Chapter 9: Stirrings

"...you're serious right?"

"Why the hell wouldn't I be?"

"Well...this isn't just something I can talk about...especially with a guy like you,"

Okay. That hurt.

With an irritated twitch of an eyebrow, Sasuke watched Anko silently as she ate another stick of dango, adding it to the stack of empty ones beside her. Ever since he thought about his feelings and how he may be the one who could save Sakura from this mess...he was a wreck. He never really thought about them before till now and honestly, he wondered why such emotions existed. Wasn't a frown, scowl, and a smirk good enough?

"Alright! Geez, just stop with that stare!" Anko gave in, giving the Uchiha a sidelong glance. With a smirk, he calmly sipped his tea and took a look outside of the teashop hey were in. It was just them two today; the others went to go get some supplies for the trip back to Konoha. Sasuke only had a matter of hours to figure out what he was feeling right now.

"Okay, so what do I do?" He snapped a bit hurriedly, resulting in Anko rolling her eyes.

"Well...do you really like her?"

"That's what we're trying to find out!"

"I know just hold on a sec!"

With an annoyed huff, Sasuke waited as Anko took another bite of her dango, grinning.

"Okay, well firstly, how long have you known Sakura?" Sasuke's eyebrow twitched as he looked at the Jounin seriously. She stared innocently back, a small smile on her face.

"Practically my entire life."

"Okay, and have you ever done anything for her?"

Oh boy. Of course he had. He had risked his life for her so many times that he had lost count.

"Other than risking your life for her."

"...no,"

"Well then in order for you to get her attention, think of something! I'm not going to be the one who's gonna explain your own feelings out to you. Figure them out yourself!"

Sasuke stared wide eyed at the Jounin as she stood up and deserted him at the table, leaving a handful of money on the table. He slumped down in his seat and actually thought about it.

The times when Sakura used to follow him around like a dog were long gone for it seemed as though she didn't need him anymore. Or anyone else. He furrowed his eyebrows as he stared intently at the cup of tea in front of him. He realized that back in those years when they had left her behind, he noticed that Kakashi looked a bit guilty. Even as they had left, he had that guilty look on his face; it showed clearly in his silver eye.

Blinking in realization, Sasuke stiffened in his seat. He wanted Sakura to come. If he wanted her to come, then why didn't he let her?

The Uchiha stood up and left his money on the table, leaving the tea shop silently. As he walked in the streets with his hands stuffed down his pockets, he gazed at the shops nearby and spotted an eye catching poster.

"Welcome to the annual fireworks show! We hold this show on every 25th of May so please join us! There'll be lots of food, shopping booths and much more! So please buy your tickets now and join us!"

Sasuke stared at the poster for a long period of time, seeing the little drawn near the bottom having a good time. He scowled when he saw the price of the tickets and reached into his pocket to count his money when someone shoved him aside and ran off...taking his money with him. Realizing this, he scrambled to his feet and immediately took off running after the man that took his money.

"Oi! You bastard get back here!" He spat as he weaved in and out through the crowd. He could see the man's jacket flapping and reached out for it when a cart of fruits rammed into his side. Stumbling on his feet, he hit a wall and felt his side for a second before running off again after the man. He could still see his figure running and was about to tackle him down when someone beat him to it. Chihiro.

"Oi, that bastard took my money." He growled as he pointed down at the groveling man. He looked horrible. Face dirtied, clothes torn and all. Chihiro tied the robber's hands behind his back before lifting her head to meet his gaze, red earring swinging back and forth.

"Hm," With that she took a glance at the guy and smacked him hard on the head. Instantly he coughed up the pouch and refused to meet a furious Sasuke's eyes.

"I believe that a 'thank you' is implied?" Chihiro asked as she brought he man up to his feet. Meeting a silent Sasuke, she chuckled and patted his shoulder.

"Hey, its alright. I'll see you and the others later." Right when she was about to leave, Sasuke took hold of her wrist, which he realized was really skinny. Chihiro turned and gave him a curious glance.

"I was wondering...does Sakura like fireworks?" He asked in a low voice, a light blush covering his cheeks. The silver haired girl grinned as she caught on and nodded. As she walked off she turned around and waved.

"Good luck!" Sasuke scowled as she disappeared and made his way back to buying the tickets. All this just to figure whether these were "stirrings" or feelings.

xXx

"Hey, so when are we actually gonna do this thing?" Miu gave the silver haired man an amused smile and ran a hand through her lilac hair.

"Soon Hidan, in fact tomorrow." Hidan scrambled to his feet from his chair and approached the new recruit.

"Seriously? Finally! So what're we gonna do?" Hidan excitedly asked, sparks flying in his eyes. Miu stood up from the couch of the room and crossed her arms at him, giving him a look. He gave her a an irritated glare and scowled as she walked behind him.

"Be patient and go get Kakazu for me. I've got some planning to do before tomorrow." She silently retired to her room with a soft click of the door, leaving Hidan alone out in the living room, a silence filling in the presence of the one Miu had before.

With a frown, he made his way towards the fridge and grabbed a bowl of instant ramen, opening it up by the counter, disturbing the silence in the room. Within seconds, he was done and had hot water poured into the cup. Soon he was out the door with his cup of noodles, in his lame disguise, and sauntering into town to look for Kakazu.

Wandering through the crowd, he finished his noodles in a minute and dumped them in the trash as he scanned the people for his partner.

xXx

"Kakazu...where are you?" He muttered under his breath as he glared at the people who so curiously stared at him. Only when a hand prodded his shoulder did he snap out of his daze. Lifting his head, he saw his deeply disguised friend as a middle aged, carpenter who always held a serious gaze.

"What is it?" Kakazu growled, obviously annoyed that he was called. Hidan inwardly sighed and gave him a grin, excitement in his eyes.

"It's tomorrow! Finally, our mission can start." He explained as he made his way back to the apartment where Miu was. Kakazu silently followed next to him, acting as though Hidan was just someone he ran in to and knew.

"Good. I was starting to get bored. If I waited any longer, I might've just killed someone right then and there." Hidan chuckled lightly ay his partner and rolled his eyes as he opened the door to the apartment. Finding Miu standing in the middle of the room, she blinked as the two Akatsuki members strolled in, getting rid of their disguises.

"Good, you're here. Let's get down to business then." She greeted as she began to tell them the plan.

xXx

Sakura smiled brightly as Anko stepped into the shop of supplies. Anko grinned as she approached the group, a stick of dango in her hand. As always. Sakura looked back down at the bag of supplies she had and glanced over to see Kakashi and Naruto holding an armful of them as well. Everyone was going to have to pack. They were to leave in two days time. As the group made their way out, they walked through the streets, filled with energy and chatter as they talked about their day, leaving Sakura to mull about some things on her own.

When will the curse mark fully envelop her entire being? What will become of her once it takes over?

Concentrated deep in thought, she didn't notice a figure approaching the group with a group of fangirls scrambling behind. Sasuke scowled as the group of villager girls swooned over his stoicness as he glared at them, his eyes practically burning. Naruto snickered as he stopped in front of them, tickets held in his hand.

"What do you have there Sasuke?" Kakashi asked curiously, his eye darting down to the tickets in his hand. Sasuke looked startled for a second at having to explain it, but then recomposed his expression into a stoic one, a blank look as he met his former teacher's eye.

"Tickets. To the firework show. Tomorrow." He replied shortly, handing each of them out to everyone. He paused for a second before handing one to Sakura, meeting her eyes seriously. To his surprise they were filled with happiness, no cheerfulness would be the better word. As she kept his stare, her eyes seemed to say thank you to him silently.

"Thanks Sasuke!" Anko gleefully said as she looked at her ticket, a grin on her face. The only thing she recieved in return was a silent nod as the group made their way back to the hotel.

Sakura walked ahead as Sasuke stayed behind to walk beside Naruto, who seemed a bit over excited to watch the fireworks. He was practically jumping with anticipation. With a twitch of his eyebrow, Sasuke glared at his best friend, catching his attention.

"So, are you going to finally tell her?" Naruto teased as he elbowed his friend in the chest, a sly smirk on his face. Sasuke scowled and turned his head away from him, refusing to meet his eyes.

"What the hell are you talking about?"

"I know the real reason why you asked us to come. It's because you don't want to be alone when you realize your feelings." Sasuke moved his gaze to the ground as they walked, his neck beginning to feel hot.

"They're more like mere-"

"-feelings, Sasuke," Naruto interrupted, a sincere smile on his lips as Sasuke met his eyes. He was actually being serious about this.

"You seem to know a lot about this and yet you don't have a..." He trailed off as Naruto raised an eyebrow, completely catching on to what he meant.

"I do know a lot, but that's just because of Kiba, Shikamaru, and well ya know...everyone else." Naruto awkwardly explained as he rubbed the back of his neck. Sasuke gave him a blank stare as they entered their room, everyone going off into their seperate bedrooms. They had rented a suite and everyone had their own room. Surprising actually, at how big the place actually was.

"Well, I'll leave you to sort everything out." Naruto said as he retired to his own room, closing the door with a soft click. Sasuke sat down on his bed, thoughts jumbled inside his own head. Closing his eyes, he breathed slowly and began to meditate on his thoughts. Mainly about everything that has happened.

What would happen to Sakura once the curse mark finally took over? He knew for a fact that they had to protect her no matter the cost. Everyone knew that Konoha couldn't lose one of the best healers in their village. Even Tsunade-sama.

Knock. Knock.

His eyes shot open and he realized that he was staring up at the ceiling. Since when did he lie down? Turning his head to the side, and too lazy to get up, he cleared his throat.

"Its open." He growled, noticing his voice low. The doorknob pulled to the side and pushed open, revealing a surprised looking Sakura to step in. Instantly, Sasuke was up in a flash and watched as she stepped in, an uncomfortable silence settling in.

"I just wanted to say thank you for inviting all of us to the firework show tomorrow." She softly said, a small smile on her face.

Oh, so it was just that.

"Anything else?" Sasuke snapped, giving the girl an irritated glare. She winced slightly under his gaze, shutting her eyes for a second before meeting his own again.

"Can't you at least be a little more, I dunno, compassionate sometimes? I mean, I know you're an emotionless guy, but at least show something other than plain boredom and irritation!" Sakura suddenly spat out, her emerald eyes flashing in anger. She had her hands curled up in fists as she stood on a few feet away from him, and his...almost shirtless...ness.

He noticed that with the dark color she was wearing, it brought out her pink hair, which would make her stand out if she were hiding. To him, her hair color just seemed too...loud and obnoxious. But then again, why hadn't he said anything about it? Ever since the time she cut her hair back in the Chunin exams, he took no notice of her hair, till now.

Only faced with silence, Sakura let out an exasperated huff and relaxed her posture, raking her hands through her hair as she sat down on his floor. With a deep sigh, she propped her elbow against her knee and stared down at the floor, her chakra draining from her slowly because of the curse mark. Sasuke, silently noticing this, smoothly slid off his bed and sat down on the floor with her, his back leaning against the bed. Sakura lifted her head up slightly to meet his onyx eyes, but then ducked her head again. In this silence, Sasuke wanted to somehow apologize for snapping at her, but he just wasn't the type of guy to do that. Not in a million years. Unless brutally...brutally forced. However...

"...sorry," He muttered under his breath, hoping to gain at least some sort of reaction from the teenage girl.

"S'alright," She replied from her position, her hand slowly clenching into a fist. She was almost at her limit before she passed out. To think that the curse mark took this much chakra astonished her. Right now her head felt it was going to split. There was another awkward silence when she heard rustling and stiffened when a hand suddenly covered her own. To her surprise it was really warm. Lifting her head, she saw Sasuke leaning over with his hair blocking his eyes.

"You alright?" He softly asked, his voice concerned.

"Y-yes," She replied weakly, her voice cracking, revealing her position. Another moment of silence, and another heartbeat. There was yet another rustle and the hand that warmed hers left.

"Come here," Was what startled her from her thoughts. Snapping her head up, she saw Sasuke with a blanket wrapped around his shoulders, have his arms outstretched wide as if to welcome her into a...hug.

What?

Ah I missed writing for this fandom! But now I'm back! I hoped you liked this chapter! Things are about to get exciting in the next one now that Miu's coming back into the story! Sorry for the really long wait guys! Oh yeah and I got the word "stirrings" from PoTC 4! I love that scene! So funny! Anyway, all that credit goes to that movie and its awesomeness!

Revised: 7/20/13

Honestly, I had no idea what was going through my head when I wrote that scene with Miu and her accident. I don't even know. So if you thought there was gonna be some romance inside the Akatsuki, don't. Sorry. I really don't know what I was thinking. It's only a SasaSaku fic. So. Yeah.