(No POV)

Meanwhile in Konoha

A silver-haired hokage props his feet upon his desk as he rereads a previous volume of Icha Icha. He hears a tapping on the window and swivels his chair to see who dares to disturb him. Upon seeing a hawk, Sasuke's hawk, he lets it in and takes the message from it. He opens it, and his eyes-widen.

"Cat, call in Sai, Hinata, and Sakura." The anbu nods and goes to find them.

Kakashi bites his lip and makes a plan.

Moments later the three needed ninjas walk in.

"Is something wrong, Kakashi-sensei?" Sakura asks.

"It might be a mission." Sai states.

Kakashi breathes deeply and says, "You three must leave in an hour. Faster if you can. It's about Sasuke."

Sakura's eyes bulge as her mind remembers her last moments with him before he left. The forehead poke, his unspoken promise.

"What happened?" She demands.

Kakashi eyes his student carefully, not wanting to provoke her Tsunade-like temper. "He's surrounded, and poisoned. This will be a search and rescue mission. You are not to engage the enemy unless necessary. Simply retrieve Sasuke, heal him and bring him back."

'That's why I'm here I guess.' Sakura thinks.

"Erm. Hokage-sama, why am I on this mission?" Hinata asks politely.

"You are needed to track his location, Sai can make a quick escape and Sakura can make an antidote. Sakura, you are captain. Now that I have told you everything, hurry. Time is running out." Kakashi says warily.

The three ninja go to their homes and grab what they need and meet at the gates in under fifteen minutes.

"Everybody ready?" Sakura asks. They nod. "Okay, Sai make an ink bird so we get there faster. Hinata take the front and use your byakugan to find him."

Sai pulls out his scroll and makes the bird. Hinata activates her byakugan and sits at the front looking down, as the others get on and the bird takes off.

(Sakura's POV)

As my team and I soar through the air, I start thinking up an antidote. If it's a poison that affected Sasuke, it's not one Orochimaru is familiar with. Maybe not one known to man. Maybe I can't make an antidote and he dies. I shudder.

No. I can't think like that. I have to save him.

"Hinata, what do you see?" I ask.

"Nothing of Sasuke yet. I'll let you know." She replies.

I hold my head in my hands. I can't lose him. I don't want to lose him. I start tearing up.

I have to be strong. For Sasuke. I am his only hope. I wipe my tears away.

We have pass many villages by now, and are nearing the border of the Land of Fire.

All I can see is trees.

"Sakura-san, he's there." Hinata reports.

I perk up and look in the direction she's pointing.

I instruct Sai to land the bird. As we touch ground, I jump off the bird, and instruct Sai and Hinata to keep watch for enemies. I look around at the empty field lined with trees. Nothing in sight.

"Are you sure this is where you found him?" I ask Hinata.

"Yes Sakura-san." She replies.

I look around and still can't see him. Hinata speaks up, "I saw his chakra in this general area, closer to here."

She points to the edge of the river I never noticed. I walk towards it, stop and ask Hinata if she can use her byakugan through water. She looks at the river with her byakugan and her eyes-widen.

"He's in the river but he isn't conscious." She says.

That's all it took for me before I told my team to stay put and jumps in the river.

Descending to the lower planes of the river, a surprisingly deep river, I catch a glimpse of raven hair. Swimming lower and faster, I put one hand around him and use my chakra to enhance my strength to bring him out of the river.

Dragging him from the water I set him down on the ground. Sai and Hinata report no enemies in sight and standby me as I work.

"He's clearly swallowed a lot of water. I'm going to have to expel it from his system." I say before I prepare to perform CPR. Applying pressure to his chest in short jabs, and tilting his head back. I never thought my first kiss with him would be like this, I grumble.

I plug his nose and blow into his mouth. Nothing.

Please, I can't lose you.

"CPR strategies don't seem to be working. I need to force the water out with my chakra."

I place glowing hands on the spot where his lungs are and guide the water out of his mouth. I proceed to finish it with short jabs to his chest, and he spits out the water. My relief was short-lived when he collapsed again.

He can't die…

I check his pulse, it's very weak. "It must be the poison. I think I'm going to have to extract it from him." I say to my teammates.

I open my bag for a bowl and fill it with distilled water from a bottle. I place my glowing hands on him and search for the poison. It's nearing his heart. I need to make this fast. I find where the source is and make an incision. Using my chakra and the water to extract large amounts of the putrid green poison, I make silent prayers for him.

Please don't die. Please.

I finished extracting the poison, and place a wet cloth to bring down his fever. Storing the poison in a large vial and storing, I collapse beside him in exhaustion.

Sai looks over to me and says, "We can't rest here, we have to go." I get up with new energy, and instruct Sai to make another ink bird.

I carry Sasuke's body onto the bird, and we fly back to the village.

During the trip, I felt him shivering so I put a blanket I had packed over him. As the bird soared over the treetops, I watched rest. Occasionally, re-wetting the cloth with my water bottle, and checking his fever. He looks to be healing quite fast.

I look over to Hinata and Sai, they are giving me looks of pity.

Why? He's not dead. He'll get better. I smile back.

I push back Sasuke's bangs, and feel a hand grab my wrist. "Who are you?" He asks.

I smile, "Hello Sasuke-san, you're on your way back to the village." Sai says montonely.

Sasuke opens his eyes and I don't see the eyes I fell in love with. Instead, I see cloudy grey in his eyes.

He's blind.

Apparently, he's realized this too.

"I can't see who you are, and I don't recognize your voice. Again, before I get angry, who are you?" He demands, trying to sit up.

I lay a hand on his shoulder, pushing him back to his laying down position. "Shhh, Sasuke-kun. You need rest." He stops struggling, mumbles something that sounded like 'Sakura,' and falls asleep.

I stroke his cheek affectionately, and lay his head on my lap.

"Don't worry, Sasuke-kun. We will be in the village soon and I will find a cure for your eyes."