

"But…why? Because of Sasuke?"

He shook his head. "As we speak, the five kages are holding a meeting to decide the fate of these last jinchuuriki. I am fairly certain they will vote to hide them somewhere safe and completely isolated, so there is no possible chance of their involvement in the fighting."

What? Hide our two most powerful allies? "Wait a minute! Naruto won't just –"

"Exactly," he interrupted me. "Naruto will expect to be at the center of everything, but this is one battle he cannot take part in. Not just for his own safety – although that is a great concern – but for the safety of us all." He looked back towards the village. "He has an innate will to protect those precious to him, and when he sees someone in danger he loses all sense of himself and his own safety. It is a noble trait to possess, but this time we somehow have to make him see that he is the one who must be protected."

"But, Sensei, he'll never see that." I tried to imagine Naruto sitting off in some secluded mountain cabin while a battle raged below. That would never happen. "Naruto is always the first to fight – the first person to act. He'll never allow us to fight without him." And what about Sasuke? I silently added. Who will fight Sasuke if Naruto is gone?

"This is why I have come to you." Kakashi-sensei ran a hand over the back of his neck. "Myself, Yamato, and Sai are meeting him at his house tonight to discuss this with him. Since you are a part of our team, you should be there as well."

"O-oh, all right," I said, somewhat surprised. "When are we meeting him?"

"As soon as we finish our conversation." His one eye crinkled in a smile that was hidden behind his mask. "Shall we go?"

*

Naruto answered the door in a worn-out t-shirt, an instant ramen cup in one hand. He looked surprised to see us, but he let us in without a question. I had been in his house before but it had looked more lived-in then. There had been clothes and empty ramen cups scattered all over the place and now it was spotless. The only sign that he had ever been here at all was when I caught a glimpse of his un-made bed in the other room.

"So why are you all here?" Naruto swept us all with a confused glance, his eyes falling on me last.

I quickly looked away but I could feel his eyes on me for what felt like an eternity afterwards.

"There is something we want to discuss with you, Naruto." Kakashi-sensei came to my rescue.

"Huh?" Naruto tilted his head, squinting up at our teacher in confusion.

"The reason the Akastuki was after you – after Gaara – was because Madara is trying to gather all the bijuu –"

"Heh! I know that, Sensei," Naruto grinned. He seemed back to normal for the moment, although I was starting to wonder how much of it was actually real.

"You, and the eight-tails are the only two jinchuuriki left –"

"And we have to stop Madara before he get us," Naruto interrupted. "Yeah, I know. It's no problem."

"It is a problem, baka!" I stepped forward and bonked him on the head with my fist. Since he was acting like the old Naruto, I almost forgot how serious and foreboding he had been just 3 days ago. "Shut up and listen to Kakashi-sensei."

He rubbed his head. "Ow, Sakura-chan, why did you do that?"

He was whining, so I ignored him.

"Naruto," Yamato-taichou tried. "What we have to say to you is important."

"Naruto, you can't fight Sasuke."

We all looked at Kakashi-sensei. That was being a little blunt. I looked worriedly back to Naruto, preparing myself for the violent protests I anticipated would soon follow.

"This time you cannot put yourself in danger by fighting," Kakashi continued. "I have faith in your ability, Naruto, but Madara is on a level that you have never dealt with before and we can't risk the chance of him defeating you and gaining the Kyuubi's power."

"I understand."

My mouth fell open and I gaped at Naruto in shock. What had he just said?

"You do?" Yamato-taichou seemed just as surprised as me. I'm sure Sai was surprised, too, but he still didn't show emotions very well.

Naruto shrugged, like it was the simplest thing in the world. "I know I can't take out Madara right now, and I know it would be stupid of me to try."

I have to admit I was impressed. He really had matured right before my eyes. I grinned in relief. Although, when I looked around I seemed to be the only one celebrating. Sai's face was blank, Yamato-taichou still looked confused, and Kakashi-sensei was watching Naruto warily.

"You…" Kakashi began slowly, as if what he was about to say was a test. "You understand that by fighting you would be endangering not only yourself but the entire village – the entire country. Is that what you understand, Naruto?"

"Mm hm."

I didn't see what the problem was. Naruto was not exhibiting any of the signs that would inform us he was lying. He had looked Kakashi-sensei straight in the eye, his face solemn. It convinced me.

After a second, Kakashi-sensei nodded. "All right, then. If you understand then we have nothing further to discuss." He turned and headed towards the door, the others following him.

For a moment I considered hanging back to talk with Naruto, but then I chickened out, almost tripping over my feet as I hurried to follow them.

"Good-bye, Sakura-chan," I heard Naruto say but I was already out the door.

Back on the street Yamato-taichou and I said good-bye, and I turned to head home. It was getting late. As I rounded the corner, I caught a glimpse of Kakashi and Sai speaking with their heads close together as if they were conspiring.

I helped my mother with the cooking and then headed up to my room when the meal was finished. Not really knowing what to do I scanned my shelves, looking at all the books left there from my childhood. With my finger I traced a line through the film of dust that had gathered on the shelf. When I had started the Academy, I had had so little time that all these stories had been neglected.

I picked one out, now, and went over to my bed. I laid on my stomach with my feet raised and my arms hanging over the side, the book on the floor. It was just a picture book about a fox and a bear.

I went through a couple of my old books before my mind began to wander. No matter how distracted I became, when my mind wandered, it always went back to the upcoming war and that made me restless.

Looking at my clock I groaned when I saw it was only a quarter to nine. I could never fall asleep this early – not unless I wanted to wake up at 3 am.

Sighing with irritation I rolled out of bed and made my way downstairs. My parents were talking softly in the other room. I didn't want to disturb them, so I stepped quietly out the door. It wasn't every day that I had to put my ninja skills to use in my own house!

It was a little chilly as I wandered through the village, and I wished I had brought my cloak. Rather than going back to get it, though, I decided to jog. Picking up my pace, my feet carried me past shops getting ready to close for the night, and people still milling about. I wondered if the villagers had any idea what was coming. Looking at them going about their business, now, made me glad that I had decided to join the Academy because I would hate being uninformed about matters like Pain's attack and this upcoming ninja war.

I passed Ichiraku and shot it a quick glance, half expecting Naruto to be sitting there, chatting away animatedly with the owner. I wasn't really surprised to see that he wasn't. He had, in fact, been eating ramen when we went to see him this evening.

I had to stop running when I came to the edge of the village. I noticed with some surprise that I had ended up on the road Sasuke had taken out of the village all those years ago. I glanced over at the bench where he had left me, unconscious.

Sasuke.

I don't know what I had been expecting when we finally saw him. We had been chasing him for so long and then all of a sudden he was there, standing above us. He was so beautiful but his eyes were so cold. He looked down at us and I wanted desperately to believe he still cared. Then he was down beside Naruto, one arm wrapped around his shoulders like the embrace given to a long-lost friend. They spoke, but I didn't catch all of it and then Sasuke…

I can tell you one thing: I had expected resistance, of course, but the last thing I had expected was to see the image of Sasuke's katana slicing towards Naruto's back. I had known it was bad when Naruto didn't bring him back when we were younger, but I had no idea it was this bad.

And now…well, I didn't really want to think about that. Naruto was going to stay away from the fighting, and I would be there to make sure Sasuke was given another chance. This time I would be of use. This time I would be strong and brave. This time I would make up for all the years I've wasted.

Resolve set firmly in my heart, I turned to go back home – only to freeze in my tracks.

He was standing there, watching me. From the pale light of the moon and the soft yellow glow of the street lamps I could see the pure determination that filled his eyes, and suddenly I knew it had all been a lie.

"Naruto –" My voice came out as a hoarse whisper; not at all as I had intended. I tried to will myself to swallow back my feelings of betrayal and fear – to make my voice strong and commanding – but when I spoke it was little more than a squeak that held in it every single feeling that was churning around in my chest at that moment. "Don't you dare leave!"