Chapter Six

It's been eight months since the death of Deidara and Sakura, Takeshi, and Yuki currently resided in the Hidden Village of the Rain before going back to Konoha.

They had done it. They had done the impossible. With just the three of them, they completely killed off the Akatsuki. Sakura held her end of the promise. She was given two years to kill them and she did it in less than one. That was a remarkable feat, but it couldn't have been done with her two best friends.

Takeshi was an earth and fire type while Yuki was a lightening and water type. Sakrua remembered all the battles she had with each Akatsuki member.

They had decided to get rid of Zetsu and Tobi first, seeing as Zetsu was the spy of Akatsuki and Tobi was the weakest one. They killed both quite easily. Takeshi went up to Zetsu during a mission to give him information only to stab him. He then trapped him with his earth walls and they killed him using kunai and katanas. They then changed his memories that instead of them killing him, it was Hidden Rock Shinobi. In his memory, the 'shinobi' saw the exchange and ambushed Zetsu as soon as Takeshi was out of range. Pein was appalled at the fact that his spy was dead and ordered all Akatsuki to be more aware.

They ambushed Tobi while he was on a solo mission near the Hidden Village of the Mist. Since Sakura and Yuki were both water types, they were the ones who killed Tobi. They cloaked themselves as Hidden Mist ANBU and Sakura's speed/dragons combined with Yuki's deadly accuracy with her water jutsus proved to be stronger than Tobi's teleportation jutsus and explosions. He was dead and a couple days later, when Pein sent Takeshi to find where Tobi was, Takeshi showed up with his dead body. This further increased Pein's stress and he sent them on more spy missions.

They decided to do 'immortality' duo next, seeing as they were very complicated to kill. Pein had sent them on a mission to spy on Konoha, believing that they had to do with the recent Akatsuki death and were rallying up different shinobi. He chose the three because they were the only ones available. What the rest of the members didn't know was that Takeshi had tipped off the Konoha shinobi and they were once again ambushed. The battle was a long one and Team Asuma was able to outsmart Hidan and trap him deep in the Nara woods. The rest of Konoha 11 worked together to stop Kakazu and Sakura, though they aimed to kill Kakazu first. So she didn't seem too out of place, Sakura helped Kakazu but she didn't try at all. She would attack but seem as if she were slower than usual. There was a time when Sasuke was aiming his fireball at her and Sakura's clone punched him, knowing that it would go straight for Kakazu, who didn't see it coming. Sakura's 'mistakes' led to his downfall and she was called to retreat before doing any more. She was able to retrieve Hidan's scythe and Kakazu's body before leaving. Pein was getting angry and restless; it seemed as the weeks went on, his Akatsuki members kept on dying because of ambushes. He was on the edge and sent Kisame and Konan to go investigate while he had Takeshi and Yuki spy around Konoha once more. Meanwhile, he sent Sasori and Sakura to the Hidden Village of the Sand in order to strike fear. Even if his members were dying, he needed people to be scared. He wanted to show that Akatsuki wasn't fazed and that they would be more ruthless than ever.

In that mission, there were no accidental deaths. No, Sakura almost died in that mission. They both had completely underestimated Gaara and his siblings. The three kept them on edge even though Sasori was the puppet master. It was the extraordinary teamwork the sand siblings had that made them formidable. While Temari provided cover from long range and Gaara had both the offensive and defensive, Kankuro kept Sakura busy with his puppets. The only reason they had won was because Sakura summoned several dragons and they distracted Gaara and Temari enough for Sakura to finish her fight with Kankuro and help out Sasori. She was surrounded by sand and it would absorb her water jutsus so she was at a complete disadvantage. Sakura relied on her taijutsu and speed for this fight and did not get away unscathed. She managed to weaken Temari enough that she had to stop and used water on Gaara's defense so it became soiled. It looked as if Sasori and Sakura were going to win but Gaara made an unexpected move with his sand and was able to immobilize Sasori. As he crushed Sasori's heart, Sakura made several clones to free Sasori and proceeded to pick him up. She ran as fast and as far as her feet could have taken her. The blow was fatal but it gave Sasori enough time to say his last wishes. The last thing he told her was, "That… stupid…idiot is waiting for…me… I guess now… we will see…whose art…is really the best… Thank you…for not leaving me…"

Sasori's death was a surprise. She hadn't thought he would ever say those words because he was so cold back at the base. It seemed like Deidara was able to help him feel once again even though he was a literally puppet. Sasori ended up giving Sakura what he had learned his entire life all in a book he had written. Sakura's last words to him were, "Thank you, for helping me believe that things can change. Say… when I come over there, I bet you 100 ryo that Deidara won the perfect art award." Sasori smirked at her before his eyes turned lifeless.

When she went back to HQ, she went straight for Pein's office. He saw the state she was in and that she was almost out of chakra. He also saw Sasori's dead puppet body and he turned away. He told her to rest and to take care of the bodies the day after. He knew that he could trust Sakura. She wasn't failing on purpose because she had almost died on the last mission so he crossed her out as a suspect. Knowing that she had Pein's trust, she decided to poison him in order to spare bloodshed and work. It was all in good timing because Konan and Kisame came back with no information at all. They were all angry and distracted so they wouldn't suspect a thing.

So as they all sat to eat dinner, Sakura poisoned the three Akatsuki member's food and drink. Sakura, Yuki, or Konan usually cooked but Yuki was still out spying and Konan was tired because of her latest mission. Everyone ate without a care and within minutes, they dropped dead. Sakura remembered their expressions; it was filled with hate, shock, and betrayal. Once she made sure they were dead, she took Kisame's Samehada, Konan's paper flower, and Pein's eyes as souvenirs. She knew his eyes would be sought out so she took it to keep it safe.

All of this happened within the range of seven months. Sakura burned the Akatsuki HQ down and buried the real Sasori and Deidara near a cliff where she knew they would have enjoyed the view. She could already imagine Deidara's spirit annoying Sasori. She took her trophies from the Akatsuki members and hid them safely until she could get it again and hide it back in Konoha. She had Deidara's eye scope, Zetsu's venus fly-trap that was once a part of him, Tobi's mask, Hidan's scythe, Kakazu's many hearts, Sasori's book, Kisame's Samehada, Konan's paper flower, and Pein's eyes. She hid them well before contacting Takeshi and Yuki and the trio left.

They were supposed to go back to Konoha but Sakura wanted to relax for a while. They found an inn in the Hidden Rain village and they stayed there for a couple of weeks. Takeshi and Yuki ended up marrying each other after a week or two and the two had their honeymoon there, unfortunately for Sakura. A couple of days after the honeymoon, Sakura finally felt the courage to go back home.

'Screw it, I don't care if they accept me or not. I got Konoha 11 to back me up and they're all in ANBU.'

'Come to think of it… aren't we still Chunin?'

'…Aw shit, I forgot. Gee thanks Inner.'

'No problem.'

'Ugh, now I have to take Jonin and ANBU exams. That's too much.'

'That is if they let you take them.'

'You are such a buzz kill.'

'I am you, so that means you are too.'

'Can you just stay quiet?'

'Okay, just saying.'

'Che, what an ass. Hm... I wonder how they're doing back at home.'

'Probably training their asses off. Heh, I can just imagine Sasuke's shirtless body glistening-'

Sakura proceeded to trap Inner Sakura in the deepest corners of her mind before setting out to Konoha.

Tsunade was confused. Akatsuki's HQ was burned to the ground about a month ago but Sakura wasn't back. She was surprised at first because Sakura had completed the task in less than two years. She took another swing of her sake before thinking once more.

Sasuke and Naruto were both incredibly strong; there was no doubt that either would be able to take Sakura on alone and win. Sasuke was faster than the Fourth Hokage, and that man wasn't called the Yellow Flash for no reason. Naruto also inherited his father's speed and was slower than Sasuke by a little bit. What he made up for in lack of organization was his endurance and strength. Whereas Sasuke could formulate a plan in seconds, Naruto needed minutes. Long story short; Sasuke was the brains and Naruto was the one who had no limits.

She didn't keep her promise of telling the village the truth about Sakrua. She was supposed to do it two months ago but she wanted to wait and give Sakura more time to sneakily kill the Akatsuki members. Revealing the truth too early would have ruined any surprises so she decided to do it tomorrow.

Tsunade sighed before taking another drink from her sake bottle. Tomorrow would be a long day.

The following morning

As Sakura, Takeshi, and Yuki walked towards the village, Konoha's guards stopped them. They still wore their robes just to add the dramatic effect. Sakura smirked at their reactions; it was hilarious seeing the border patrol almost piss their pants.

"STOP RIGHT THERE!" a guard shouted.

The trio all put their hands up behind their heads.

"We come willingly." Sakura said and after she finished her statement, the guards roughly subdued her and dug their knee on her back as they cuffed her.

"Hey, isn't this a bit brutal?" Sakura's back was hurting.

"Shut up!"

'What a bitch.'

'Don't worry, he'll regret it.'

As Sakura looked up, she saw a familiar figure. 'What a coincidence.' He dropped his bags from where he was and ran to her. The guards looked up to see Sasuke breathing a bit hard.

"Let her go." he ordered.

"B-but sir-"

"I said let. Her. Go. I can take it from here." Sasuke was still panting a bit; he did run twice as fast as he normally would.

"Psh, I got this, Sasuke." Sakura was struggling to get on her knees before she got up. "See? And why are you breathing so hard? Hah, you haven't been training you lazy ass-"

She was interrupted as Sasuke hugged her. Her eyes widened and she froze in shock.

"You're home. You're finally home." he whispered. The guards looked at them in confusion and Takeshi sulked.

"Heh, you owe me 50 ryo."

"No fair. How would you know he would be here?"

"Woman's intuition."

"I want it too!"

Yuki laughed at his childish antics before looking at the two before her. The guards were looking at them as if they were crazy. 'This is how Akatsuki members act like?'

Sasuke took a look at Sakura and noticed the changes immediately. Her curves had filled out and her body was enticing. Due to this, he noted that he might need to protect her from the perverts at Konoha. Her hair was still shoulder length but it was luscious and no longer bloodstained. Just like her bright emerald eyes, her entire aura was filled with life and she was no longer the blank, emotionless missing nin he knew. It was hard to believe that someone like her could even torture someone.

After he observed her changes, he teleported Sakura and her companions to the Hokage's office. She was drinking once again and her papers were piled on the floor. It reached up to her desk.

"Holy shit! I told you not to do that during emergencies-"

"Hi shishou."

Tsunade promptly broke her sake bottle at the sound of the voice. Her eyes widened before she got up to hug Sakura, who proceeded to gasp for air.

"You did it... you did it." Tsunade was elated and she let her go.

"Of course I did shishou. I even did it a year early." At this Sakura smirked. "Without these guys, it would've been really hard."

Takeshi and Yuki smiled at Tsunade and she gave them a big grin in return. Sasuke just stood, confused once more.

"What's going on?" he asked.

"You'll see soon. There will be a village meeting in a couple of minutes."

Sasuke frowned but he felt Sakura tug his hand. He looked at her and she gave him a small smile.

"Thank you."

Tsunade stood behind the railing and looked at the village before her. Once she got the signal that the people were ready, she started her speech.

"People of Konoha! I know word has spread around. Do you believe it? Would you believe it? Akatsuki is no more!"

The crowd roared and applause was heard.

"It all couldn't have been done if it wasn't for a key player. Our very own savior is here!"

The crowd roared once more.

"I welcome our heroes, Sakura Haruno and Takeshi and Yuki Shitatsu!"

At this the crowd grew silent, too frozen in bewilderment and surprise as Sakura, Takeshi, and Yuki walked out clad in Akatsuki uniform.

"You see, it was all a mission. Sakura acted as a spy for us in Akatsuki. She managed to get these two fellows to side with her and they were supposed to eliminate Akatsuki by next year but Sakura did it a year earlier. However you should know that her feelings were not fake. What she did was out of her own actions. She killed and tortured for a year because I let her so. She needed a way to let out the bad so there would be space for the good."

The crowd was deafeningly silent, focused on Tsunade's revelation.

"It was you who fueled her hatred. Do not forget that you insulted this powerful woman years ago. You called her weak, ugly, and unskillful. You lowered yourself to trash by comparing her to her sister. If you had kept your mouths shut, you would have saved a poor little girl from darkness."

Sakura looked at their expressions and frowned. They all looked so guilty and she didn't want their forgiveness.

"I don't want your pity. The best you can do to me is to leave me alone."

Surprised at the sound of her voice, the village looked at her in awe. They looked at her closer. She was taller and her body filled out quite nicely. Her voice matured as well as her face. Her short hair looked luscious and well taken care of. Her green eyes weren't blank and dull; it was bright and full of light. They blinked out of their trance once Tsunade started her speech once again.

"She really did intend to join the Akatuki, I just got to her before she left. She also killed and tortured innocent lives and for those two reasons, I will punish her. I will also punish her two companions but since they helped eliminate their organization, they will get the same sentence as Sakura. I am charging Sakura Haruno and Mr. and Mrs. Shitatsu 100 hours of community service as well as one month's worth of chakra restraints. Since Sakura is too powerful, I will have her live in house arrest with an ANBU for 6 months. She and her companions cannot take the Jonin or ANBU tests until a year has passed. This is my decision and this meeting is adjourned!"

The crowd was disturbingly quiet, curious as to what Sakura and her friends would do next. Sakura gave her friends a look and they all smiled reassuringly. The trio took of their Akatsuki attire and revealed their attire underneath, which was Konoha's Jonin uniform. Sakura got her match and as she burned the last of the Akatsuki robes, the crowd roared once more and everyone went out to celebrate.

The night was filled with excitement and joy because the entire village was in celebration. However, there were two figures on top of the Hokage Mountain, the place where everything started.

"Hn. You never liked parties." one said to the other as he sat down.

"You mean we never like parties." the woman replied, smiling to the man next to her.

"Heh, never thought I'd see the day." the man said with a smirk on his face.

"What day, Sasuke?" the woman asked. Sasuke turned to her and touched her check.

"The day you would smile contentedly. It's beautiful, Sakura." Sakura blushed at his statement and swatted his hand away. Sasuke chuckled lightly at this.

"Ugh, I can't stand you. You're too lovey-dovey. I miss the old angsty you." Sakura stuck her tongue out at him and he smirked at her. He rested his hand over hers.

"I'm Sasuke Uchiha, you love me no matter what side I show."

"Cocky bastard… good old Sasuke."

Sasuke was a bit tense when she said that. She gave him a questioning glance.

"…kun." he said quietly.

Sakura smiled at him once more and she leaned his head on his shoulder.

"…Sasuke-kun."

And Sakura thought that time had stopped and the world only contained the both of them.

"SAKURAAA! TEMEEE! YOU ASSHOLESS!"

"SAKURA YOU CAME BACK AND YOU DON'T TELL YOUR SISTER!"

...or not.

Both froze and turned around to see a completely overjoyed Naruto and an excited Saki. They got up only for the two to rush over to their position.

"YOU IDIOT I MISSED YOU!" and with that, Naruto glomped Sakura.

"MOVE, SHE'S MY SISTER!" Saki yelled and shoved Naruto away before hugging Sakura tightly. "YOU SHOULD'VE TOLD ME THOSE ASSHOLES SAID THOSE THINGS SO I COULDV'E-"

"S-saki, seriously. I-its okay." Sakura was losing her breath and thankfully, Saki let go. Sakura saw Itachi and Hinata walking towards them and she gave Saki a questioning glance.

"Ano, Sakura. The others want to meet you." Hinata said shyly without a stutter and Sakura gave her a smile.

"Of course I'll come."

"Good, cause Takeshi is getting drunk and Yuki is playing strip poker." Itachi stated. "Also, mother and father want to meet you. They've been interested in a long time."

At the mention of her friends, Sakura sweat dropped but when she heard about Sasuke's parents, she blushed.

"N-ne, Sasuke-kun? What does that mean?"

Sasuke smirked at her and rested his arms around her, embracing her from behind.

"Hn. They've known about my feelings for a long time." he said while nuzzling his head on the crane of her neck. Sakura blushed and pushed him away.

"They also want to meet the girl who beat their son and smashed his pride." he added jokingly. At this, Sakura's face grew dark and turned away but Sasuke held her arm and turned her to face him.

"It's all over, it's in the past."

"I know... I know."

The others knew they needed more time to talk so they broke the ever-growing tension.

"Hey! I wanna eat some ramen so imma go first! Believe it!" Naruto yelled before dragging Hinata who timidly waved bye.

"Ugh, he's going to do something stupid. Promise you'll come Sakura!" Saki yelled and glared at Itachi. Sasuke made a whipping noise and he glared at him.

"Tch, bye foolish little brother. I wish to see you soon, Sakura."

Sasuke smirked at him and Sakura waved goodbye. As soon as they left, Sasuke turned back to Sakura.

"Ready to be living with me?" Sasuke asked. Tsunade chose him to be the one to stay with her during her house arrest and Sakura was relieved for that.

"Of course not, how can I stand anyone like you?" Sasuke just smirked at her. He lived not too far from the district and had a large flat. It was big enough for a family to live in.

"I don't know, you tell me." Sasuke smirked at her once more and she laughed.

At first, there was a comfortable silence as they sat down but Sasuke felt the tension grow again. He faced away from the village lights and turned towards Sakura, who had had her head turned up to the stars. He grabbed her hand and she looked at him, confusion and doubt in her eyes.

"...What are we?" she said quietly.

"Whatever you want to be."

That was all Sakura needed for her fears to wash away and kiss him. She had wanted to do this for so long but the circumstances back then showed that she couldn't. She got on top of him and draped her arms around his neck, pulling him closer as he snaked his arms around her waist. He flipped them over and settled himself between her legs. She tugged on his hair while he gently bit her bottom lip. She opened her mouth and the two battled for dominance with Sasuke winning eventually. The two parted after a while and breathed heavily. The two laughed softly as Sasuke rested his forehead on hers.

"So is it what I think it is?" Sasuke gave her a lazy smirk and the two sat back up.

"It is. Ever since I was little..." Sakura trailed off, looking in his glazed obsidian eyes. She could see the love in them and couldn't help but think if this really was Sasuke. He never showed any type of feelings.

As if Sasuke sensed her doubt, he gently gave her a chaste kiss before hugging her. He looked at her straight in the eyes, not wanting to show a lie.

"Ever since we met, I had this odd feeling of protecting you. And I was scared so I ignored it, ignored you. That proved to be the worst decision of my life." Sasuke started, seeing the surprised look in her eyes. "Don't expect me to be this affectionate and talkative in public. Us Uchiha don't like to express feelings so openly."

Sakura laughed in relief and happiness. She snuggled into his arms as she replied back to him.

"Of course, I love you no matter what."

She gave him a chaste kiss and he responded.

"And I love you."

With that, the two got up and walked to Ichiraku's Ramen hand in hand.

When the two arrived, they both sweatdropped. The newly built shop was bigger and had its own private room, which was where they were currently in.

Takeshi was drunk and trying to flirt with a lamp and Yuki was playing strip poker with Kiba, Naruto, and two of the waiters. She still had her clothes on while the others were shirtless. Sakura saw her smirk before taking all the cash; she had won again.

"Screw it! I give up." Kiba said and put his shirt, jacket, and headband back on.

"Yeah, we should be working right now."

"It's okay man. Hey, our shifts are on weekends and you should come sometime. We'll be sure to beat you next time." The two waiters told Yuki before heading out. They didn't seem scared of her and Yuki was happy for that.

"Aw, I wanted to buy Hinata-chan something new." Naruto pouted and sat back down to his original spot.

Sakura looked at her surroundings and just sighed. To her left in the corner were Lee and Gai hugging and ranting about youth, both obviously drunk. Naruto was talking to Hinata while Neji glared at him from his spot on the rectangular table. Tenten was by his side and kept him at bay. Why the two sat directly across with each other was a mystery; everyone knew that Neji would try to beat Naruto up at any chance he got. Sakura shook her head and looked in front of her. She saw Ino and Saki arguing about the latest fashion and Itachi and Shikamaru talking quietly. Off to the right side, Chouji was still eating ramen and Shino was trying to cheer Kiba up because of all the money he lost. Yuki was there counting all the money she had won while taking pictures of Takeshi trying to make out with a lamp.

Ino was the first to notice the two newcomers and she shouted for their attention. Suddenly, everyone turned from their sides and greeted them. Sakura was a bit unsure as to how she should react but Sasuke squeezed her hand in reassurance. Sakura smiled at him and they took their seats next to each other in front of Ino and Saki.

Surprisingly, Sakura had gotten along well with the others. She had agreed to teach Tenten on how to improve on her taijutsu and she agreed to teach Sakura everything about weapons. The two chatted amiably for a while before Ino called Sakura out.

When Sakura and Ino met, they immediately realized that they were very compatible. They knew that this was the beginning of a long friendship. The two would argue over fashion or tease about their boys. Sakura was surprised that she and Ino were very comfortable with each other despite all that had happened.

Sakura and Hinata were already on good terms and the two had a brief conversation before Naruto dragged Hinata away to talk about the wonders of ramen. She saw Neji glare at him and decided to pay him a visit. Sakura and Neji both had a deep respect for each other due to their encounters when Sakura was still an Akatsuki member. He was always the team leader and was able to outsmart her on few occasions. The two talked about battle strategies until Tenten decided that she would get drunk and start stripping. Gai and Lee also thought that it was the perfect time to sing so they sang Barney's 'I Love You'. Lee was beatboxing while Gai was singing with an ungodly, hoarse voice. Tenten was stripping off to the beat of the beatbox and Neji shook his head in shame. He excused himself and Tenten and the others burst in laughter.

Sakura had gotten well with Shikamaru seeing as she gave him a challenge when they played Shogi. Sakura sweatdropped when she saw him have his Shogi board out in the middle of chaos playing with Itachi. While the two played, they talked of strategies and got to know each other better. Speaking of Itachi, Sakura felt a bit nervous around him at first but discovered that he wasn't as bad as she thought he was. He would tease her about Sasuke often and she would playfully glare at him. By the end of the night, he grew from a complete stranger to a brotherly figure.

At first, Kiba flirted with Sakura but backed off when he noticed Sasuke's glare. Sakura only shook her head and they both laughed it off. Despite his advances on her, she was comfortable with him and knew she could rely on him during search missions. Sakrua had also gotten to pet Akamaru and they both loved each other. Eventually, Sakura saw that Sasuke was getting jealous so she bed Kiba goodbye and talked to Shino. She was fascinated by his bugs and how they worked so she asked multiple questions. He answered them all and felt relieved that she didn't scream and back off. Although she couldn't see it, Shino smiled due to the fact that she wasn't scared and was the complete opposite. He was happy he had a friend that was interested in his fighting style instead of making a commotion.

Sakura decided not to go to Gai and Lee seeing as how they were drunk so she went back to her seat next to Sasuke.

"Comfortable?" he asked.

"Yeah." she replied.

Sakura spent that evening relaxing and spending time with her newfound friends. She found out more about them and in turn, they found out more about her. They would ask each other questions and answer. As the night's end grew near, they all bed each other goodbye and took care of their drunken counterparts. Neji had come back for Gai and Lee and Itachi helped him with them.

As Sakura walked towards her newfound home with Sasuke, she couldn't help but feel happy that everything worked out in the end, that she was out of the dark and into the light.