A/N: I don't own Naruto or Shippuden. I just like playing with the characters a bit.

A/N #2: Also, this is a slow burn story. The first several chapters were written to establish the backstory and context (because I was too lazy to write a prequel).

~Enjoy!

Prologue

Sunagakure - Four Years Ago

'Panax ginseng is an adaptogen. It is a useful ingredient when making medicinal tonics for hospitalized patients and shinobi returning from long-term assignments. Despite its benefits, it's extremely bitter to the taste and smells like-'

KNOCK. KNOCK.

"Come in." Sakura called, green eyes still scanning the fading lines of the handwritten research journal as the door to her temporary office squeaked open and a sandy-haired genin poked his head inside.

"Pardon the intrusion, Sakura-sensei, but I was hoping you'd have a moment to talk?"

Gently closing the old notebook and tucking it away in the top drawer of her desk, Sakura looked up to find the young boy standing timidly by the door, his hands clasped nervously in front of him. She offered him an encouraging smile. "Of course, Kanushi-san. What can I do for you?"

Taking a small step forward, the boy reached into his hip pouch and withdrew a familiar red scroll and held it out to her.

Sakura took the scroll from the boy without a word, eying him curiously as he hastily stepped back again. He was unusually jumpy, but she chose not to comment on it and instead focused on unrolling the scroll he had handed her. It was only after reading through the document that she suddenly understood the reason for his anxiety.

Setting the scroll down on her desk, Sakura returned her attention to the young teen standing stiffly in front of her. Then, she spoke.

"Battlefield medicine," she said, repeating the words written on the assignment request form he had handed to her. "Why?"

It was clear in the way that Kanushi's eyes widened and he blinked owlishly at her that he had expected her to outright refuse his request. After all, he was the youngest of her students and hadn't been on a single mission above the rank of C.

Sakura, however, was not one to judge another's abilities based on their limited experience. Kanushi was skilled and an incredibly fast learner, so she was sure he'd find his footing quickly no matter what role he was assigned. She wanted to know what drove his desire to become a combat medic – his answer would determine whether or not she approved his assignment.

His answer was spoken firmly. "I want to protect my precious people, sensei."

Resting her elbows on her desk, Sakura interlaced her fingers in a way not unlike her own shishou and leaned forward as she appraised the boy.

"You don't have to be on the front lines to protect people, Kanushi," she countered, unconvinced of his conviction.

"You do if you want them to make it home."

Sakura resisted the urge to smile at his resolve. Battlefield medicine wasn't for the faint of heart. She needed to make sure he was ready for what he'd face.

"You won't be able to save everyone, Kanushi-san," she warned, watching his reaction critically. It was a harsh truth, but one she needed him to understand before he started down this noble but heartbreaking path.

Shoulders set, Kanushi replied calmly, "but I can try."

There we go.

His nervousness was palpable. She could feel it rolling off him in waves as she silently stared at him, but there was a familiar gleam in his dark green eyes that told her he wasn't about to leave her office without her approval of his decision.

It made her smile, outwardly this time, and reach for one of her pens.

She could hear Kanushi hold his breath as she scribbled across the parchment. It wasn't until she had handed the scroll back to him and he saw her name signed along the bottom, signifying her official approval of his assignment, that he breathed a heavy sigh of relief.

"Thank you so much, Sensei," he chimed excitedly, bowing deeply in gratitude to her. "I promise, I won't let you down!"

Chuckling softly, Sakura shook her head at the gesture, choosing instead to give the genin a few words of advice before he scampered out of her office. "Trust your gut out there, Kanushi-san, it'll save your life and that of your comrades."

"Yes, Sensei," Kanushi replied, bowing once more before all but skipping out the door. Outside, she could hear the cheers of who she could only assume were his friends as he shared his good news.

She smiled faintly, remembering the excitement (and complete terror) she had felt when Tsunade had agreed to take her on as an apprentice.

To think that it had already been more than six years.

So much had changed in that time. A war had been fought, lives had both been lost and brought into their world, borders had opened, people changed, and the powers of the world had shifted.

Looking back, she never would have expected her to life to have become what it was now. That being said, she was a staunch believer that everything happened for a reason – whatever that reason may be.

Even now, as she sat in her makeshift office in Sunagakure's hospital, guiding her own students on their paths towards becoming full-fledged medics – she believed it was where she was meant to be.

Letting out a small sigh, Sakura returned the old notebook to her desk and carefully flipped back to the page she had been reading.

'I have had trouble convincing our ninja to drink the tonics I've brewed - it would seem the younger generation cannot consume it without retching while the older shinobi have refused my requests outright. Cowards, the lot of them. Ideally, I would like to find a way to concentrate its immune-boosting and psychotherapeutic properties to make field nutrition supplements to support our shinobi away on assignments. Thus far, I have made attempts to combine the roots with-'

KNOCK. KNOCK.

Closing the book once more, Sakura let out a small frustrated sigh. Clearly the universe did not want her to continue reading. Carefully, she returned to the journal to one of the drawers of her desk before calling her visitor in.

This time, the door opened to reveal a young man with dark brown hair and striking golden eyes. Sakura recognized him immediately as one of her chuunin students and a member of her more advanced class of medics – a group of Suna medic-nin that had been hand-selected by their Kazekage to take part in medical research projects in addition to their hospital shifts and missions.

"Good evening, Haruno-sensei," greeted the medic, his brunette bangs hiding his expression as he bowed respectfully to her upon entering her office.

"Good evening to you as well, Tora-san," Sakura replied with a smile. "It must be my lucky day to be visited by both Takigawa brothers."

"It would seem so, Sensei," Tora replied, his tone curt but polite as he straightened and produced a scroll much like his younger brother's. Unlike Kanushi, however, Tora did not back away once the scroll was in her hands. Instead, he stayed, waiting patiently for her to speak regarding his choice of assignment.

Emerald eyes flitted over the parchment before widening with intrigue. Despite their many differences, from their temperaments to their appearances, it appeared that both Tora and Kanushi had a knack for submitting unexpected assignment requests.

"Poison squad, Sensei," Tora announced confidently before she could even ask. "I want to work with Kankuro-sama."

Perhaps Sakura should have seen this coming. After all, Tora, despite barely being a day over fifteen and a newly minted chuunin, was a sensory type and had a strong affinity for chakra control. As such, he was quite adept at the art of medical ninjutsu and had shown considerable skill when learning more complicated and difficult procedures. He also had a natural inclination towards medicinal herbology and toxicology. Not to mention, he had expressed to her before that he had a great deal of admiration for the late Lady Chiyo and her grandson, Sasori.

Nevertheless, Sakura was hesitant to grant even Tora – who was one of her best and most talented students - permission to work with the poisons research lab. Especially after the last two students she'd allowed to work there had been poisoned within their first two weeks.

She was even more hesitant upon seeing the name of the supervisor who had been brave enough to sign-on as Tora's preceptor.

"Kankuro-sama." Sakura said flatly as she stared at the scribbled name, unsure if the appropriate response in that moment was to laugh or groan. "Really?"

Tora nodded adamantly. Then, reaching into his hip pouch he presented her with another small scroll. "He signed the preceptor forms and everything, Sensei."

Now that was a surprise.

Raising an eyebrow, Sakura silently accepted the scroll and opened it immediately. Her eyes scanned through the official preceptor request form quickly, making sure everything was filled out properly, before checking the obnoxiously large signature located at the bottom. Sure enough, there was the middle Sabaku sibling's signature along with a short message:

The kid's got guts, Haruno… but I guess that's to be expected of your students. Let's hope this one doesn't accidentally poison himself, too. Third time's a charm! – Kankuro

Sakura resisted the urge to snort at the note - because Kankuro would make a joke about that.

After a moment more of deliberation, Sakura sighed, picked up her pen, and signed both scrolls before handing them back to Tora. "Touch base with Kankuro-sama to find out when he wants you to start. I look forward to reading about your experience in a month."

Tora offered a rare, reserved smile in response to her approval. "Thank you, Haruno-sensei," he said, bowing deeply to her as he took the scrolls. "I promise, I won't let you down."

Sakura smiled in amusement. Perhaps the brothers had more in common than she'd thought.

"You're welcome, Tora-san," she replied, smiling lightly as she watched him turn towards the door. "Feel free to let me know if you have any questions or if any issues arise during your assignment."

"Of course, Sensei." He replied, nodding once more to her before quickly leaving her office to find the resident puppet master and poisons specialist to start his training.

Giggling softly, Sakura reached into her desk and pulled out each of the Takigawa brothers' student files to record their assignments. "Never thought I'd see the day that someone was excited to work with Kankuro."

Just as she set the papers on her desk, the air in her office shifted and a familiar voice filled the room.

"That's because he doesn't know what Kankuro is really like."

"Well, I'm sure he'll find out soon enough," she replied with a shrug and a light laugh before looking up at her unexpected visitor. "It's nice to see you, Gaara. To what do I owe the pleasure?"

The redheaded Kazekage replied with a small nod. "I wanted to see how the classes were going," he said as he stepped further into the office and closed the door.

"It was a bit rocky at first, but things are running smoothly now," Sakura replied as she leaned back in her chair and folded her hands over her stomach. "I anticipate being able to graduate the advanced class by the end of next month."

Although his expression remained neutral, the small upwards curve of his lips told Sakura that Gaara was more than pleased with the news.

"Thank you for doing this, Sakura," he said suddenly, the minute softening of his gaze conveying his gratitude. "The war had made it clear that my shinobi lacked the medical skills needed to care for the people of this village. Knowing that we will soon have shinobi with skills that meet your standards puts me at ease."

Sakura smiled gently at Gaara's words. Say what one may about the former Ichibi vessel, it was clear that the love Gaara had come to hold for his village was immeasurable and on full display in every silent nod and firm order he gave. So, when she had received the mission request six months ago to help restructure Suna's hospital system and train new medic-nin, the decision wasn't a hard one to make.

"You're welcome, Gaara," she replied, smiling warmly up at the normally stoic man before turning her attention back to more important matters.

Leaning forward to prop her elbows on her desk and her chin in the palm of her hand, Sakura raised a slim pink eyebrow curiously. "Now then, why are you actually here, Kazekage-sama? After all, we both know you only visit me at the hospital when it's something important that can't wait - otherwise, you would have summoned me to your office or we would have talked over dinner."

Gaara nodded in agreement, letting the use of his title slip for the time being - he had scolded her for using it when she first arrived in Suna, stating that they had been friends long enough to drop the formalities. He then moved through the hand seals for a sound proofing jutsu. Once it was complete, he presented her with a small black scroll.

"This scroll was found amongst Chiyo-sama's personal belongings. It gives instructions for how to access her personal laboratory in the desert where she kept the majority of her... research. There are documents there that I think you would find useful."

Interest piqued, Sakura glanced down at the scroll for a moment before fixing her attention once more on the man standing in front of her.

"What kind of research?" she asked cautiously. She had learned a great deal from reading Lady Chiyo's research journals over the past few months, but there was specific parts of the late kunoichi's work that Sakura had no desire to get involved with.

"Documents that relate to a particular type of transmutation jutsu," Gaara said calmly, watching as Sakura reached out slowly for the scroll in his hand before he continued. "One that can reverse certain seals and uses chakra to transform wood and metal into skin and bones."

Sakura's eyes widened.

It is her research about Sasori.

She looked at Gaara in disbelief.

"Gaara, I can't possibly accept this," she began, withdrawing her hand as if she were burned. Her heart beating furiously in her chest as memories of her battle against the deceased Akatsuki member flooded her mind.

Gaara shook his head. "You are the only one with the right to accept her research, Sakura."

For a moment, Sakura ignored the fact that Gaara was the Kazekage in favor of glaring at him. Then she scowled at the scroll laying in his outstretched hand. She didn't dare to accept it.

"Look, just because Chiyo-sama granted Shishou her research and she passed it to me, does not mean I have a right to this research." Sakura eyes narrowed as she glanced at the scroll again. "And frankly, I don't even want any association with the research related to him."

"She would have wanted you to have it, Sakura."

Sakura looked at the redhead skeptically. "And how could you possibly know that, Gaara? I hadn't even met her until..."

Her words and frustration left her instantly, replaced instead with guilt and sympathy as she watched a tight expression overtake her friend's face. Suddenly, she was reminded of her place. After all, it was one thing to talk about Kankuro's poisoning and Gaara's abduction by the Akatsuki in hushed whispers where no one could overhear; but it was entirely different to mention it to the Sabaku siblings themselves.

"I'm sorry, Gaara," she mumbled, gaze softening as she watched his stiff countenance slowly dissolve into the familiar calmness she had grown accustomed to seeing on the Kazekage's face. "This is just a lot to take in."

Thankfully, he nodded in understanding. Gaara knew he was asking a great deal of her, especially considering how much she had done for his family and his village.

"When Chiyo-sama healed me… she used her chakra to leave a message," he explained softly, his gaze shifting to the black scroll sitting in his hand. There was a hint of pain evident in his eyes as he recalled the memory. "She told me to look after the village… and to tell you to keep working hard."

Eyes watering at his words, Sakura swallowed past the lump in her throat and took a deep breath. Although she hadn't known the Suna elder for very long, she had grown to admire the quirky woman in their short time together and even more so as she read through her research. Years later, it still pained her to think of the older kunoichi's death.

Gaara seemed to mirror her actions before continuing, "… she also asked that Sasori be given another chance if the opportunity arose."

Sakura looked up at the Kazekage with a start, staring at him with wide eyes full of uncertainty.

"Gaara… you couldn't possibly be thinking of resurrecting him and allowing him to return to the village… could you?"

The sharp, almost murderous, glare that he sent her was the only response she needed. However, his next sentence put her on edge for an entirely different reason.

"I believe her research might be the key to restoring dead tissue."

Sakura's heart stopped.

Naruto.

Gaze flickering to the black scroll in Gaara's hand, Sakura willed herself to remain calm.

She'd finally found it. The missing piece of her own research. The thing she had been searching for ever since the end of the war, information she had spent hours upon hours scouring medical tomes deep within Konoha's and Suna's libraries for – a way to restore Naruto's arm. It was finally within her grasp.

Reaching out, Sakura hesitantly took the scroll from Gaara.

This scroll – this damn scroll - was the best chance they would ever have at developing the medical ninjutsu they needed to help not only the Hero of the Fourth Shinobi War but countless others.

But she hated what this information would force her to do.

Expression unreadable, she looked up at the Kazekage and spoke.

"You want to use Sasori as a test subject." It wasn't a question. He nodded silently.

"I will have to discuss this with Tsunade-sama," she said carefully, watching the shinobi leader across from her nod in understanding.

"I have made her aware of the situation. You are free to return to Konoha to consider your options, but she wants you to decide for yourself."

Sakura stared at Gaara for a moment before speaking again.

"Will I be working alone?"

"Kankuro has offered to assist you, seeing as he has the most extensive knowledge of both Sasori and how to make puppets."

Sakura let herself feel somewhat relieved by the notion of having a partner, especially someone she trusted.

"Where will we be working? Surely the Suna Council wants nothing to do with this."

Unsurprisingly, Gaara nodded. "Chiyo-sama's laboratory is located outside of the village, in an undisclosed and isolated section of the desert. You will work there and only there."

"And what of the other Kages?" she asked. This would without a doubt be considered an international act of treason if left a secret. "I can't imagine you would bring this idea to me without their approval, given the potential consequences" - like reviving a psychopathic mass murderer.

"The other Kages have been informed that this is purely an experiment meant to develop an advanced form of medical ninjutsu. Their approval hinges on your assurance that, should this be a success, you will work to develop it into a jutsu that can be taught to a select number of medic-nin for use by the allied shinobi nations." When she nodded, he added, "They also expect regular progress reports."

Nodding faintly, Sakura listened as he explained some of the additional details regarding needed supplies and obtaining resource materials. When he finished, she had only one question left.

"When do we start?"

Original upload date: 11.23.2020.

Updated: 11.24.2023.