Guess who's not dead? Me, hahaha! Surprise! I did some editing of the previous chapters, just some grammar mistakes for the fun of it.

Disclaimer: These are not my characters.

Chapter 5: Payback

It took an hour of waiting by the front gate for Sakura to figure out who was assigned to the mission with her. After the third hour passed, Sakura had to bite down hard on her lip to keep in a frustrated string of curses. The only thing keeping her composed were the two guards stationed at the gate who kept stealing glances her way every ten minutes or so. She knew both of the boys, having healed their injuries at some point in time, and she didn't want to lose any more of her dignity than she already had.

Sakura breathed in the scent of trees and counted to ten to calm herself down. Once her mind was clear, she thought through her options. She could wait for Kakashi, but who knew how much longer that would be. This was Sakura's first mission in a long time and she didn't want anyone to mess it up. Now was not the time for one of Kakashi's stupid games.

Having made up her mind, Sakura spun toward the guards and gave them her best smile. They straightened their backs at her attention, eyes wide. One of the guard's fluffy brown hair fell into his eyes as his head jerked up and he hastily brushed it away, his cheeks tinting pink when he saw her gaze on him.

"Let Ka- uh, I mean, Mr. Hatake know that I've gone ahead without him." Sakura raised her hand in a slight wave before disappearing into the nearest tree, leaving the poor guards with their mouths hanging open.

She smirked as she pulled her medic bag tighter around herself. Any guard with a few years of experience wouldn't let the party leave until all members were accounted for. She was lucky those guards weren't seasoned enough, which she was counting on. It also didn't help that one of the guards seemed to have a crush on her.

Let's see what Kakashi thinks of this, she chuckled to herself. It served him right for being so late on such an important assignment. Of course, Sakura wasn't an idiot. She wouldn't have left him behind if she truly thought there was trouble ahead, or if she wasn't positive he'd catch up to her sooner rather than later. But the little ditch was worth knocking him down a peg.

She chuckled to herself at the thought of his expression when the guards told her she was gone. Sakura half wished she'd stayed behind to see it herself, but at least the guards will witness "Mr. Hatake's" embarrassment.

She thought back to how she addressed him. She wasn't sure how many people knew who the young Kakashi really was, but the resemblance he had to the Hatake clan wasn't arguable. Hopefully calling him by his last name wouldn't cause any more stir in the gossip mills.

Sakura let out an exhausted sigh just thinking about her short time at the hospital last night. After the first five hours of her shift revolved around nothing but who the handsome, mysterious stranger was, she tuned herself out to their wild rumors. There was only so much Sakura could handle before she started to rip her hair out.

A much needed break from the village was exactly what she needed. Sakura sent a silent thank you to Lady Tsunade for giving her this mission.

Her limbs tingled in excitement at the thought of her newest adventure. She didn't want to admit it, but she was getting a little hurt that so much time had passed since her last mission. She knew that she could handle herself out in the field, but with each new assignment, another medic was chosen instead of her.

She gripped her bag strap tighter and launched herself faster through the trees. She would prove her worth on the field with this mission. She would heal these people quickly and efficiently, and prove herself as a vital asset for her village.

After the excitement of ditching Kakashi faded from her system, she finally allowed herself to look around her. The trees were lush green and the scent of nature filled her lungs as she breathed in the fresh air deeply. It felt like eons since she was last outside the village, and she never felt so free.

Kakashi couldn't help the grin that seeped onto his face as he sauntered through the empty alley. He took care to avoid the villagers, not in the mood to be swamped with questions. His mind played through all the possible reactions Sakura could have while she waited for him to arrive.

He woke up this morning feeling more balanced, like he was starting to settle into his new body. The jonin wasn't sure what to think about that. Of course, being balanced would be helpful in battle as he tapped into his chakra. But that also meant this body was becoming his new normal.

Kakashi glanced up at the sun. It had probably been about three hours since Sakura arrived at the front gate. He took a sharp turn to the left and began heading in her direction. Kakashi figured that enough time had passed and his lazy facade was still intact. He didn't want one single thing about him to change beside his appearance.

A frown slid into place as he neared the main gate that led out of the village. He couldn't feel Sakura's presence at all, which meant either she was masking it or she wasn't there. He wasn't sure which one made him more uneasy. Why would she hide her presence, unless there was a threat?

The thought of Sakura in danger made him more nervous than he cared to admit. He appeared in front of the guards instantaneously and they jumped, staggering back in astonishment.

Kakashi tipped his eye to the sky briefly, barely holding in a frustrated sigh at the sight of the incompetent guards. It didn't take him long to realize what had happened here. They were mere boys, not at all strong enough to protect the gate and especially not strong enough to stop Sakura from leaving without him. Was the village so tight on shinobi that these kids were their first defense against invaders?

One of the guards, a skinny fellow with scrappy brown hair, finally stepped forward tentatively. "Miss Haruno said you'd catch up with her…" The boy's meek voice trailed off at the thoroughly unimpressed glare Kakashi shot at him.

"Thanks," he stated curtly, struggling to reel in his temper. Really, it wasn't their faults that Sakura was a force to be reckoned with. Even with all his strength and glory, Kakashi hated being on the end of one of Sakura's famous and painful tempers. He gave the cowering boys a lazy two-finger salute before vanishing as quickly as he arrived.

It didn't take him long to pick up her fading scent, heading in the direction of the Land of Sound. It was only a few hours away at a hard, fast pace, and Sakura seemed to be pushing her limits.

Honestly, was she avoiding him or something? Kakashi let out another exhausted sigh before dashing through the trees. With his younger body, the jonin felt like he was floating on air as he sprinted at a speed he hadn't reached in a long time. He wasn't joking when he told Sakura that he'd never felt physically better. He definitely didn't feel like the old man he was becoming anymore.

As he ran, Kakashi's mood decreased dramatically. He was supposed to be her bodyguard on this mission, and yet her old teammate thought it was fine to go gallivanting into an unknown village with no protection.

Within the hour he caught up with her, a pink blur within the trees, and just like that the dark cloud that had been following him vanished. He exhaled softly to see her safe and unharmed.

Kakashi masked his presence as he followed her, debating on his next move. Now that he established that Sakura wasn't in danger, he couldn't help the annoyance he felt at all the worrying she put him through.

The jonin decided with a sneaky grin that he deserved a little payback for the stunt she pulled.

Sakura was surprised that Kakashi hadn't found her yet. She began to worry that maybe something happened to him on the way, like his body suddenly began to reject him or his chakra started to eat him from the inside…

She shook her head. Sometimes she hated her overactive imagination. He was fine and she was just faster than she gave herself credit for.

Her lips pulled into a smug smile for the tenth time since ditching her esteemed sensei. Sakura imagined herself at the Land of Sound village, finishing up with the last sick patient when Kakashi finally arrived, tired and impressed. The thought made her hum with pleasure.

Sakura blamed the daydream for her lack of attention. She didn't realize anything was off until she landed heavily on the next branch and it gave way beneath her, sending the kunoichi tumbling to the ground.

She flipped herself up in the air, feet first and knees bent, preparing to drop into a roll once her feet hit the ground. What she didn't expect was to fall through the ground like it was quicksand. A strangled gasp escaped her lips as she sunk up to her shoulders. The earth solidified moments later, leaving her completely, utterly, frustratingly stuck, barely able to wiggle her fingers.

"Well, well, what do we have here?" A satisfied voice said behind her. Sakura craned her neck back at an uncomfortable angle and was barely able to make out the tips of spiky silver hair bobbing closer to her.

Sakura exhaled sharply and rolled her eyes. She could finally sense him, though she wondered how long he had been in the shadows, waiting to strike.

Sakura strained her arms, attempting feebly to pull one loose. As she struggled, Kakashi languidly walked around and squatted in front of her. He leaned his masked face close to hers, his eye shining with mirth.

"Looks like someone got themselves in quite the tight spot." His voice rang with the smugness that she felt only moments ago and it ticked her off… greatly.

"Oh hardy har," Sakura deadpanned, her lips twisting. She wiggled her sandals, testing out how much space she had to work with. Keeping her eyes on Kakashi and feigning annoyance - though she didn't have to try very hard - Sakura began to pull her chakra into her feet. "Didn't I tell you to lessen your use of jutsus? You shouldn't be accessing your chakra to pull off a stupid joke."

Kakashi's eye narrowed as he stood, crossing his arms. Sakura gulped. He did not look happy.

"This joke was funny. But do you know what's not funny? You, leaving without the rest of your party. What were you thinking, Sakura? You could have been hurt."

Sakura pursed her lips as she stared at him. She couldn't tell if he really was upset or not. But at that moment Sakura decided she dug enough dirt around her legs that she could enact her own little payback.

Abruptly, she smiled at him cheekily, resolving to use her favorite joke that she knew he hated. "Geez, old man, I can take care of myself."

Kakashi stared at her trapped form pointedly, but before he could state the obvious, Sakura swung a leg back and threw it forward into the earth. The force crumbled the ground in front of her, sending Kakashi stumbling back at the unexpected movement. Sakura used her strength to tear through the earth, jumping up to land on the fresh soil.

The kunoichi grinned triumphantly at Kakashi as he regained his footing. She didn't try to attack him, she didn't need to. Sakura was positive she made her point.

Finally Kakashi slumped his shoulders and turned away. "I'm not an old man anymore," he said sulkily.

Sakura huffed. Of course he chose to comment on that rather than her exceptional display of strength. As she eyed him angrily, she took in his new appearance once more and her rage dwindled away. Sharp jaw, long, lean muscles that strained against his outfit, the air of power he still commanded.

Sakura gulped again for an entirely different reason. No, she thought softly to herself, her cheeks burning at the thought, there's no way I can call him an old man anymore.

Luckily, Kakashi was still brooding and didn't see the flush on her skin. Sakura coughed, leaning down to brush small pieces of dirt from her legs. It was good to give herself something to do instead of ogling Kakashi. But she was not, definitely not, ogling him.

"We're almost there. Shall we continue?"

Sakura snapped her head back up and fought to keep a blush from her face as she felt his fingertips graze her bare shoulder. Kakashi took her medic bag and slung it across his chest before continuing on.

Sakura eyed his retreating back while letting out a slow breath. She hoped that the Kinaggi clan could fix Kakashi's predicament, and soon, because she wasn't sure what would happen while he was stuck in his younger body.

Taking off at a sprint, she let the wind cool her down. She didn't have time to dream about Kakashi with the mission so close. Sakura wouldn't let herself be distracted.

It didn't take long for Sakura and Kakashi to reach the tiny village. Sakura glanced around in surprise. Tiny was an understatement.

It looked more like a camp, with a few shabby buildings scattered haphazardly between tents. The weirdest part in Sakura's opinion was that there was no one around. A very tiny ghost village.

Sakura gnawed on her lower lip and stole a glance at Kakashi, who was nailing his lazy persona to a tee. They had reached their destination in a silence Sakura wasn't sure was born from anger or boredness. She also wasn't sure which one she would've preferred.

Why was he so angry anyway? It was like he didn't believe she could leave the village without someone protecting her. It's not as if Sakura went skipping all the way into enemy territory with nothing but an empty head and cute smile. She could break bones, rearrange landscapes, heal the most complicated illness or injury… and he didn't think she could take care of herself?

Great. Her spiraling thoughts were now making her angry.

Not helpful.

A tall, lanky female in blue sweats and a mask dipped through one of the entryways from a crumbling building, heading straight for them. Sakura still felt weird that the first person they saw was a medic in a seemingly deserted town. The illness must've been worse than she predicted.

"Hello, my name is Yuri. You are ninja from the Hidden Leaf village, correct?" The female pulled her mask down and smiled, wiping blonde strands of hair from her face.

"Yes. I'm Sakura, the medic assigned to this mission. This is Kakashi," Sakura gestured at him before cutting herself off. Oh damn, should I have called him by his real name? We should have established some sort of code name for him. Nervously tapping her fingers on the side of her pants, Sakura eyed her teammate's response.

Kakashi didn't look any different though as he raised his hand in greeting. "Yo."

Sakura breathed a sigh of relief. She doubted anyone in this small town had ever heard of the famous Copy Ninja and Kakashi must have came to the same conclusion.

"I see. It is a blessing that you are here, Sakura. Please, walk with me." Yuri bowed and turned around, walking toward the building she originally exited to greet them.

Tilting her head toward Kakashi, Sakura opened her mouth to say something but Kakashi just strode pass her. Sakura had to clamp down hard on her irritation. So he's still angry with me, then? He needs to grow up. News flash, Kakashi, I don't need your protection.

Yuri started to talk and Sakura had to pull herself out of her thoughts to listen. "Our town is actually a quarter mile north from here, but when the sickness started to spread we decided to send all of the sick here for treatment to minimize exposure. But that didn't help. Almost everyone in our town is within these tents and buildings. The other medics and myself have only been able to offer comfort to the patients. We have no idea how to cure them. That's why we called for you. We don't think anyone else but you can heal our people."

Sakura definitely felt flattered. She could already feel the desire to cure this illness rising up inside her. The anger that was within her started to fade as she began to pull her chakra in preparation.

Yuri stopped at the door, forcing Sakura to stop. "Only medics past this point," she said, looking pointedly at Kakashi.

"I'm going in there," Kakashi stated, standing up straight. His voice brooked no argument. Except he seemed to have forgotten who he was body-guarding. Sakura never backed down from an argument.

"You can stand guard, Kakashi. I doubt there's anyone in there with enough strength to even hold a weapon. Besides," she added, already following Yuri into the building. "if you get sick, I'm not wasting my chakra on rule breakers. Not much of a protector you'd be then. See ya!"

Sakura couldn't help but laugh at the look on his face as the door slammed shut behind her.