Itachi was acting weird. Sakura was a good enough detective to have deduced that Sasuke's comment was what had brought about this odd behavior, but she found herself annoyed with it nonetheless.

She had taken the time out of her only day off to come over here and fix him up after he made the extremely poor decision to use his Mangekyou and now he wouldn't even look at her.

Her hands were on his temples, surveying the damage he'd done. It wasn't as bad as she'd made it seem, but he really needed to be more careful or he would destroy all the work she'd done to correct the damage. Using her chakra, she soothed the nerves behind his eyes, knowing that he was probably feeling a lot of discomfort.

But in spite of the calming, healing nature of her chakra, she noticed that his hands were clenched into tight fists at his sides. His expression, even with his eyes closed, looked tense and upset.

With one last burst of chakra through the channels of his eyes, Sakura stepped away from him.

"Okay, Itachi-san," she said, trying her best to keep a professional and calm tone in her voice. "You're all set. Are you feeling any pain anywhere?"

His eyes flew open and she saw a flash of irritation in them. His lips were pressed together in a thin line. "No," he said through clenched teeth.

Sakura withered a little under his heated stare. She didn't know what the hell his problem was, but for some reason she felt like it had more to do with her and less to do with Sasuke's comment.

"Are you angry with me?" she asked.

She noticed the instant change in his features – the way they softened and looked almost sad.

"I'm not angry with you," he said, but he wasn't looking at her. "I've just got a lot on my mind right now."

She sat down on the arm of the chair he was sitting in, emboldened by his words and just wanting to be closer to him. "Do you want to talk about it?" she asked.

She couldn't imagine what could be bothering him. If there was any point in time that Itachi should be carefree and happy, it seemed like it would be now.

"Not really."

She resisted the urge to sigh. If he didn't want to talk to her about it, she could understand that. It hurt, though, that he wouldn't share whatever it was that as bothering him.

"Tell me about your night out partying," he said. She looked at him curiously. He didn't seem quite so tense anymore and she felt him leaning closer to her, not quite touching, but close enough for her to feel the heat of his arm against hers. "Did you have fun?"

"If taking care of a drunk blonde all night is considered fun, then yes," she replied with a wry smirk. "She got wasted almost as soon as we got there. I spent the night trying to keep her up on her feet and then when that failed trying to keep wandering hands off her."

"I'm sure a kunoichi of your caliber had no trouble with that," he said. She smiled and nudged him with her hip. He leaned even closer then, and Sakura had the urge to grab his head and crush it against her chest and just hold him there.

"Yeah, well," she said, "It would have been easier if I hadn't been a little tipsy, too."

"So did you get to practice flirting?"

Sakura pressed her lips together. She hadn't really flirted with anyone. She hadn't really wanted to. It was hard enough to keep her mind off the steamy incident in her bedroom the night prior. Ino had assisted her in scanning the room for any potentional suitors, but it had been Itachi's face that Sakura had been looking for. She knew of course that he was home resting, where he should be.

And she also knew that Itachi was well aware of her attraction toward him. Did he really want to know the answer to that question?

"Not really," she answered. "Hopefully my life will never depend on my flirting skills."

"I think you're pretty good at it."

"What makes you say that?"

He looked confused and for a moment Sakura swore she saw the faintest blush on his cheeks,

She figured this was as good a time as any to test out the validity of his statement. She leaned in close to him, letting her hair tumble down between them. It was getting quite long now and she knew that the tips of it were ghosting over his shoulder. He could probably smell her shampoo. She knew he liked vanilla.

With her eyes widened, she darted them back and forth between his eyes making it look like they were sparkling as they caught the light. She caught her lower lip between her teeth before letting it go again.

"Itachi," she breathed in her sultriest tone, fluttering her lashes. It was a cruel thing to do. She was well aware that he liked her lashes. Then she touched his arm lightly and smiled.

The effect was immediate. He grabbed her face roughly and pulled her into his lap, pressing his lips to hers with tenacity she wasn't used to from him. She shifted so that she was straddling his legs and kissed him back. It was gentle, undemanding in spite of the urgency she felt rolling off him in waves. It was languid, torturously slow and heated. Sakura rolled her hips against him, earning a groan of approval from him.

But then his hands were on her hips, steadying her and holding her still. "Sakura," he said when they broke apart. "You're quite good at flirting, I think."

"How am I at kissing?"

His face grew somber. For a second she was caught up in how handsome he was, still flushed from their kiss. His lashes rivaled hers in length and framed his almond eyes in a way that was almost feminine.

"I don't have anything to compare to you," he said. "But I can't imagine how it could be better."

Sakura smiled, completely entranced by his sincere tone and wide eyes. His skin was flushed in the most delightful way. She had forgotten all about how angry she had been when Sasuke had come to retrieve her.

"Sakura, I really like you."

"I really like you, too."

"I want to take you on a real date."

She smiled and wriggled in his lap. "I like moonlit walks and fancy restaurants," she said, "if you want some ideas."

He closed his eyes, tightening his grip on her hips. "I'm sorry for making you come all the way over here on your day off."

She shrugged in response. If this was her reward, then maybe it had been worth it to come all the way over here.

"I'm going to be honest with you, Sakura," he said. "You make me really nervous."

A very unladylike snort came from her mouth and she grinned at him, running her hands over the expanse of his chest. "Really?" she asked, "I make the famed, powerful Itachi Uchiha nervous?"

"I've had a hard time keeping you off my mind," he said, his voice a half whisper. In spite of her light and teasing tone, he still looked quite serious – almost upset. "Especially when you are this close."

"What about when I'm this close?" she asked, leaning in and burying her face in his neck. She wrapped her arms around his waist and held him close, but motionless. When he didn't respond or move, Sakura turned so that her lips brushed against the skin just under his jaw. It wasn't a kiss, but the contact was enough for her to feel a shiver run through him.

"Sakura…"

She pulled away from him, puzzled by the strain in his tone and then the look of discomfort on his face. Immediately, she hopped out of his lap and took several steps away from him.

"Itachi, I'm sorry," she said, though she was a little hurt. "I thought that…"

"You thought what?"

"I don't know," she said. "You just seem really uncomfortable with, um… with physical contact."

He extended his hand for her and she tentatively grabbed it. He pulled her close to him again so that she was standing directly in front of him, looking down into his face.

"Not uncomfortable," he said. "Nervous. Because you're so beautiful and so eager and I've never done this before. I don't want to disappoint you."

"I've never done this before either," she responded. She understood how he felt. She felt the same way only it hadn't really inhibited her. She let her judgment get clouded when she was with him. She let her body control her. It appeared that Itachi either couldn't or wouldn't do that. "And I don't want to disappoint you."

He cracked a smile. "I don't think that's possible."

She smiled back, glad that he told her how he was feeling. She felt better knowing that it wasn't her fault that he seemed to react so aversely to her attentions.

"I know you want to go slow, Itachi," she said. "So I will respect whatever boundaries you set for us."

He looked absolutely mortified at the idea of discussing sexual boundaries with her, and for some reason that made Sakura want to laugh.

Before he could answer, a knock came at the front door. With a curious furrow of his brow, Itachi got up to answer the door. It was a jonin, casual and not urgent.

"Is Haruno-san here?" he asked.

Itachi opened the door wider so he could see Sakura.

"You're needed at the Hokage tower immediately," he said to her.

"Is it urgent?" she asked.

"Forgive me, Haruno-san," he answered, "I don't know."

"I'll be right there."

.

"Danzo requested an audience with you."

Sakura blinked, unsure of whether or not she heard her shishou correctly. She had rushed all the way from the Uchiha compound, not for a medical emergency, but so Danzo – the very man she'd tried to kill only recently – could speak with her?

"Umm… why?"

"He wouldn't tell me," Tsunade answered, annoyed. "He also asked to speak with Naruto, but Naruto refused."

"Wait," Sakura said. "I can refuse, too?"

"It's your choice whether to speak with him or not."

"Do you have any idea what he wants?"

Tsunade sighed and clasped her hands together on the desk in front of her. "I don't know, but I think it might have something to do with his trial. He may want to plead his case. He knows I'm not likely to listen or care, but maybe he thinks he can sway either you or Naruto."

"Why would that matter?" Sakura asked. "We have nothing to do with his trial."

"You will have to be witnesses, Sakura."

Oh. Sakura hadn't known that.

"I'll give you some time to decide what you want to do."

"I want to speak with him."

"Are you sure?" Tsunade asked. "You can take some time to think about it if you want. You don't have to make a decision right now."

Sakura didn't need time to think about it. Danzo was a man who had answers for her. Danzo was Itachi's last loose end. If he wanted to see her, even for his own selfish reasons, she could grant him that if only so she could get what she needed from him, too.

"No, I want to see him."

.

Ibiki led her down to Danzo's cell. "He's bound with chakra suppressing chains so he won't be able to hurt you," he told her. "He has requested a private audience with you, so we will not be able to hear anything going on in the room unless you wish for us to. We will, however, be able to see you both."

Sakura thought about that for a moment. At this point, she was in the habit of hiding things from Tsunade. If something happened that she wanted Tsunade to know about, she could always just tell her.

"I think it's best to keep the conversation private for now," she said to Ibiki.

"Alright," he said. "If you need help or you want me to come into the room, just raise your hand."

Sakura entered the room alone and was surprised to see how lavishly this prisoner was living. It seemed his position on the council earned him a certain amount of dignity, even in his disgrace.

The chair he was chained to was plush and soft looking. He was covered with a thick quilt to prevent the chill from biting him. A tray of half eaten food (delicious smelling, Sakura noted) sat on a small table beside him in addition to a stack of books and a few scrolls.

"Sakura Haruno," he said, his tone warm. It sent a shiver down her spine.

She narrowed her eyes at him and cocked out her hip. "Before you say anything else," she said. "Why don't you tell me why I should listen to anything you have to say."

"You're angry with me, I see," he said. "But I think your anger is misplaced. After all, Konoha is my home, too. I only want to see it safe."

"You're awfully willing to have Konoha citizens killed for someone who supposedly wants to protect them," she argued.

"Sometimes lives must be sacrificed for the greater good," he said.

"I disagree."

"Well, you certainly seem to think highly of Itachi Uchiha," he pointed out. "And he sacrificed his own family."

"Don't you dare speak his name."

"You are close with both of the Uchiha boys, aren't you?" he asked.

Sakura narrowed her eyes. She had come down here with the intention of getting answers about the massacre, about everything he had supposedly done in the interest of protecting the village. But now she could only feel a blinding anger at the man who had done so much to hurt the people she cared about.

Her fists were clenched tightly at her side and she ground her teeth together, but she made her best effort to keep her face neutral.

"That's what I wanted to talk to you about, Haruno," he said with infuriating calmness.

"What about them?"

"The coup the Uchihas were planning was only a symptom of a much larger problem," he said. "They are a dangerous clan, rooted in anger and hatred. Their kekkei genkai necessitates mere children experiencing traumatic and horrifying events. Their powers are built on rage and fury. They do not belong in Konoha. There can never be peace with them here."

Sakura felt her anger flaring up in her chest, but his words gave her pause. Was there any truth to that? Itachi had urged Sasuke to 'foster his hatred' to get stronger. Awakening their Sharingan was always due to something emotionally traumatic. Did that mean the Uchiha clan was too dangerous to stay here?

"They are a founding clan," Sakura argued. "It is their right to be here."

"Maybe," Danzo conceded. "But if they had gone through with the coup they would have killed hundreds of people. What if the restored Uchiha clan tries to do the same?"

"They won't."

"You can't know that for sure," he argued.

She tapped her foot on the ground impatiently. She was angry with herself for how much sense he was making. Itachi would never let his clan plan a coup. He had already stopped one from happening. With Itachi as the clan head, things would be different.

"What do you want, Danzo?"

"Convince them to leave," he said. "You and the Uzumaki boy. They'll listen to you. Convince them to leave Konoha and never return."

"You'll just send someone after them to kill them," Sakura said through clenched teeth. "And this time it wouldn't be considered a crime against Konoha since they would no longer be citizens."

He shook his head. "You have my word that I will not harm either of them as long as they stay out of Konoha and its business."

"How can I believe that?" she demanded. "You sent ROOT members after Team 7 and Team Ro. I was on that team. Kakashi-sensei, Naruto, and Yamato did nothing wrong."

It was his turn to narrow his visible eye. "If I recall correctly, you planned on killing me that day. What is the difference between you killing me to protect Konoha and me killing them? We obviously do not agree on what is in Konoha's best interest, but we do both have the village's best interest at heart."

Sakura swallowed because she didn't have an answer to that. He was right. If she was willing to kill him – a member of Konoha's council – in order to protect the people she loved, what was the difference in him doing the exact same thing?

"ROOT was not supposed to harm anyone other than Sasuke and Itachi," he said, his voice softer.

She growled, a sound that surprised her. She couldn't recall ever feeling so angry before.

"Just think about what I said, Haruno," he said. "That clan is dangerous and you should be careful. You are a well respected citizen of Konoha. The people like you. I'd hate to see you lost to that wicked clan."

Some of the tension in her shoulders slackened, but she could still feel her anger burning hotly in her chest. Without another word, she turned on her heel and left.

.

"Naruto, open up!" Sakura yelled, banging on his apartment door. She continued banging loudly on the door until a few moments later when a disheveled looking Naruto swung the door open.

"Sakura, what the hell?" he demanded. "Why are you so loud?"

She pushed her way inside only to find an equally disheveled look Sasuke sitting on Naruto's couch, an annoyed look on his face.

"Naruto," she said, ignoring whatever had been going on between them. "I need to talk to you in private."

Naruto was visibly taken aback and scratched his head with befuddlement. "Anything you say to me you can say to Sasuke, too," he said. "I'm going to tell him about it anyway."

Sakura glanced over at Sasuke who was smirking.

"Naruto, please," she pleaded. "It's important."

Naruto looked at Sasuke who shrugged and stood up from the couch. "Whatever," he said. "I'll go get the three of us something to eat."

It was Sakura's turn to look surprised this time. She hadn't been expecting that. She always felt like she was intruding whenever she was around Sasuke and Naruto. Being invited to eat with them at Naruto's apartment felt a lot like third wheeling.

"Oh, okay," she said, not knowing what else to say. When Sasuke had shut the front door behind him, Sakura turned to face Naruto.

"What is it, Sakura?"

"Why did you refuse to see Danzo?"

"Oh, how did you know about that?" he asked.

"He wanted to see me, too," she answered. "Did you tell Sasuke that he wanted to talk to you?"

"Of course," Naruto said. "I tell Sasuke everything."

Sakura stared at him for a second. They were about as subtle as she and Itachi had been at keeping their relationship incognito.

"Well, I talked to him," she said, drinking in the weird expression on Naruto's face. "I wanted to hear what he had to say."

"Well?"

"He told me he wants me and you to convince Itachi and Sasuke to leave Konoha. He thinks the Uchihas are dangerous and violent," she said.

Naruto's eyebrows went up in surprise. "Well, I can't exactly argue with that…" he said. "But they wouldn't do anything to hurt Konoha. I'm certain of it."

"I know," she said. "But he's determined. If they don't leave, he'll try to find a way to have them killed."

"He won't have any power anymore after the trial," Naruto pointed out. "Once he's off the council we won't have to worry about him anymore."

Sakura groaned and shook her head. "No, we will," she argued. "Do you think he'll just stop caring about Konoha after he's removed from the council? He's still going to try to find a way to get rid of them. He has the means to do it, too."

"Let's not pretend he actually cares about Konoha," Naruto said, glaring at her.

"In his own twisted way, he does," she said. "We need to figure out a way to keep him off the Uchiha clan's back."

"Should we ask Tsunade-sama for help?"

"I think we should keep this between us for now," she said. "I'm afraid that if Sasuke finds out that he will do something drastic. Itachi has been through enough already, so I don't want to tell him either. Besides, he'll tell Sasuke."

"I don't know, Sakura," Naruto said. "I don't like keeping secrets from Sasuke."

"You know him better than I do. What do you think he'll do when he finds out?" she asked.

"He'll want to kill him…"

"And that's what got us into trouble the first time."

"Fine, we'll keep it a secret for now," he said. "But only until we figure out what we're going to do."

.

By the time Sasuke had returned with several greasy bags of takeout, Sakura and Naruto had moved on to a different topic of conversation. Though Sakura was worried about what Danzo might do, it appeared that he was going to give her some time to think about her decision. They would at least have until his trial to decide what they were going to do.

It had been a long time since she and Naruto had enjoyed some time together, just the two of them. Before Sasuke's return, she and Naruto spent a lot of time together. With Sasuke back in the village, Naruto had much less time for her. She understood, really. Sasuke and Naruto shared a bond that she would never have with either of them. But it still felt nice to be near Naruto again.

Only this time, there wasn't a thread of remorse about Sasuke that poisoned their good mood. They laughed and joked with one another while they waited for Sasuke.

Sakura expected that things would get a little more awkward once Sasuke had come back, but to her surprise, Sasuke was in a good mood – almost jovial. He joined in their laughter, even when the jokes were made at his expense.

And she didn't miss the looks of affection they shared with one another, the sly glances when they thought she wasn't looking. If she had been in this position a couple of years ago, it would have broken her heart. But now she felt nothing but happiness for her teammates and whatever joy they found in each other. No one deserved to be happy more than they did.

Except maybe Itachi.

The thought knocked her good mood down a peg. She was thoroughly confused by Itachi's odd behavior earlier that day. He had made his interest in her pretty clear, yet he seemed to agonize over their physical contact.

He had told her that he was nervous, but she couldn't help but feel like she was doing something wrong. He had seemed angry with her, in spite of the fact that he told her he wasn't.

She knew it was kind of silly, but she worried that his interest in her might be fleeting. Itachi was an important man – the Uchiha clan head. Sure, he could dabble around with her now. He didn't know many other women in the village and Sakura had been a constant in his life since he'd returned to Konoha.

But soon enough he would have to get serious, right? He told Tsunade that he wanted to restore the Uchiha clan. He couldn't possibly do that with Sakura, the civilian born. He would want someone from a powerful clan, someone who would only make the Uchiha bloodline stronger.

"Sakura?" Sasuke asked through a mouthful of rice. "Are you okay?"

She shook her head to clear her thoughts and fixed her eyes on him. His head was cocked to the side and his eyes were piercing.

"Yeah, I'm fine," she said, scooping rice into her mouth.

Sasuke grunted in response.

"Is it Itachi?" Naruto asked. "Did he do something to you?"

Sasuke reached over and punched Naruto in the arm. "Why would my brother do anything bad to her?"

Naruto glared at him, rubbing the spot where he had been punched. "I don't know, I'm just looking out for Sakura," he said. Then he turned to face her. "Sakura, you let me know if he does anything to upset you. I'll set him straight."

Sasuke scoffed, "Shut up, moron."

"Guys," Sakura said before they could continue, "There's nothing wrong."

Naruto looked down at his plate sheepishly and Sasuke rolled his eyes, taking another bite of his food.

After a beat of silence, Sasuke asked, "So how are things going with Itachi?"

She set down her chopsticks and brought her thumbnail to her mouth. She chewed on it thoughtfully, unsure of how to answer that question. Sasuke and Itachi were close. Did they ever talk about her? Would Sasuke tell his brother whatever she said to him now?

"I'm not sure."

"Not sure?" Sasuke demanded. "Why not? What are you not sure of?"

"We're just taking things slow, I guess," she answered, a little annoyed that he was being so demanding. This was her private life, after all. She never asked him about his relationship with Naruto.

"Slow?" he asked. "Why slow? Itachi is a good man from a prestigious clan. Why would you want to take things slow?"

"He wants to take things slow, Sasuke," she snapped. "And besides, it's none of your business."

"It is my business," he argued. "Whoever he marries will be the matriarch of my clan. It's Itachi's duty to produce an heir, and he can't do that if you're 'taking things slow.'"

"God, is that why you made that comment about pink-haired babies?" she asked, more than a little annoyed now.

"Yeah, Sasuke, this is a little weird," Naruto said.

"Stay out of this, Naruto," Sasuke snapped.

Sakura crossed her arms and huffed.

"Look, Sakura," Sasuke said. "I've come around to the idea that you two want to be together. Now you need to come around to the idea that you're going to be the Uchiha matriarch. You can't take things slow. The quicker you start having children, the better."

"Oh my God, Sasuke, can you hear yourself?" she asked, officially freaked out. It wasn't that it had never occurred to her that Itachi was the clan head. Of course she'd thought about that before. But she didn't expect Itachi to actual consider her for that. Beside, even if he did, marriage? Already? And children! "It's way too soon to be thinking about all that stuff."

"Maybe for anyone else," he argued. "But not for an Uchiha."

"I don't know, Sasuke," Naruto said, braving Sasuke's wrath. "I agree with Sakura on this one. It's way too soon for that."

Sasuke whipped his head toward Naruto and glared at him.

"You should really be having this conversation with your brother," Sakura said. "Not me."

"Fine," he agreed. "I'll speak with Itachi."