Authors Note: Well...i don't know if this chapter came out the way I wanted...but i think it's all right...not the best but okay. Again i have to thank my great beta reader Silver, she's amazing!! Got this chapter back to me in three days, not even that since her internet wasn't working on Monday, she's the best and very dedicated. Thank you! I also wanted to thank the people who have reviewed. I noticed quite a few people added the story to favorites and alert but they don't review....sadness. So big, BIG thank you's to those that did. I'm so very grateful to you guys! Here's chapter two, it's a little longer than chapter 1 so enjoy!

I think I'll try to update every week, at least until Finals week...at that time it might take me a little longer but hey, i have a few more weeks until that time. :D Thanks again! Please review and tell me what you thought! Lots of Love!!


Chapter 2

Sakura woke up with a start. Her breathing was rapid and she was covered in a cold sweat. She put her hand on her temple as she tried to slow her breathing down.

'Why did that happen?'

She threw the sheets off her body and placed her feet on the cold floor. The coldness was able to snap her out of the dream she had had.

Shivering from the cold she walked to the dresser that held the picture of Team 7. Her finger traced Sasuke's face.

"I won't ever give up on you...no matter how much you want me too. I will bring you back home."

"Sakura it's time you realized that he may not come back."

She didn't flinch when she heard the voice.

"Kakashi Sensei why are you here?"

"You dreamed of Sasuke didn't you?"

Kakashi responded, cutting right to the chase.

Sakura turned on her heels so she was facing Kakashi. "If I did?"

Kakashi walked to her and took her by the shoulders.

"How do we know if he's trying to contact you? He could very well be trying to get you out on your own so he can make his strike."

"You talk about him like he's a killer! Sasuke wouldn't do that, he wouldn't hurt me!" Sakura urgently whispered.

Kakashi gave her his classic 'you're so stupid' look. Sakura glared at him defiantly.

"I know him Kakashi!"

"You haven't seen him for almost three years. There's no way you could know him."

Kakashi cut her off, a hard look in his eye.

Sakura crossed her arms across her chest.

"Again, I'm going to ask why you're here."

Kakashi let his hands fall down to his sides.

"The hokage put me on watch over you."

Sakura's mouth fell open in utter shock.

"Why do you need to watch over me? I'm not going to run away and never come back!"

Kakashi looked bored as he answered.

"With Sasuke being in the area the Hokage is taking all precautions."

Sakura looked angrily at the floor.

"Do they have someone watching Naruto? Or am I the only one they believe will run out and try to save Sasuke?"

"No, Jiraya is watching over Naruto. He's not very kind about it either--Naruto is...well, not very understanding on the matter."

Sakura tightened her hands against her arms.

"I don't think you guys are very understanding either. Sasuke is one of us and when he's gone....a part of us is gone too."

"What if Sasuke doesn't want to be saved? You can't change someone's mind that doesn't want to be changed."

'Why in the world is he being so difficult? He used to love Sasuke just as much as we did, if not more. They have a whole lot more in common than me and Naruto do. Why does Kakashi act like Sasuke is the devil? He left for a reason...no matter how dumb the reason was he did it so others wouldn't have to get hurt when they saw him'
Her eyes flashed with pain.

'Even though he took my heart and ripped it out I'm still here for him. I'll wait no matter how long it takes to have Sasuke back. Is that so hard to understand? Yes he's done evil things that if things were different he wouldn't have done, but the fact is things aren't different. He's with Orochimaru to gain enough power to take down his rival, Itachi'
"Sakura, we have to protect you from him. You may think he won't do anything to hurt you but we all believe that he wouldn't hesitate to take your life if you got in his way. Normally I wouldn't think you could be so careless but since this deals with Sasuke you are likely to make the same stupid choices Naruto would."

'She's reacting as if she's still in love with him. When we did the second bell test she showed that she was over that obsession. When I look at her I can see the feelings that she's been harboring deep down inside her heart.'

Sakura brought her cold, hard gaze up to Kakashi.

"I don't understand why it's so wrong to want to bring him back."

Kakashi sighed heavily when he answered.

"He's not the same boy he was 3 years ago. He's dangerous and is now allied with Orochimaru."

Sakura squinted her eyes shut and shook her head. Kakashi couldn't help but feel worry flood through him as he watched her.

'He has a strong hold on her. If he ever wanted her for something he'd be able to have her. I have to keep her from him. I have to keep her safe.'

When she opened her eyes she glared at him.

"You know that you can't stop me if I decide to go after him."

"I'll try."

"Why did you give up on him Kakashi? You cared about him just as much as we did."

Kakashi didn't reply to her question. Sakura grabbed the photo frame and thrust it into his hands.

"Look at how happy you were. You cared about Sasuke; you protected him and guided him. You knew he was stronger than the rest of us and yet you worried about him constantly. I want to know why you've turned your back on him."

She demanded, slightly out of breath.

"I haven't seen you break down and whine like this since you were 13." Kakashi stated plainly.

Sakura bit her lip.

"I care about him so much. I can't stop thinking about the time he left--I should have stopped him,"

Her voice was barely heard.

Kakashi felt slightly out of place as tears began to roll down her cheeks.

"I could have said more that could have made him stay...I shouldn't have kept my feelings from him. He left because of how we weren't able to follow him, help he achieve the power he so desperately needed. If I had been stronger, a little stronger he could have stayed here!"

Her body began to tremble as more tears rushed down her cheeks.

"It's my fault he's gone! It's my fault that he's out there doing who knows what to who knows who! I should have stopped him, I should have..."

"...Sakura,"

Her eyes widened when she felt Kakashi's arms wrap around her small frame.

"It wasn't your fault that Sasuke left. He...he just needed to take care of things and he didn't want to bring you down with him."

Sakura smirked as she tried to stop the tear flow.

"Are you defending him now?"

Kakashi grunted.

"Not now."

Sakura buried her face deeper into Kakashi's chest. She couldn't believe how good it felt to be held...to be shown she was cared for. Kakashi looked around the room trying to stop himself from feeling awkward. Once Sakura had stopped shaking he let his arms fall away from her.

"Don't make me do something I don't want to."

Sakura brought her swollen eyes up to Kakashi's. She smiled softly and nodded her head.

"Okay..."

Kakashi patted her head and then turned towards the window, looking over his shoulder.

"I'll be outside keeping watch, you go back to sleep."

Sakura watched as he leapt out the window. She walked back over to her bed and lost herself in the covers.

'I'm sorry Kakashi...I'm sorry I have to lie to you. Sasuke is here, now, and I'm not going to let this chance escape. I need my Sasuke...'

Sakura yawned as she walked down the dirt street. When Naruto jumped from a pole and landed in front of her she nearly fell down. He quickly reached out to stop her from falling.

"Did you have someone watching you all night?"

Sakura covered her mouth while she nodded.

"Kakashi Sensei wouldn't leave me alone. I had a nightmare about Sasuke and he heard me so he was in my room telling me all the reasons why I should just give up on him. Oh, and he also told me that I shouldn't go after him."

Naruto rolled his eyes.

"Yeah Jiraya was in my room giving me a huge lecture on it too. The thing that really bugged me was we already had that discussion before and he knows how I feel about it."

They began to walk down the street together chatting among themselves when a blonde hair girl came rushing out of a nearby stand.

"Sakura! Is it true that Sasuke is back?"

Sakura turned to look at her friend Ino.

"Uh...we felt his chakra yesterday--so far we haven't felt anything."

Ino gazed at Sakura as if trying to analyze her.

"You're going after him aren't you?"

Naruto groaned as he put his hands behind his head.

"Yes Ino we're going after him. He's our teammate and there's no way we're going to let this past us by. This is our first chance to see and talk to him again."

Ino rolled her eyes at Naruto.

"I was just wondering is all."

"You were only wondering because you still have a crush on him." Naruto muttered.

Ino turned a deep shade of red as she advanced towards Naruto.

"I do not like him! There's someone else I'm interested in now. Besides the only one that still carries feelings for him is Sakura."

She retorted, pointing to the quite Sakura.

Sakura turned away from the two arguing people and walked down a deserted road. She was careless and didn't pay attention to little details like she knew she should. The only thing she could think about was him and how much she needed him. She ran her hand through her short pink hair.

Ino had grown her hair back after the incident when she cut it but Sakura had decided to keep hers short. He wasn't around to impress anyway so she didn't see the point in having long hair when the one person she wanted to notice it wasn't there.

'I wish I had gotten over Sasuke. I feel so vulnerable knowing he's here and yet I can't see him. Just feeling him in the area makes me weak inside. He never knew it but he was the strength that held me up when I was younger. I always knew when we got in fights that he would be there to protect me. Now when we get in fights I have to depend on myself, which isn't such a bad thing. I'm glad I was able to grow up and be able to depend on myself. But if I had to choose...between being grown up and with having Sasuke to protect me, I would choose Sasuke'
Sakura continued to walk through deserted roads and shops. The sun started to set behind the mountains when she realized how late it really was. She bit her bottom lip as she looked up at the sky.

"Naruto is going to freak when he can't find me. But it won't take him long to find me, so I shouldn't worry about it."

Her hair blew with the wind when it picked up. She instantly froze in place. There it was again...the familiar, yet not familiar chakra essence.

She lifted her eyes to the roof tops and began to scan them. Could he be here? Was it possible that he wanted to see them as much as they wanted to see him?

His cloak hid his features from the people in the street. He didn't need the cloak since he was hiding in the darkness anyway but he thought it'd be better to be safe than sorry. The wind picked up around him and a flash of pink caught his eye. He glanced down towards the street to see the one person he had been trying to avoid. She surely would feel his presence.

Her chakra perked up and he knew she felt him. He groaned inwardly as he tried to pull himself away from the situation that was sure to ensue. He was stuck in his place when her green eyes found him. The cloak wouldn't help him now; she could tell it was him even if she hadn't seen him for three years.

Her mouth formed his name as she took a hesitant step towards the place he was at. Sasuke's heart skipped a beat as she jumped in the air and landed softly next to him. Her chakra control had always been amazing, it surpassed his own.

His feet scuffed the roof as he took a few steps away from her. He could clearly read the expressions on her face. This was something he wasn't ready to face.

"S-Sasuke?"

Her voice wobbled with heavy emotion as she spoke.

He didn't respond, which seemed to be the answer she needed. Slowly and unsurely she took a step towards him.

"You could have hid yourself from us--masked your Chakra but you didn't, why?"

"Hn."

Sakura's eyes flashed with familiarity.

"You haven't changed that much obviously, you still answer in grunts and probably one syllable words."

Once again nothing left his mouth. It was better this way, if she didn't have anything to miss when he left. A pain shot through him when he imagined the last time he had seen her. He had caused that pain...the pain that broke her heart and left her empty.

Sasuke took this moment to really look at her. She was taller and much more toned out, probably from heavy training. Her hair was short just like the last time he had seen her. Her face had grown into her forehead and she looked pretty, to put it mildly. Seeing her again after three years stirred something up in him.

'This is dumb; I promised myself that I wouldn't let them find me. I was foolish to come back here. But--looking at her now I can see something I need. She could become a very good asset to my future...she could even help me get the one thing Orochimaru wants the most...'

A smirk came to his lips.

"You haven't changed a bit either."

The sound of his voice made her gasp. It was much deeper than when she had last heard him, it just went to show that he was more mature now...more grown up. Her hand flew to her mouth, he cheeks turning a light pink shade.

"Why are you back?"

Sasuke reached up and brought the hood of the cloak down so she could see him more clearly. Sakura's eyes shook with emotion. Sasuke had the same hair style he had before but now he looked older. A few years ago he was good looking and now he was really good looking.

"I came back to test myself--I wasn't planning on running into you but I guess it's happened anyway."

Sakura didn't want to break her gaze but she did. Fiddling with her hands she spoke.

"You're not staying, are you?"

As Sasuke watched her face fall when he didn't answer a pain shot through him, catching him off guard. He gritted his teeth together. He really shouldn't have come back.

"No."

Sakura eyes closed in defeat.

"I knew the answer before you said anything. I just...hoped..." she trailed off.

Sasuke smirked as he walked closer to her.

"It's best if you don't search for me while I'm in the area. Just go home and sleep."

Sakura shot her green eyes up to his black ones. They'd changed so much; they now were cold and hard, no emotion showing. With his hands he pulled the hood back over his head, casting his face in darkness. Turning on his heels he put his back to her. Anxiously she reached out towards him, grabbing his left arm.

"Don't go...not yet."

He stopped moving when she grasped his arm. Her strength had grown since he last saw her.

"Sakura, let me go--you can't save me when I don't want to be saved."

The words were like a slap to her face.

"If I can't save you can't I at least talk to you...for tonight?" Her voice faded to a volume he could barely hear.

His eyes fell to the roof top. Sakura walked closer to him so that she was only a few inches away from him.

"All I want is to talk to you--like it was before."

Sasuke chuckled as he looked at her from over his shoulder.

"How much talking did we ever do? You were always the annoying fan girl that I couldn't stand."

Sakura took a deep breath.

"I've changed a lot since then. I'm not crazy like that anymore."

Sasuke shook his head back and forth.

"Doubt it."

Her left hand clenched into a fist. She could feel the anger start to rise inside of her.

"I'm not that helpless girl I was back then. I can take care of myself now and I don't need everyone protecting me all the time."

He pivoted on his foot so he was facing her. It was interesting to see the anger that was suddenly evident on her face.

"Can you? I'll believe that when I see it."

She let go of his arm and glared at him.

"You've gotten even more arrogant, if that's even possible. No wonder Naruto always wanted to punch your face in."

Sasuke's eyes flashed at the mention of Naruto.

"You don't understand a thing, just like him." He hissed through his teeth.

Sakura folded her arms across her chest.

"Just because you won't tell me, if you'd only let me in I'd know what you were feeling and maybe I could help you."

"Help me? I don't want or need your help. I'm getting all the help I need from Orochimaru."

Sakura turned her head away from him.

"I hate that...thing for taking you away from us. It's his fault you left--him and that stupid curse."

Sasuke tilted his head to the left.

"Looks like Kakashi is on your trail. Apparently you aren't very good at hiding your Chakra signature." He taunted.

Sakura whipped her head around so she was looking at him. She was worried about him. Please don't let Kakashi feel him...please keep him safe.

Sasuke turned and fled off the roof. Kakashi landed right in the spot Sasuke was just standing.

"Sakura what in the world are you doing out here at this hour? You know it's not safe to be out on your own this late."

Sakura looked down the road that Sasuke had disappeared down. She sighed.

"I know Kakashi, I'm sorry. Can you take me home?"

They walked in silence back to her parent's house. Kakashi faced her, his arms folded across his chest.

"What exactly where you doing on the roof of that house?"

Sakura shrugged her shoulders.

"I just wanted a better look at the moon, is that so bad?"

Kakashi was about to reply harshly but thought differently.

"All right Sakura. You get inside and get some rest, it's late and you need to sleep. I'll come by in the morning to get you for practice."

Sakura opened her front door and waved good bye to Kakashi as she shut the door. She took the stairs two at a time and ran in her room. She pulled out a bag from her closet and began to fill it with anything and everything she could get her hands on. Her hands shook slightly as she zipped the zipper. She took a last look at her room, she had no idea when she would be coming back. Her eyes fell on the picture that she'd been looking at lately.

"I'm keeping my promise..."

She turned towards her window and pushed it open. She closed her eyes to look for any Chakra signatures nearby. When she couldn't feel any she jumped out the window and landed lightly on the balls of her feet. Sprinting down the road she made it to the spot where she and Naruto had felt Sasuke the day before. The cold metal bit into her hands as she climbed up the fence. She swung her feet over the side and the wind caught in her hair as she fell to the ground.

Her hands touched the ground as she landed. Looking up at the massive trees she smiled.

'Now it's time we played hide and seek Sasuke. I'm gonna find you.'