Disclaimer: Naruto is not mine

Chapter 10

Forgetting the Present

A man with long, black hair was sitting on his chair. He had an evil smirk on his lips.

His face remained hidden by the shadows but his snake-like eyes remained visible amidst the darkness.

"How long is the genjutsu going to last?" A man with silver hair adjusted his eyeglasses as he gave Orochimaru a questioning look, wondering what he was thinking.

"It's all up to her." His smirk was quickly replaced by a serious expression, which amused his servant a bit.

"What do you mean?" Kabuto asked, curiously. He could feel Orochimaru's intense gaze on him as if the sannin was burning a hole right through his skin.

"That genjutsu would make her see the things that happened in the past and it would also erase her memories little by little. If her memories about the present would be erased completely before she could even find a way to undo the genjutsu, her mind would remain in the past forever and she wouldn't be able to wake up." Orochimaru smirked. He could feel that he was about to accomplish his goal.

Kabuto finally understood what his master meant and a sly smile found its way to his lips, his eyeglasses glinting in the darkness.

………………………….

Tsunade sat on one of the chairs in her personal library located right beside the Hokage's office. Scrolls and piles of books were laid on top of the table in front of her. She furrowed her eyebrows in deep concentration as she scanned the opened book of genjutsus in her hands.

A bead of cold sweat ran down the side of her cheek and reached her neck. She wiped it hastily as she continued with her research, not letting any insignificant murmurs and noises distract her.

"Damn you Orochimaru!" Tsunade said out of nowhere. Her calm exterior was quickly replaced with an angry expression. She was genuinely pissed off about what she just found. After a lot of researching, she finally managed to know what type of genjutsu Orochimaru had inflicted on her student as well as how to stop it.

"What is it Tsunade baa-chan? What happened? Have you found a way to help Sakura-chan?" the blond boy asked her a lot of question, which annoyed her greatly.

She didn't reply right away because she was still contemplating whether she should tell anyone about it or not.

Naruto looked at her and he noticed that she looked pissed off.

"um……..I'll guess I'll just come back later?" It was meant to be a statement but it came out as a question instead.

Tsunade finally broke out from her state of reverie when she heard the blond's voice.

"Wait! Don't go yet. I need to talk to you." She finally made a decision. Being Sakura's friends, they deserved to know the truth.

"What is it Tsunade baa-chan?" he asked, grateful that she finally calmed herself down.

"I finally know what to do on how to get Sakura back." She tried to calm herself but deep down inside, she was really worried.

"How!" She now had Naruto's full and undivided attention.

"The genjutsu is powerful. If we don't take any actions, something bad might happen. Sakura may never wake up," she said, trying her best not to panic.

"WHAT!" the blond boy shouted. He was shocked at the Hokage's revelation.

Past…………………

"Otou-san it's still early for you to go to work," Itachi said as he rubbed his obsidian eyes, trying to get used to the sudden light that entered his room when his father opened the door.

Fugaku gave him a blank look that was soon replaced by a small grin.

"I have so many things to do today. By the way, I talked to the Hokage and asked him not to give you any missions for today because I want this day to be your free day."

He gave his father a blank look, not knowing how to react. Fugaku sensed his older son's confusion.

"You might be wondering why. Well, I want you to enjoy the whole day because tomorrow, you will officially be an ANBU captain," he explained.

Itachi never dreamed of being an ANBU member. He was just forced to join because his father told him that it would be good for their clan. Once he tried to talk to his father about this but he ended up being lectured about their clan's history, reputation and importance to Konoha.

"I'll go now." He went out the door, closing the door of Itachi's room with a soft click.

He had so many things to do that day. Being the chief of the Konoha police force and the leader of the strongest clan in town, everyday is a busy day. Yes, he was too engrossed with his works and obligations that he didn't noticed that the usual gleam in his older son's eyes were already gone.

…………………….

"Ohayou, aniki," Sasuke greeted his brother rather enthusiastically. Itachi looked at his younger brother. He looked happy. He forced a smile, not wanting him to notice that something was bothering him.

"Our sensei is going to teach us a new technique today. I'm so excited," Sasuke said, unable to hide the happiness in his expressive obsidian eyes.

He stared at his younger brother for a while and for a brief moment, he wondered if his life is also going to be miserable when he grew up. Itachi was about to reply when they both heard a feminine voice.

"Sasuke, go get your things for school," Mikoto said as she appeared from the kitchen.

"Yes kaa-san," he went upstairs to get his things leaving his brother and his mother in the living room.

"I'm going to come home late today," Mikoto reminded Itachi.

"Why?" he suddenly asked. Usually, his mother would stay at home.

"I need to attend an important clan meeting. Take care of yourself," she said as she patted Itachi's head, which caused him to roll his eyes at the affectionate gesture. He would never say it aloud but he actually had a soft spot for his mother.

She looked at him intently, her smile never leaving her lips. "You grew up so fast." It was just now she realized that he was a foot taller than her now.

"I already have my things. Let's go, okaa-san," Sasuke said, cutting off their conversation. He just came back from his room, hugging his three books in his chest as if they're going to disappear when he let them go.

She smiled back and took Sasuke's small hands in hers as they walked out of the house.

"Sakura is still sleeping and I don't want to wake her up yet. Please treat her well while I'm away," she reminded him before she and Sasuke left the house.

All of them were gone and Itachi found himself alone in the living room. He lied down at the couch. Its softness was making him comfortable as his sleepiness slowly took over him.

"Where is everyone?" Just when he was about to doze off, he heard a soft voice from behind him asked a question. He rubbed his eyes to shake off his sleepiness and sat up slowly. He looked behind him, his long silky hair following the movement of his head.

He saw Sakura wearing plain pink pajamas. Her hair was still disheveled as she immediately went to the living room, forgetting to comb her hair.

He chuckled a bit when he saw her. She looked like an innocent child. He gazed at her emerald eyes, trying to find some hint of sadness in them but found none. It seemed that she always radiated light just by simply smiling.

Sakura grew uneasy as she felt his intense gaze at her. She ran her hand on her pink tresses, suddenly becoming conscious of how she looked. She felt her pink tresses and suddenly she realized that she hadn't combed her hair yet. Maybe that's the reason why he was staring at her like that. Without saying anything, she immediately ran back to her room to change her clothes and also to comb her hair.

Present…….…………………

Tsunade instinctively raised one of her hands in order to cover Naruto's mouth.

"Don't be too loud. It's getting annoying," she whispered to the hyperactive blond.

"But if Sakura-chan……….." he didn't get a chance to finish his sentence since she cut him off.

"We need to do something. Where are Sasuke and Kakashi?" she asked calmly that made the boy looked at her in awe. He could imagine how hard it is for her to keep a calm demeanor especially in a situation like this.

"They're in the hospital. Sakura's mother is away on a business trip so they are looking after her."

"We need to go there and inform them." Tsunade stood up from her seat and began making her way out of the library.

'A Hokage must stay calm at all timed in order to make a sensible decision,' Naruto mentally took note of it. It would help him in case he became the Hokage someday.

He put his hands at the back of his head as he trailed after her.

Past………………………..

After Sakura took a bath, she put on a blue tank top with a dark blue skirt that ended just above her knee. The clothes that Mikoto gave her were composed mostly of skirts. It was obvious that Mikoto was not a kunoichi because female ninjas like her usually wear shorts and pants, or any clothes that was advantageous in the battlefield. Their skirts were usually worn with shorts underneath.

"tou-san went to his work and kaa-san accompanied Sasuke to school and afterwards, she would be joining the other members of the clan," he explained as she went down and sat on the couch beside him.

Sakura looked straight in his obsidian eyes, sensing the sadness in them.

"Aren't you going with them?" she asked, her emerald green eyes glinting with curiosity.

He shook his head. "No. tou-san told me that this would be my free day."

"Really? That's great. How are you going to spend the day?"

"I'll just…take a rest and train?" It was meant to be a statement but it sounded more of a question.

Sakura shook her head in disagreement. "You are supposed to do something fun in a free day. You train almost everyday. Even prodigies need to take a rest once in a while."

Itachi looked at her in wonder. Without taking his eyes off hers, he raised his right hand and softly caressed her cheek.

His gaze was so intense that it made her nervous. "I'm glad I found you that day," he said softly, referring to the day when he found her unconscious near the bridge.

His voice was so deep and mysterious that Sakura could feel her heart pounding hard in her chest. Whether it was from nervousness or from something else, she didn't really know.

Just then, her eyes widened when she saw Itachi leaning down towards her with his eyes closed. Realization dawned on her. She wanted to push him off but her body wouldn't follow what her brain told it to do.

He was getting closer and closer and she could feel his hot breath tickling her. Different emotions raced through her mind and they were overwhelming.

With all the self-control she had left, she managed to avert her gaze from him before he could fully kiss her.

Itachi, sensing her hesitation, opened his eyes and pulled away from her. He looked at her and saw confusion blatantly written all over her face.

"I'm sorry…I just got carried away," he immediately said as he turned his head away.

"It's alright," she whispered awkwardly after a few moments of silence.

They remained like that for a few minutes. They just sat beside each other, not saying a word. It was then that Itachi decided to start a conversation because the silence was killing him and also because he thinks that it was his fault that the situation between them became awkward.

"You haven't told me anything about your family yet," he focused his gaze on the door in front, unable to look at her in the eyes.

"Well, my parents are……………………….." she paused then raised her hand to her chin, thinking hard.

"My family is………….." she tried again but stopped halfway.

When Itachi noticed that she was kind of hesitant to tell him something about her family, he decided to drop the question.

"It's all right if you don't want to talk about them. I will not force you."

When he turned his head to look at her, he saw that she was clutching her head as if she was having a terrible headache.

"Sakura, what happened? Are you not feeling well?" the prodigy kneeled in front her to check her condition.

Sakura lifted her head to meet his gaze. His eyes were hypnotizing and beautiful.

"I forgot it all," she whispered to him as the tears started to form in her eyes. She tried her best to keep them from falling.

"What do you mean?" he was confused with her answer.

"I forgot who my parents are." This time, she sobbed hard, her tears flowing freely from her eyes. No matter how hard she tried to recall, she can't remember anything.

He looked at her, not knowing what to do. He hadn't comforted a girl before. Sure, he had his fan girls but he never approached even one of them. By instinct, he stood up and pulled her up towards him, making her stand on her feet. Then, he wrapped one arm around her waist and he placed his other hand above her head, pulling her closer to him. For a few minutes, he let her sob on his chest.

"Please don't cry," he pleaded as he ran his hands through her silky pink locks. She looked fragile when she cries.

Sakura could feel the warmth radiating from his body. His words comforted her and little by little, her cries subsided until they were almost gone.

Itachi looked at her emerald green eyes. They were red and puffy from crying too much. Then, his gaze shifted to her full and luscious red lips. Once again, he had this unusual and sudden urge to kiss her but he stopped himself.

"I never encountered a case like this wherein a person suddenly forgot her memories. It was too impossible. Maybe you're just tired," he reassured her.

"Itachi-kun………thank you," Sakura whispered in his ear. She was very afraid but she felt secured and safe in his arms.

Present…………….

Sasuke was really pissed off. His sensei told him to keep an eye on his pink-haired teammate while he went to the store to buy some food. From the chair where he was sitting at, he looked at her and noticed that she was smiling in her sleep and this made him curious.

He stood up and walked to her, and with the help of his keen senses, he observed her. She looked so innocent and serene while asleep. She was still annoying as ever. That was what Sasuke always told himself but then he wondered why he couldn't keep his eyes off her peaceful form.

He observed her for a little while. Her chest was rising steadily, indicating that she was breathing normally.

"Itachi-kun…" Sakura suddenly muttered in her sleep, which made the Uchiha raised his brow. 'Why is she calling out my brother's name?' he thought. Unconsciously, he clenched his hand when he realized that she added the suffix -kun to his name.

AN: I think I will be able to do the next chapter soon. Thanks to my beta reader sweetmaiden for this chapter.

reflection-image