Chap 10:

"Are you busy?" Sasuke asked, leaning against the doorframe of Sakura's office.

Sakura looked up from her desk and blinked in surprise. "Sasuke?!" she exclaimed. "What are you doing here?"

Sasuke shrugged nonchalantly and walked into the room. "I just wanted to know if you were busy," he said.

Sakura sighed and leaned back in her chair. "I'm always busy, Sasuke," she said. "But I have a few minutes to spare. What is it?" There was a slight hesitation to her voice and as Sasuke stood there, taking in the sight of her, it wasn't hard to see how and worn out she was.

She was completely different from the vibrant and lively woman he had known in the past. As he looked at her, he couldn't help but feel a sense of understanding wash over him. He had recently learned about the pain and loss that Sakura had experienced, and now it all made sense. The woman standing before him was a shadow of her former self, broken by the cruel realities of life.

It was burden he had been born to bear but one he had never wanted for Naruto or Sakura.

He had been at a bar, trying to drown out the noise and chaos of the world with a few drinks. He had been minding his own business, lost in thought, when he overheard a group of people talking nearby. At first, he had been annoyed by the intrusion on his solitude, but as he listened, he heard them mention Sakura's name.

Curious, Sasuke couldn't help but eavesdrop on their conversation. He learned that over the past two years, the alliance between the Sand and the Stone had been on the brink of destruction. It had been saved only by the actions of Sakura's fiancé, who had sacrificed his own life to defeat a group of mist ninja and preserve the alliance.

But what caught Sasuke off guard was when they mentioned Sakura's relationship with Kakashi. He was shocked to hear that the two of them had become so close. He was sure but it left a heavy feeling, dragging through his stomach.

"I was going to meet Naruto and that Sai person by the old training fields, if you're free, you should come too." Sasuke said.

"I'm not sure about that…" she begun but was cut short by his response

"I'm only asking because Naruto mentioned he missed having you there, so I came to see if you were free."

"I'm sorry, I cant." she said after a moment of silence

Sasuke nods before making his leave.

She hadn't given up on being a ninja, she starts monologuing. After all, she starts considering how Naruto and sai must feel as though she abandoned them. she decides to go to training.

As Sakura watched him leave, she couldn't help but feel guilty. She knew her friends had been trying to include her in their activities, but she just couldn't bring herself to participate. It wasn't that she didn't want to be around them, it was just that every time she saw them, all she could think about was how much she missed her fiancé and her child.

She had been trying to push those thoughts to the back of her mind, focusing on her work and her daily walks, but it was a constant battle. She knew she needed to start facing her grief head on, but she wasn't sure how.

There was no time to second guess hereself. Sakura gathered her things and made her way to the training fields, determined to prove to herself and her friends that she was still capable of being a ninja. When she arrived, she saw Naruto and Sai sparring against each other.

She walked up to them and cleared her throat, drawing their attention. "Mind if join in?" she asked, trying to sound confident.

Naruto's eyes lit up at the sight of her. "Sakura! You're back!" he exclaimed, before pulling her into a hug. Sai simply nodded in greeting; his expression unreadable as usual. Sakura however knew him better than most even after all this time and could see the concern as he looked her over, seeming to be satisfied that she was ok, he allowed a small fraction of a smile for her.

She could see Sasuke sitting at a nearby tree, he looked up for only a moment before going back to whatever he was doing with his sword.

"Sorry I'm late, there was this..." Kakashi began, but was cut off by Sakura's exclamation of frustration.

"Save it, Kakashi," she said, slapping her hand to her face in exasperation. "You're always late. Why should this time be any different?"

Kakashi stopped in his tracks, surprised that he hadn't noticed Sakura's presence before. "I didn't realize you were already here, Sakura. My apologies."

Sakura shrugged good-naturedly. "Some things never change, I guess. It's just like you to be late all the time."

The two of them stood there for a moment, staring at each other. It had been almost a year since they last saw each other, and Sakura couldn't help but feel a sense of nostalgia wash over her.

"It's good to see you again, Kakashi," she said finally, breaking the silence. Sakura tried to push away the memories that threatened to overwhelm her. Sakura knew if she were to begin to heal she would need to finally get on a level ground with her ex-lover now team leader. "Now get over here so I can kick your ass too." Sakura teased

Kakashi chuckled. "Don't get too far ahead of yourself. You have to catch me first."