Sakura woke up and stretched as memory of the past couple of days came back into her conscious mind. Scratching her head, the tired kunoichi sat up and looked around. No one was in the room with her, but some clothes, seemingly for women, were sprawled out across Itachi's side of the bed.

I really hope those are for me. Sakura giggled at her thought. Stretching once more, she got out of bed and walked into the bathroom. She got the water running and walked back into the bedroom to retrieve the clothes set out for her. Picking them up, she frowned in displeasure. The frown soon morphed into a grin and an idea found its way into the girl's mind.

Looking around, Sakura opened one of Itachi's drawers and found some scissors. Jack pot. Cutting utensil in hand, she began to shape the unsuitable clothes into something more to her liking.

After finishing her project, the pink haired stylist looked over her work. Although she had to cut more than she would have preferred, due to how the clothes were originally made, she was still pleased with the final outcome. Sighing in triumph, Sakura hummed her way back into the bathroom, closing the door behind her.

Once Sakura was sure she was nice and clean, she turned off the water and stepped out of the shower. While drying herself off a bit, she looked into the mirror. The bags under her eyes had disappeared for the most part, but she decided she would still like to put some make up on.

When the all-too-obvious-at-the-moment teenage girl finally had all her make up that she had packed assembled, she got to work applying it to herself.

It took a good ten minutes before she was satisfied with her work. She thought her outfit and make up made her look different, but she liked it.

Sakura had on a red tank top that came about three inches below her breasts and black shorts that came to mid-thigh. She had on a fishnet cover over her tank top that could easily be seen through, which hung over her shoulders and went all the way down to the palms of her hands. Her make up matched her outfit. Black eye liner lined all around both of her eyes, and red eye shadow was carefully applied to each eye lid. She did not have lipstick on, but in place of it had shiny lip gloss that had a scarlet tint to it.

Sakura smiled at herself, but still felt something was missing. She knew that she still needed to put on her knee high boots, but there was something else keeping her look from completely coming together. Suddenly, it hit her. She needed to style her hair a tad differently.

Finally realizing what she needed to complete her appearance, Sakura started trying out different hair styles. It took a good twenty minutes for her to decide on one, but she was very content with it. Most of her rosette colored hair was pulled up into a wild pony tail, while her bangs hung into her face.

Sakura, happy with her transformation, put on her boots and debated on what to do. She didn't know whether to stay in the room and wait for Itachi or to explore a little around the base. Curiosity got the best of her, and she decided to go with the second option.

Silently opening the bedroom door, the sneaky kunoichi stepped out into the hallway. Once she was sure no one was around, she closed the door behind her and started to wander.

Surprisingly enough, even after half an hour of roaming around, Sakura didn't run into anyone. She figured it was about time to head back to Itachi's room anyway, but there was a major problem. She didn't know how to get back there.

Slightly panicked, Sakura started searching for the room. She was so tied up in doing so, that when she turned a corner she collided with someone. Neither her nor the other person fell, but she stumbled back. Once she had regained her balance, she looked up to meet crimson eyes.

The green eyed captive's heart was racing. She was scared, and the fear was surely apparent on her face. She waited for Itachi to punish her or make a move, but instead, he only spoke.

"Hmph. What causes you to think you can just roam around the base?"

"Well.. I..." Sakura didn't know how to reply. She knew not giving an answer would probably be unacceptable, but she feared an "unsuitable" answer would have consequences.

Seeing Sakura's distress, Itachi sighed heavily and walked passed her. Knowing well what to do, the girl followed. The two got back to Itachi's room and went in. The emotionless man closed the door and then took time to actually examine Sakura. He finally noticed the changes she had made. He couldn't deny that he liked it. She looked mature and appeared to have a dangerous edge. Although he took in every detail of her new look, he did not make his slight interest in her transformation known.

As Itachi stayed silent, Sakura's discomfort grew. She wondered what he was thinking about. Not able to keep meeting his gaze, she looked away from him. It was at that time that something caught her eye. Rising slowly, she walked over to Itachi's night stand and opened another drawer. In there, she found a drawing and some art supplies. The drawing was beautiful and nearly flawless. As Sakura looked over it, she realized the drawing was of her.

Turning to Itachi, picture in hand, the girl addressed him.

"This picture of me that you drew... It's beautiful. It has so much detail and..." Sakura trailed off as she continued to stare at the artwork.

"I see," Itachi started. "You seem to enjoy my art."

Sakura nodded in confirmation.

"Hm. Anyway, back to the original topic, wandering around here isn't in your best interest. The other members know of you being here, and will not bother you at all while you are in my room. As soon as you step foot out into the hall way without me, though, some of them may see you as fair game."

"Fair game?" Sakura questioned, not sure she really wanted him to explain but wanting an answer anyway.

"Yes, fair game. I'm sure you know of Akatsuki's reputation for having odd but strong members. Not all of them would pay attention to you at all, but some of them may have some twisted things they have planned to do with you. If you are caught wandering around by yourself, you will have no protection. I can promise you, it won't end well."

"Oh.." The cherry blossom's innocent face let Itachi know she meant no harm when she was roaming around and that she was now frightened. She continued. "I understand. I'd rather not find out what the other members of your organization are capable of. At least, not if it affects me in a negative way. Plus, I walked around for about 30 minutes, and I know I must've been walking in circles. I get lost in here. There is just one problem at the moment, though."

Itachi ever so slightly raised an eye brow. "What is it?"

"I'm extremely hungry." Sakura blushed a bit at saying this. Not that she really had a reason to; it was just how she was.

"I shall bring you food. The leader is here and everyone is tense from some business that went wrong. It would be best if you just stayed put while I went and got you a meal."

"Alright. That would be nice."

At hearing Sakura's reply, Itachi left the room to go get her something to eat. After Sakura heard his footsteps fade, she plopped onto the bed and stared up at the ceiling. She stayed like this until her captor came back with her food.

Itachi placed Sakura's meal on the bed next to her, and watched her devour it hungrily. Once she was finished, she set the dishes on the stand next to the side of the bed where she slept. Her head hung, as if she was discouraged or sad. The Uchiha's own curiosity kicked in.

"What is wrong?"

"I feel lonely and miss my friends.." Sakura didn't know how else to put it. She was just feeling majorly home sick.

"The sooner you heal my eyes, the sooner you may go home."

"I know, but who knows how long this will take? It's a process. I can't just learn everything and completely heal your eyes in one day."

Itachi watched as tears formed at the base of Sakura's eyes. He too knew what it was like to feel extremely home sick. He assumed that must of been what sparked his sudden generosity.

"Is there anything that I can do to help you adjust to the situation a little better? Do not start thinking that I am going to go easy on you just because I asked that, but for the best results on my eyes, I suppose I need you feeling as good and healthy as I can get you to."

Sakura's eyes widened, then she sat quietly as she thought. Gaining an answer, she replied.

"I guess there are a few things..."