Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto, if I did there would be no need to write fanfiction!

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Three members of team Kakashi were settling down for the night in the forest just within the borders of Fire country. Sakura, Naruto, and Kakashi had travelled all day just to reach the safe confines of familiar territory.

The journey back to Konoha was one of the worst in all of Sakura's mission history. The day before she had gone to find Sasuke and tried to kill him. To say it hadn't gone as planned was an understatement.

While Sakura attempted to trick Sasuke, he had already decided to kill her. The rest of what he made her do concerning his female teammate was just for his own sick amusement. The plan didn't work anyways and if Kakashi hadn't followed Sakura immediately after realizing she'd disappear then he would have been seconds late to stop Sasuke's hands as they moved to murder the young kunoichi.

From her spot on her bedroll, Sakura carefully glanced over at the fearless leader of her team. He was sitting opposite of the fire from her with his book out as he stared at the pages but never moving his eyes from one single spot. What happened hours before was still fresh in her mind and Sakura wondered if he was thinking about it as well, about how close both of them came to death.

When Naruto appeared on the scene it was a relief but that was short-lived when he challenged Sasuke to a fight to the death the next time they crossed paths. If anything, it kept Sasuke at bay for the day but next time would they be so lucky?

"Sakura, you and Naruto should sleep. I'll take first watch and wake you in two hours."

Sakura looked up at the lone black eye staring at her from across the fire. It was the first words anyone of them had spoken since they left the battlefield. Even Naruto was unusually quiet and subdued, which had surprised Sakura immensely considering he didn't question her about what happened before he had arrived.

Naruto responded to Kakashi's command with an affirmative. But Sakura wasn't ready to engage in words so she merely nodded her head and flopped down on the roll.

All Sakura could remember was a taunting voice and the bloodlust in his eyes as his hands snaked around her neck. She woke with a soundless scream and a kunai upstretched to protect her from the assailant. A hand wrapped around her forearm pushing it down toward her causing Sakura to struggle against the grip.

"Sakura calm down. It's me." The cool ripple of Kakashi's voice stilled her movements.

Sakura blinked the haziness and vestiges of her nightmare away. She slowly made out his profile and the outline of the ever-present mask. It was then she saw her kunai raised hand mere inches away from the delicate skin of Kakashi's neck, his hand grasping her arm to prevent injury.

"Sorry, you surprised me. Is it my turn for watch?" Sakura asked him nonchalantly and pulled her arm away from his grasp.

"You were crying in your sleep." He regarded her with his usual lazy expression betraying none of the turmoil he actually felt about his ex-students trying to kill each other.

"Was I? It must have been a nightmare. Anyways, I'll take watch." Sakura got up and proceeded to the edge of the camp. Only she wasn't alone. Kakashi maintained a distance behind her until she suddenly turned around.

"What?!" Sakura yelled angrily, knowing he wanted to say something.

"I need to know why you went to him, Sakura."

A part of Sakura thought Kakashi's eye was pleading with her to give him the right answer to this question. She didn't know what the right answer was. But his cold and detached voice had her quickly dismissing the idea altogether.

"I don't know what you mean." She shook her head as to cement her confusion. Sakura did not miss how Kakashi's hands tightened into fists at her statement.

Kakashi spoke in a low voice and took his time making his point very clear. "Don't play games with me Sakura. I've already sent Pakkun ahead of us to notify the Hokage of what happened. So you can either tell me now how you came to be fighting with Sasuke or wait till we return home and deal with Tsunade."

Sakura shot a look across the camp to their other teammate. Luckily, Naruto was fast asleep in his bed roll and would not accidentally hear this hushed conversation.

"Someone had to stop him. Naruto wants to save him from his demons but after all that we've seen of him since he left and all that we've heard, that Sasuke is too far gone from the person we were once teammates with. So, I went to kill him."

"Why would you make yourself out to do that? You almost died and quite frankly it was impossible for you to have defeated him." He responded.

"Don't you think I know that?! I tried to play along and be someone I haven't been in years. When that didn't work… I wanted him to do it. At least then Naruto would be released from his promise and he wouldn't suffer any more!"

Sakura wasn't prepared when Kakashi slapped her. There wasn't enough time to recover before Kakashi painfully wrenched her chin up forcing Sakura to meet his eye.

"I taught you better than this. We never abandon our teammates."

If you do then you're worse than trash.

He didn't say it but it hung in the air between them regardless. Sakura had a great memory, she would never forget the lesson the original bell test was meant to teach. After all, her team was the only one to ever pass.

Another moment later Kakashi turned away and took off into the surrounding forest, presumably to put distance between him and the thing that caused the normally cool and collected Copy nin to seethe with anger.

Sakura watched his speedy departure and palmed her sore cheek. She had managed to keep her composure but now tears fell freely.

"You forget Kakashi-sensei, I've always been the one left behind." She said to no one in particular, let alone to be overheard by the two remaining members of team seven that once abandoned her just as suddenly as Sasuke had.

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A/N: So I guess you could say I went with the snapshots of their relationship option but then again this could be a two-shot.