Note: This takes place immediately after Chapter 11.

Sakura stewed over the information that the Hokage had given her, allowing it to fester in the back of her mind as she prepared food for Naruto and Sasuke. After dinner, they relaxed in the sunroom and Naruto shared his big graduation news with Sasuke, who only replied, "it's about time." She huffed a laugh as the blonde tackled Sasuke and the two of them rolled around grappling on the floor until they knocked into a lamp, nearly sending it crashing to the ground. They froze, wide-eyed and looked at Sakura in alarm. She didn't have to say anything, just stared until they picked themselves up and sat on opposite ends of the room.

They didn't ask to stay, but kept making excuses as to their continued presence until it grew too late for her to do anything but roll out the futon for them. Sakura would never have kicked them out, but she also knew that some sort of misplaced pride would also never allow either of them to ask her outright.

The next time my parents are home, I'm going to speak to them about Naruto and Sasuke moving in. I have the room for it and I would love for them to be safe under one roof every night.

Satisfied that the boys wouldn't murder each other in their sleep, Sakura readied herself for a long night of staring at the ceiling. She lay in her own bed and mentally picked through the conversation she had with Sarutobi earlier that day. She finally had a valid reason for knowing about Naruto's fuzzy tenant, but she had been trying to protect him for two years now without officially being aware. Had anything changed? Sakura had a feeling that while she had gained trust with the Hokage, her loyalty was still being tested in a round-about way. She just hoped that it would not come down to choosing between Konoha or her boys, because Sarutobi would not appreciate her decision.

Nor would another person, a man who had been more difficult to keep tabs on than the Akatsuki, though for entirely different reasons. Based on the information she had been able to obtain in her own past, Danzo's ROOT faction had been officially disbanded when Itachi had fled Konoha. This just forced him to bring his movements underground, with a level of paranoia that made it nigh impossible for her to both infiltrate and keep her position in the village. She was amazed that he had not approached either of the boys, considering their level of power at an early age and Sasuke's bloodline limit. Sakura had felt for sure they would be prime targets, so she had consistently and subtly tried to question them about their interactions when they weren't together. After two years, she had come to the conclusion that Naruto or Sasuke's inclusion into ROOT would draw too much attention to Danzo. It was something he could not afford while Sarutobi was still alive. Even though she strongly disagreed with the Hokage's decision regarding Naruto's jinchuriki status, she was relieved that he still stood between Naruto and the worst of Konoha.

Still, that didn't mean that her home was entirely safe for the boys. She needed a way to ensure their protection and Sakura knew just who to ask.

"Ibiki-saaaaan!" Sakura sang out his name as she strolled into the T&I offices, not even bothering to glance at Kiri-nin who was in a chakra dampening cell awaiting processing. The man snapped his sharpened teeth in her general direction and she sent him the most withering glare she could create. "You have terrible manners, nin-san."

Kotetsu was at his desk and could only roll his eyes at her behavior. At this point most of the members of T&I were used to Ibiki's strange and occasional shadow, though Inoichi remained slightly wary of her presence whenever they openly had prisoners. Must be a dad thing.

Ibiki grunted in acknowledgement, but kept writing the report he was working on. She skipped over to his desk and stood at attention, staring at him with bright eyes, clearly determined to be there as long as it took. He scratched through several sentences, appearing have forgotten her presence. Sakura remained still, a picture of absolute patience. Kotetsu reluctantly turned back to his own work when nothing happened, slowly and painfully decoding the message they had liberated from their prisoner.

Fifteen minutes of silence had passed, with the Kiri-nin staring unnervingly at Sakura while she blithely ignored him in favor of staring unnervingly at Ibiki. He signed the bottom of the document and finally, finally looked up. "Whaddya want, kid?"

She smiled blindingly at him. "What do you know about seals, Ibiki-san?"

"Enough to know you shouldn't be playing around with them."

Sakura placed a hand on her chest in shock. "Me? Playing? Perish the thought. I have an idea, but I need someone with more knowledge than I can currently find in Konoha's main library."

Ibiki leaned back in his chair. "I bet those fancy Hyuugas probably have something in their own library, considering that damn cursed seal they put on their branch house. Good luck trying to get in there."

"That was an entirely unhelpful answer, Ibiki-san. If I wanted to know who wouldn't be useful, I would have just asked a toddler to help."

"Brat. Why do you need to know about seals so bad, anyway? Give me a good reason and I might help you."

She pouted. "You know I'm good at them, it's not like I'm some amateur waltzing around with a scroll and a brush."

Ibiki ignored the fact that she was ten and therefore unlikely to be anything but an amateur, skill-wise. Sakura had never been a normal child, not since he had met her. He knew she was unusually talented in whatever she set her mind to, mostly because she never let herself stop until she had perfected every aspect to her satisfaction. Their lessons with the tanto had proven that many times over. She had once told Ibiki that "never give up" was a mantra of a friend that she had lost, so she tried to live it for him. The heartbroken look on her tiny face was enough to forestall any other questions.

"I know you're good. But that's not what I asked."

"I have a very valid reason, but I can't … tell you here." Facing away from their prisoner, she signaled to a room outside the main office. Intrigued, he allowed her to lead him to an interrogation room, after first checking to make sure the privacy seals were in place.

"All right, kid. Spill."

"Hokage-sama informed me yesterday about Naruto." Ibiki felt a knot form in his stomach at the simple statement. He knew that she considered Naruto one of her precious people, the ones she worked so hard to protect. He hoped that her heart, so contradictory of everything they taught in the Academy, was open enough to accept the news. Ibiki did not want to think less of Sakura, but Naruto's continued existence was a point of contention with many villagers.

"I see. What does this have to do with fuinjutsu?"

She sighed in exasperation. "Don't you see? He needs my protection even more than I originally thought! Jinchuriki are exceptionally powerful tools in the hands of the wrong person and I will not let Naruto be taken."

The tight feeling loosened. "So it doesn't bother you?"

Sakura gave him a narrow look. "Hokage-sama asked me something similar. I will tell you what I told him and what I will tell everyone when this knowledge becomes known. Naruto is Naruto and nothing will damn well change that. This changes nothing but the scope of danger."

"So it seems." Inwardly, Ibiki was strangely pleased with her reaction. He was not generally considered a caring man, but Sakura had managed to worm her way into his life and he would have been very put out if she was harmed, even emotionally.

"So? Seals, people, help?"

"Let's go to the dango stall. Someone you should meet should be there around this time. Keep your wallet ready. You might need it."

Sakura sighed heavily. "Can't I ask you people for anything without having to buy food first?"

Ibiki led the way and Sakura trudged beside him, preparing herself. She knew who he was going to introduce her to when he mentioned dango and Mitarashi Anko was a woman anyone needed to fortify themselves for. Sakura had gotten to know her briefly in her own time period, on one of the few times Danzo had allowed her out of the village on a mission. The two of them had separated from the rest of their team and Anko had spent the entire time trying to provoke a response out of Sakura, poking and prodding all her sore spots before she had snapped and punched her through a tree. Instead of being pissed, Anko had laughed in delight and said, "Finally! I was beginning to think you were made of ice, Princess."

After the mission was complete, Anko showed up at her doorstep and bluntly said, "You're being wasted in the tower. Come fight with me."

This started a strange pattern of sparring and bickering that reminded her of the good old days between Naruto and Sasuke, except Anko was far more explicit and creative in her insults. Sakura gave back as good as she got, letting loose all her frustration at what her life had become. One day, Anko hadn't shown up for their predetermined fight-date for dango and a beating, so she went searching for her. The trail led her to Danzo himself, who was unsurprisingly unsympathetic.

"Mitarashi bit off more than she could chew in Kiri. They sent us back her head."

One more dead friend I get to see again. Try to be positive. Also, try not to call her an asshole immediately.

Ibiki looked down at the girl moving silently beside him. She seemed inordinately pensive, with none of her cheery sarcasm lighting their way. He hoped she had enough mental fortitude after Sarutobi's revelation to deal with Anko's own brand of insanity.

They arrived at the stall and Ibiki spotted Anko's brown trench coat immediately. It seemed that she had just gotten started, only two empty skewers in on the plate in front of her.

"Anko."

She spun around on the stool, half a dango in her mouth. She chewed obnoxiously and swallowed. "Ibiki! I didn't know you like dango. Or that you liked anything."

He snorted. "I'm here to see you. Or rather, Sakura is." He motioned to the still quiet girl at his side.

"Eh? Who's this? Some poor creature you abducted?"

"Sakura is a … friend. She has a query for you." Ibiki waved between the two. "Sakura, this is Anko. She has significant experience with seals." Anko narrowed her eyes at this and stared down at the pink-haired girl menacingly.

"What's a kid like you doing with fuinjutsu? They don't teach that at the Academy."

Sakura just crossed her arms and frowned. "Obviously, Anko-san. Otherwise I would have not needed to ask you."

The older woman laughed. "Oh, kitten's got claws, huh? Well, Anko-san doesn't work for free, Princess." Sakura grimaced at the nickname, annoyed that she was unable to be free of it no matter which time period she was in.

"I think my project will be of academic interest to you as well, but I will also pay for your dango today, with possible dango purchases in the future upon completion of the seal I need."

Anko's eyebrows had steadily risen as she spoke and she stole a quick glance at Ibiki's face, which revealed nothing. "That was quick, Princess. Looks like you need my help real bad."

Sakura shrugged. "I can always make more money. I can't reanimate dead friends." Anko's lips formed a thin line. Sakura wasn't sure if she knew about Orochimaru's edo tensei techniques, but it was clear the idea of reanimating dead people did not bring forth pleasant memories.

"So what do you want from me? I have more skill with fuinjutsu than your average shinobi, but I'm no master."

"I already have much of the seal composed, but I need an outside perspective. Would you be willing to work on it with me at my home?"

"Why not? It's been a while since anything interesting has happened."

Ibiki interrupted, only slightly incredulous. "Anko, you stabbed one of the diplomatic envoys on your last mission. With a fish."

"So? Par for the course, he was a traitor. I was supposed to off 'im."

"A fish!"

"It was the closest weapon! I got the job done, Ibiki."

Sakura had slid some money to the purveyor of the stall while they argued, indicating that she was paying for Anko's current food and an extra platter. She grabbed two skewers and pushed the rest of the plate towards the woman, hoping to distract her from her very visceral reminiscence of a fishy death.

"Thanks. When do you wanna meet up?"

Sakura offered one of her skewers to Ibiki, who eyed it suspiciously before grabbing the end. She tapped her chin thoughtfully. "Hmm, I have to make dinner for the boys again tonight, but I'm sure I can distract them with some errand afterward. How does seven sound?"

Anko was already half-way through her food and just nodded, cheeks bulging. "Mmph."

"Good. See you tonight, Anko-san." She left her address on a napkin and strolled back toward T&I with Ibiki, fully intending to enjoy her dango in peace.

Anko wandered over toward the civilian district, following the neatly printed instructions that pink haired girl had left for her. After she and Ibiki left, Anko had finished her (free) food and filed her mission report, complete with death by mackerel. She had casually made her way to T&I. Upon seeing the team leader gone, Anko had pounced on Kotestu for more information about this Sakura girl who was supposedly Ibiki's friend. What she got was a weirdly in-depth description of a strangely intelligent girl colored by a barely concealed fondness and slight exasperation. It had only served to further her curiosity.

She was about to knock on the bright red door when it opened, revealing a casually dressed Sakura, who greeted her with muted enthusiasm. "Anko-san! Right on time. I've told the boys to stay away for two hours without killing each other. That should give us a good start."

Anko stalked inside and blatantly looked around, seeing a large scroll unraveled on the middle of the front room. "Start on what, exactly? You weren't very forthcoming earlier."

"I need to place a seal of protection on my house, one that admits only people I have added via chakra signature."

"That's a tall order, Princess. Wouldn't a general barrier and alert seal do?"

Sakura stared at her unblinkingly. "My best friends in the whole world basically live here and I will do whatever it takes to keep them safe. That includes inventing new ways to do so in necessary."

"Fine, fine. Don't get your panties in a twist. What have you got so far?"

Sakura waved her over to the scroll on the floor and Anko studied it. It appeared to be an amalgamation of many types of seals she was familiar with, lines drawn tightly together in series of swirls. She saw barrier, alert, chakra, transportation and something she didn't recognize.

"What's this?" She pointed to a section of sharp strokes ending in points. "How does this fit in with your overall pattern?"

"That's the key I've built in. I will need a way to add people I want to the barrier so they can get into the house."

"And where does the transportation jutsu lead?"

Sakura smirked. "To an unmarked cell deep in the bowels of T&I. I had to bribe Ibiki with two weeks of barbecue for that." She hummed thoughtfully. "I think he would have done it anyway, but he likes to have company for lunch, so I let him have his way."

Anko laughed loudly and smacked Sakura on the back, nearly sending her sprawling across the scroll. "You're fun. I like you."

"Gee, thanks, Anko-san." The woman didn't respond to her sarcasm, having gone back to concentrating on the brushwork of the seals. It was incredibly impressive work for a kid and she couldn't find any catastrophic faults in it, except - "I don't see anything that would stop a summoned animal from crossing the threshold."

"Wouldn't they still be stopped by the lack of familiar chakra presence?"

"Their chakra coils are slightly different than ours or a regular animal's, due to their increased use of space-time jutsus." Anko grabbed a brush and quickly relooped an open circle on the seal, adding several wavy lines and a series of tomoe. "This would exclude them as well without interfering with the rest of your conditions."

Sakura was looking concerned now. "Will I be able to add summons using the key with this in place? I know I plan on entering in a contract later and I'm sure my boys will want to as well."

"There's no reason it shouldn't work with them too, with their cooperation. Other than that, this looks nearly ready to go. I don't see why you really needed me."

"I need help figuring out how to implement it. If I traditionally activate the seal with just a burst of chakra, there is a risk of it the key becoming functional for someone other than me if they know how to do it."

"True, but the hand seals required for the key are incredibly specific. It seems like a non-issue to me."

Sakura shook her head. "No, that's not good enough. I need it to be impossible to get past this seal if you're not me or my selected guests."

Anko sat back on her heels and regarded the girl carefully. "Tell me. Who are you trying to protect so bad? Did they do something?

"My best friends are Uchiha Sasuke and Uzumaki Naruto. I'm sure you've heard the names."

To her credit, the woman didn't ask the question Sakura was already getting tired of hearing. She just murmured to herself, "Ah. Now I see." She sat there silently and Sakura was hesitant to speak, but she didn't have to wait long. "How's your chakra control?"

"Excellent."

"Oho! Princess is a bit smug about that, huh?" Anko poked her forehead teasingly. "That's good, because I had a idea. I've heard about this style from Uzushio, but you know, that's gone now. It's too bad your Uzumaki friend is an orphan, I bet his clan would have been a great help in your little hobby."

Sakura just nodded solemnly. "Yes, too bad."

"Anyway, if you have good enough control over your chakra, you can use it to carve a seal into a surface. That would definitely imbue something of this magnitude with the protection you seem to need."

"That sounds good, but I was hoping that that the seal could stay hidden unless reactivated to add more signatures. There's no need to broadcast what I've done."

"You could always add a "hide me" seal on top of your original, that sort of thing is easily done. But your control really needs to be as good as you say, or it could blow up in your face."

"I'm confident in my abilities, Anko-san."

"Right, sure. I just don't want Ibiki on my ass if his precious Sakura-chan gets hurt, y'see?"

Sakura widened her eyes and affected a patently false innocent expression. "I'm sure a massively talented kunoichi like Anko-sama could save me from one tiny little seal implosion."

"You know, Princess, it's kids like you that stop me from having my own."