I'm tired. Really tired. And I'm having emotional troubles. So just ignore me. Blah. And here's the calm before the storm. Written to Skillet and also to Breaking Benjamin.

Disclaimer: Still not mine.

Dedication: To weekends.

---

I was shaking as I tried to pull Sasuke out of the blood bar. He seemed out of it, really disoriented, almost like he didn't know where the hell he was. It was almost like he was looking for something.

I attributed it to finally having his own mind back.

"C'mon Sasuke, we have to get out of here," I mumbled in his ear. He nodded, his eyes unfocused, staring.

I bit my lip, and tugged on his wrist. He followed me willingly, but there was just something off in his gait, when he finally did move. He was off-balance.

Sasuke was never off-balance.

"What the hell did she do to you?!" I hissed, as I dragged him down one of the darkish corridors in the place. "It's like she took your soul!!!"

He just shook his head, his eyes still never focusing on anything, not even where he was putting his feet. He nearly tripped twice, and that was when I really started worrying.

Wait, maybe if I pushed him over…

I decided against it, considering the fact that his colour was draining away. My worry shot through the roof, and I gritted my teeth.

"Sasuke Uchiha, you are not going to die on me here. You are not. I refuse to let you die," I hissed at him, my nails digging into his wrist, and I tugged him down another hall way.

He just seemed dead.

I nearly screamed to myself, and I pulled Sasuke as fast as I could. He was totally catatonic, and it was all I could do not to scream and rant and rage and kiss him, because god, I had been so worried, and now he was like this… I couldn't stand it.

I groaned, and all I could think was 'Screw it'. I whipped around, and looked at Sasuke. "Please come back to me, Sasuke, please. Please don't leave me," I whispered to him.

Life flickered in his eyes. My breath caught in my throat, and I grabbed fistfuls of his hair, and I pulled on them, hard. He was not going to leave me all alone, I wouldn't let him. He was mine.

He was always going to be mine.

"Ow, you bitch…" he muttered, and the light that had flickered was suddenly back in his eyes, and I knew it was back for good.

I gasped in relief, and then, once the fact that his Sasuke-ness wasn't dead, once it settled in me; I punched him in the gut. And I wasn't gentle.

I was too pissed off to be gentle.

"You stupid bastard," I seethed at him, every bit of worry and terror I'd felt in the past day converging into this one moment. I needed to vent it out, and screeching at Sasuke for his stupidity seemed like a good idea.

"How could you let Kaeleo have so much control that he nearly killed you?! It might have been poison!!!"

He shook his head, too winded to speak. I was slightly proud of myself. It's normally impossible to wind Sasuke. Bahaha.

When he finally did get his breath back, he just murmured "Not now, too painful to think about…"

I rolled my eyes, but it was just a pretence. Despite my violence, I was actually seriously worried about him. And when I spoke next, my voice reflected that fact. It was too gentle to be my normal self.

"Let's get outta here…" I murmured softly, and I slung his arm over my shoulder.

And so, together, we limped away from that god-forsaken place, and out into the light.

---

Sasuke was in no condition to drive, and so I forced him into the passenger seat of the Viper as I flipped the phone Hinata had tossed at me yesterday morning open. There was only one number programmed into it, and it said 'Emergency'. I didn't even hesitate, and I hit 'Talk'.

It rang twice before someone picked it up.

"Sakura?!" The voice squeaked, and I sighed in relief when I heard Hinata.

"Hey. We're out of there."

"Sakura, there's something up. What's wrong?"

"Look, it's nothing, but where are you?"

"At the hotel," Hinata's voice caught as she said 'hotel'.

"Alright, we'll be there in a bit. See ya."

And then I hung up, flicking the phone closed. I didn't have time to talk, I had to get the hell out of here. I mean, seriously, it's totally dark out here, and I know for a fact that a leech can't really say 'sorry' to a dead body.

And I'm in no mood to die tonight. Because-dying-is-like-losing-and-we-don't-lose-do-we?

I jumped in the driver's seat, and let my gaze flick to Sasuke. He was still sitting there, completely placid, his eyes still slightly unfocused. When I poked him softly in the shoulder, light flickered in his eyes again. I wanted to punch him, seriously.

I didn't like the fact that he only seemed barely there. I needed to get him to Tsunade. Or something. I just needed someone to wake him up. And I couldn't even get Kaeleo to take over to fix him, because the bastard wasn't in there anymore.

I shuddered. Letting Kaeleo take over Sasuke's head had always felt like moral suicide, at least to me. But it didn't matter now. I grabbed the stick-shift, slammed the clutch, hit the gas, and we were gone.

I love speed.

Really, I do. And I think I'd forgotten what it's like, when you're just driving. Nothing matters, when you're driving, just you and the road and the speed and the street lamps flashing over your face.

It's just the most amazing thing in the world.

We sped down the dirty suburban streets. They were empty, which was a good thing. I didn't want to hit any humans while we were going this fast. It wouldn't just be instant death.

It would be instant chowder.

Yummy. I winkled my nose at the thought, and slowed as I turned into the hotel. I parked right in the front entrance, uncaring that there might be other people who showed up.

No one else is even conscious at this time of night.

Not here, anyways. It's too dangerous to be conscious in a place like this at this time of night. Humans may be stupid, but they do have a sense of self-preservation-above-all-else that seems to help them survive.

I got out of the car, and I was surprised as Sasuke did, too.

He swayed, but his eyes were focused now. I groaned in relief. So he wasn't totally screwed. This was a good thing, to be honest.

I grabbed his hand, and his fingers clenched around mine. I smiled up at him, and then I pulled him into the hotel.

It was still as dirty and yucky as I remembered. I pursed my lips in distaste, and I didn't even acknowledge the existence of the still-the-creepiest-guy-in-the-world receptionist (even though he was grinning sickly at me… ewww…). I went straight to the elevator, and dragged Sasuke inside.

Everything seemed to pass in a blur, once we got into the elevator. It seemed to take no time at all, to get to Hinata's room. She opened the door, and let the two of us stumble in, exhausted.

It took even less to collapse on her bed, Sasuke with me, and to fall into a deep, dreamless sleep.

---

I woke, what I guessed was a few hours later, with Hinata hovering over me, worry in every plane of her face. Relief broke onto her face, and she yelled something over her shoulder to someone, before turning back to me.

"Hey, you're alive!"

"Urgh, hi. Barely," I muttered, my throat hoarse. It felt like I hadn't spoken in ages; in years, my throat was so dry. I needed something to drink.

"Water," I whispered, and Hinata nodded, and then there was a cup on my bedside. How this happened, I was never to know, but I grabbed the glass, feeling weak, and I gulped the contents gratefully.

And then I nearly choked, because it was Anko's continually nasty energy-replenishing tea. Shudders of disgust ran down my spine, and Hinata was grinning at me mirthfully.

"You should know better! It could have been poisoned, and now you would be dead!"

I rolled my eyes at her, the nasty taste lingering on my tongue, as she fed my own words back to me.

"You… are an evil person, Hinata Hyuuga. Evil, evil, evil," I muttered, annoyed.

She smiled down at me. "At least you're alive for me to be evil to. You were pretty damn exhausted. Tsunade was worried that your body was going to shove you into a coma, or something crazy like that. And Sasuke's been freaking out ever since he woke up."

I was confused. "How long have I been asleep?"

"Two and a half days."

I gaped at her. "No way. Are you kidding me?!"

"No, why would I kid about something like that?"

"Crap; and I promised myself Kabuto would be dead and in the ground before the week was out. Damn, I fail at life." I slammed my head into my pillow, hoping it would cause me some pain. I've never slept for more then a day, not in my memory, anyways.

I groaned, and forced myself to sit up.

My head spun, and I swayed woozily for a moment before the world settled into place. Obviously, my body wasn't quite ready to support itself as of yet. I stood there for a moment, and then I stretched as far as I could.

Several loud, very satisfying 'pops' later, and my spine was back in its normal shape. I yawned, and rolled my shoulders happily. I love it when my back is all straight and lovely and comfortable in its normal, un-pretzeled shape. I snapped my head to the side, and heard another satisfying 'crack'.

I looked around the room, slightly confused. "Where the hell am I, Hinata?"

She blinked. "Oh, we're in the infirmary. It's the other side from where your family was, that was the poisoning unit. We're in the Ward, right now."

I nodded, still slightly confused, but I was beginning to figure out what the hell was going on. The part of the infirmary was a large, circular room, with only one door, and only one bed, the one I had just been lying in. There were huge windows, and golden sunlight was filtering through them, tuning the entire place a warm, sunny golden colour that made me think of happiness. I was actually surprised I had slept so long, with this kind of sunlight all over the place.

"So… what now?" Hinata asked, after I finished cracking my neck in random places.

I shrugged. "There really is only one thing to do."

"And that is?"

"Well, we finish what we started." I stared intensely at her. "Are you willing to come with me, and finish off killing that slimy git?"

She smiled; deadly humour on her face, something she'd picked up from Tenten or me, no doubt. "If by 'slimy git', you mean Kabuto, then I'm in. and I'm fairly certain the rest of everyone will be, too."

"We just have to talk Tsunade into letting us go."

We both winced, knowing that it wasn't going to be easy to do that. As far as Tsunade was concerned, she had her agents back. And there was no reason to endanger them, not for anything.

I winced as I thought it through. My hatred of going against orders was already rebelling in my body, screeching that it refused to go against another order. "Well, as long as she doesn't order us not to go…"

Hinata grinned at me. "I like the way you think."

I grinned back. "Thank you. So do I."

The two of us looked at each other and nodded, and headed out the door. And then I remembered that Kakashi and Anko were still alive. But, Sasuke…

"Hi-na-ta…"

She rolled her eyes. "Let's go find Sasuke first then. I know you want to see him."

I grinned hugely at her. "'Kay. Have Kakashi and Anko been here? Wait, are they even out of the infirmary?"

"Yup, they've been out for a day and a half. Kakashi really protested being in there, actually, which was why Tsunade let them go early. Apparently, he tore a bunch of IVs out of his arm to come and see you."

I shook me head. "That man is an idiot. Where is Sasuke, by the way?"

Hinata shrugged. "Probably arguing with Tsunade about what to do about Kabuto. He'd been at her since he woke up, to let all of us go. She yelled at him. A lot."

"Why are boys so dumb?! Doesn't he realize that it would be way easier just to leave?!"

"He's got more morals then you do, Sakura. And more tact. You're too blunt for your own good." And then a slow, evil smile spread over her face.

"Pffft, are we talking about the same Sasuke? 'Cuz I really don't think we are. The Sasuke I know is an extremely ho-"

And then my air supply was cut off, as I was picked up, held in the air, and thoroughly kissed. Sasuke.

I blinked down at him. I'm really not used not being off the ground, it makes me feel kind of queasy. "Uhhh… hi. Could you put me down?"

"No."

"Please?"

"No."

"Hinata!!!"

No answer. Damn, she'd left. So this was what she'd been grinning about. He smirked up at me, kissed me again, and then finally set me down.

"You are world-class asshole, did you know that?"

"Hn."

"Jerk, you know I hate monosyllabic answers," I muttered, and I cuddled into his chest. He wrapped his arms around me, and then pulled the both of us backward, until I felt a 'thump', as we hit the wall.

I peeked up at him. I really wanted to know a bunch of things. Like, really badly. "Hi."

He raised an eyebrow at me. "What?"

"Would you be willing to answer a bunch of really random questions?"

"That depends on the type of question, princess."

"Please say yes? Please, please, please, please ple-ase?!"

He sighed in something like resignation, and I cheered loudly. "Fine, yes."

I smiled, an imitation of the previous evil one that belonged to Hinata. "What were you arguing about with Tsunade? Hinata said it was about Kabuto."

He rolled his eyes. "Ding ding, give the girl a prize."

"Hey, I'm asking a question here, I want an answer, not sarcasm!" I had an urge to kick him, but given the fact that neither of us in is any state to cause and/or feel pain, I decided against it. I'd kick him later.

"I told her that I wanted permission to go find him," he said.

"And she said?"

"No."

Frown. "Did she order you not to?"

Smirk. "No."

"So… are we going?"

"Yes."

Giggle. "Can we bring Hinata and Naruto and Neji and Tenten?"

Eye roll. "Yes."

Louder, evil giggle. "Ya-ay! When are we leaving?"

"As soon as you see your parents. Anko nearly broke my ribs when she hugged me."

I winced. If she had hugged him that bad, I knew that I was going to be in for an extreme amount of undue pain, and then she'd give me 'The Lecture'. I knew I was in for an extreme amount of undue pain out of love, which actually kind of made it worse, now that I think about it. Then again, she might just tackle me, hug the life out of me, and then let Kakashi give me 'The Lecture'.

That would be kind of funny, considering Kakashi fails at administering punishment of any sort.

I nodded, and then we went to find Hinata and the others, our pinkies linked.

---

We found the others in really random places.

Hinata was in the Hyuuga lab, testing the green guck she'd collected. She didn't look very happy.

"Look at this! Look at it!"

"Uhhh… Hinata?"

She groaned, and rubbed her temples. She nodded towards the glowing green stuff, and I moved towards it warily. Sasuke was standing at the door, utterly refusing to touch it, but I was kind of intrigued. Actually, the next time I looked, he'd ditched, obviously not wanting to intrude on what he called, with a shudder 'girl time'.

I mean, seriously, this stuff had supported suspended human animation. There was something about it that sent shivers, good shivers, down my spine. I knew without knowing that it had the potential to save lives, and there was nothing wrong with that, not in my eyes. Not even if it was a leech invention.

"So what's the problem?"

"It's just that… well, look at the results." She pointed to a clip board across the room that I supposed she'd thrown there in her frustration, because she did not look happy. I grabbed it, and scanned my eyes down the page.

Hinata narrated, too. I guess she knew the thing off by heart, and it was almost too dark to read in there, anyways.

"Basically, no matter what I do to it, the outcome is always a poison. I can't even replicate it, not the green stuff itself, because the elements won't settle out, so I don't even know what it's made of! And not only that, this poison -whatever the hell it is-, it's dangerous."

"Dangerous?" Interest coloured my voice, and I was fairly sure that nagging in the back of my head was my common sense, but I smacked it, and it shut up.

She rolled her eyes. "That's what you would be interested in. Argh."

"Hi---na---ta, what does it do------o?" I asked her, my voice sing-song, elongating the vowels to almost unbearable levels.

"It's a killer, Sa---ku---ra," she replied, with another eye-roll.

I grinned hugely. "How potent?"

Hinata blinked, and I sensed that she was going into researcher-why-must-I-explain-simple-things-to-stupid-people-mode. "Well, the poison itself… it freezes the muscles, from what I've seen. I've tried it out on rats, but I'm not sure of the effects of humans… It might not do anything at all, but it just might be what we need."

"Why would we need it?"

"Do you know how much more efficient doing exorcisms would be? Soak a blade in it beforehand; give a vampire a tiny little cut with it, and then watch as the blood sucking thing basically freezes in its tracks."

"Efficient, huh?" I asked, an idea suddenly sparking in my mind. "Hinata, I have a very quick way to test this poison of yours. Want to try it out?"

She smiled, slow and dark-molasses-sweet; and I knew she'd be up for it. "So, darling, what do you have cooking in that evil little mind of yours?" she asked.

"Well, I was thinking… We're going to be out on a venture in a little bit, as you know, with a certain leech named Kabuto. I'm sure he'd love to be a test subject."

Her smile grew. "Yes, and doesn't it make the perfect irony?"

I leaned against the counter, my back to the wall behind it, and I smiled smile-smile-smile-like-a-tiger-hidden-in-the-grass.

"Yes, Hinata, I should think it does."

---