"I need to get to him, now," Sakura realized out loud.
"Then you will help him."
"Yes but...there's one problem."
"A problem?"
"Nobody knows where he is," Sakura tried to hide the hopelessness in her voice, "We haven't heard from him in months, almost a year at that..."
"Look into my eyes, once more."
Sakura returned her gaze to Itachi's, only to find his black, sharp tomoe spinning once again.
The path leading out from Konoha sped rapidly in front of her. Her gaze flew past the northern border of the land of fire, past the hidden sound border, and finally up to the hidden frost village. Yet the path did not stop until the world came to a hurtling stop at a war-torn, small village near the north. He's...showing me the way to Sasuke...?
And suddenly, she spotted him. Her breath caught in her chest.
He was so thin...and so alone. Blood seeped from his throat every breath he took, but he swallowed it down. Shakily he trudged through the snow, hacking and coughing and trying to steady himself. The coat that she had bought for him before he left was not enough to hide his shivering. Sasuke-kun...
The snow began to fall on Sasuke, who gazed at the sky in confusion. Almost as if he was aware of -
Suddenly, Itachi's world disintegrated before her once more.
Sakura looked to the ground, trying to hide the tears that now lined her eyes. She swallowed. It's worse than I thought...
Itachi stood gazing uncomfortably at the ground, as if afraid that his knowledge may be rejected on basis of a trick, or a strange dream, maybe even a nightmare. As if she wouldn't believe him.
"...So that's why you've come." Sakura realized to herself, slowly.
"Yes...You are the only medic I am aware of powerful enough to potentially save my brother. I vowed to protect him as a child...and even in death, I...," Itachi paused, and his determined eyes once again returned to Sakura's. "Believe me when I say this, I - "
"I believe you, Itachi. I just...I didn't realize it was this bad..."
Itachi laid a hand on her shoulder, swallowing uncomfortably.
"Then you will travel to the Snow? You will help him?"
"With every last ounce of chakra, of course."
The relief that flooded his eyes was visible, and his entire posture relaxed.
"Itachi..." Sakura murmured, "I can't thank you enough for everything you've revealed to me... without you, I would never have known."
Silence.
"My brother is...naturally withdrawn. After all that has happened to him, it is in his nature to be so..."
"I understand. I will take care of him. And I will heal him," Sakura lined every word with her determination.
Itachi nodded.
"Thank you, Itachi," Sakura smiled hopefully at him, then reached to embrace him tightly. He flinched. He was much thinner than she had expected. Slowly he reached up to wrap his arms around her as well.
"I'm so glad that I was able to...get to know you a bit better," she offered quietly, "You're so important to Sasuke, and I know why..."
Finally she let go of his withered, but muscular frame.
"And I understand...why you are so important to my brother as well."
Sakura blushed in confusion.
"I must now leave. Do not forget anything I have taught you."
"Not on my life."
With that, the world before her began to swirl, until it became black once more.
She awoke, jerked out of bed by her own conscious. Gasping, she clutched her body, trying to calm herself down.
What just happened to me..., she felt sick to her stomach. And then suddenly the memories hit her hard.
Itachi...!
She gazed frantically around the room, searching for any trace of the eerie man. But he was gone.
Was it...a dream...? she wondered to herself.
CAW CAW CAW
In the middle of night, on the branch the often tapped against her window, stood a lone raven.
She steadied herself with a deep breath, realizing the intensity of the situation.
"Alright, Itachi, I'm going...let me just grab my things."
The raven flew in her window, and adrenaline pumped through her veins, giving her heart a freezing sensation. Yet he stood, still as a statue, on her bedpost.
She nodded to the bird, then began to gather her equipment. All her gauze, medical tape, sutures...she wasn't sure of the cause of Itachi and now Sasuke's illness, and she sure as hell needed to be prepared. Once she had stuffed her equipment into her pouch, she grasped a backpack full of other supplies - food, water, kunai, and the like.
Tsunade will be wondering why I hadn't returned to the hospital...Naruto, too. My parents, Ino...she realized, but wouldn't waste time to wait until the morning to begin her journey. The clock on her nightstand read 3:00 AM, and she knew it wouldn't be until later that everyone even began to stir.
"I'll just write them a note, okay?" she replied to the bird, wondering if she were crazy for thinking that it still might be him...maybe it's just a freaky coincidence...?
She scratched a quick note down, noting her absence (for urgent medical purposes) and a tentative return date, then quickly but firmly taped it to the door.
She locked her door, then threw her jingling keys into her pack as well. Sakura pulled her tapered jacket from the time she had traveled to the Land of Snow over her head, secured her ninja boots, and fastened the pouch to her side.
"Alright, let's go," she murmured to the bird. Moment of truth...does it lead the way Itachi did, or...is it just a random bird...maybe a sign?
But sure enough, the black bird flew toward the direction of the northern border of the Land of Fire, and vanished like a puff of smoke.