A/N Good things that happened this week. I had a profound experience involving my grandfather on Sunday that brought me a lot of comfort. Ya, one of those kind of things. I, after hours on hold and lots of running around I was able to obtain the lean release for my wrecked van yesterday so I am driving to my state capital with my brother today. Thankfully its just an hour away. I had a few new readers that left lots of lovely kind comments yesterday in the middle of irritating phone calls and they really made my day so much nicer. It's my youngest's daughter's second birthday today. And most importantly, my local Aldi has their holiday peppermint almond milk creamer and its amazing. I am enjoying my coffee as I post this. so yummy!

Chapter 6

Sakura

Fifty-five days into the past

He is not for you.

It had been a recurring phrase since Sakura first realized she was attracted to him. Then she had fallen back in time and her crush had only gotten worse. His surprising and obvious interest was not helping.

When he'd sat on her counter, just a little too close, tugged down his mask and wordlessly asked her to feed him—blatantly flirting with her—she had been almost painfully reminded of the last time she'd given him the sweets.

She had been sure his older self had wanted her to feed him too. But he hadn't actually gone so far as to lean in and open his mouth for her. It had felt more like he was reliving a pleasant memory, wishing he was in that moment instead.

Then she'd done it, leaning in to meet him, placing the sweet on his tongue as if in a trance. He was so beautiful and she wanted him so badly, and maybe he wanted her too. And then she had gone and offered to make him dinner, practically asking him on a date.

As soon as the door had shut behind him, her legs had nearly given out. Crouching on the floor of her kitchen, Sakura panicked.

What the hell was she doing?

He was only interested because she held the secrets of his future and maybe because he might find her pretty but as soon as he met Kazuki's mother that would be it. She needed to get a grip. No more returning his flirtations. Making him dinner was absolutely out of the question. It would just give him ideas and hurt her more when he inevitably moved on.

So for the next two days, her recurring phrase had become a mantra. She repeated it every time she thought about him.

"He is not for you."

Thankfully the Hokage had sent him on another mission and she hadn't had to face him since. Unfortunately, the absence had only made her think about him more. Between repetitions of her mantra, her mind had gone into overdrive, over-thinking their every interaction since arriving.

Was he right about them always knowing each other? Was that the reason for the moment on her parents' roof? Maybe, even though he was going to marry someone else, their friendship was important to him.

He is not for you.

One of the many times someone had commented on how alike she and Kazuki looked slipped intrusively into her thoughts in the middle of teaching her advanced medical class. Could she possibly…

No. Of course not. It was absurd.

He is not for you.

So absurd that she had banished it from her mind and invited Aiko out that night to distract herself. They had overindulged in rice wine and ended up passing out in a heap in her apartment.

She woke the next morning, three days after she had last seen Kakashi, with an aching head and a tapping somewhere on the inside of her skull. Sitting up, Sakura groaned and rubbed her temples. "What did we do?"

Beside her, Aiko sat up far too fast, groaning even louder than Sakura. It was too loud. The tapping was too loud. Everything was too bright and too loud.

"What's that noise, Hana-san?"

So it wasn't just in her head. Pulling chakra to her hands, Sakura rubbed her temples as she stood . A messenger hawk was waiting for her at her window, tapping incessantly.

"I'm coming, I'm coming."

Aiko, mimicking her headache cure, slowly ambled over to join her at the window. "Is it important? I'm sorry we drank so much last night. I think that was my fault."

Sakura shook her head as she read. "No, that was all me. It's from the Hokage." She squinted at the missive. "I'm to report immediately with at least one other medic." Worry fluttered in her gut and she glanced up at Aiko. "I want you." At her panicked face, Sakura tried to smile reassuringly. "You're extremely capable, Aiko." Besides, she thought as she headed for the bathroom, it's probably just a request for a medic from one of the nearby villages.

Thirty minutes later, they were both standing in the Hokage's office. It was not a medic request.

"An ANBU team on assignment in the land of River sent word early this morning that two of their three man team have been injured too badly to proceed. Currently, they have managed to find shelter, and the only uninjured member has patched them up as well as he can. I need you to get there as fast as possible, get them on their feet and help them home.

"As this is in foreign territory, it goes without saying that discretion is paramount. Do not be seen, and do not engage with anyone."

That last was directed at Sakura with a loaded gaze. If she recognized anyone, he had meant, she was to ignore them.

"Understood," they chorused. He finished filling them in on where to go and they left. As they made their way towards the village gates, neither of them spoke. Sakura just hoped she wasn't on her way to find a badly injured Kakashi.

KSK

Fortunately they were able to make the short journey without running into anyone and arrived in less than a day. The sun was only beginning to set when they approached the series of caverns where they would find their patients. Hopefully they were all still alive.

Sakura looked around at the vaguely familiar surroundings. It reminded her of her fight with Lady Chiyo against the Akatsuki puppet user. That had to have been near where they were now. A shiver shot down her spine at the memory and she had to remind herself that the terrorist group wouldn't be a threat for at least a few more years.

"How are we supposed to know which cave they're in?"

Beside her, Aiko was staring at the caverns before them with an anxious look on her face.

"We will feel for their chakra. Come on."

They hurried across the wide river between themselves and the low cliff face. On the bank, Sakura closed her eyes and focused, reaching out for any chakra signatures. Surprisingly, she found that they were all three familiar to her. Now more worried than ever, she opened her eyes and took off in the correct direction.

"They're here. Second to the last on the right. And one of them is very weak. Let's hurry."

They raced along the river bank and into the proper cavern. Light from the entrance followed them a decent way down and a fire greeted them as it faded.

Before either of them could utter a word of greeting, the least injured of the three ANBU was in front of her, short sword out and at the ready. "Who are you?"

Again, when she opened her mouth to answer, she was interrupted. A slurred attempt at her name, aborted halfway through, and then her new name came from the ground and to her right.

The shinobi in front of her relaxed slightly and she answered as she moved to kneel beside Kakashi, because that's who had called her name. His ANBU mask was on the ground beside him and he was struggling to breathe. He looked horrific. "The Hokage sent us to help get you home. We're medics."

Sakura pulled her pack around and began digging in it. She glanced over her shoulder and was satisfied to see that Aiko was already kneeling beside the other man. His mask was missing and she realized with a jolt that she did know him. Genma looked terrible, but not nearly as bad as Kakashi.

Exhaling a breath, she turned back to her patient and got to work. "Tell me anything pertinent. What happened? Is there any poison?"

The shinobi that had stopped them came to kneel beside her. He sighed. "No poison. It was supposed to be information gathering only, but we were ambushed. Several rogue nin we recognized from the latest bingo book. No idea why they were here but… there was some kind of explosion he took the brunt of it. He…"

His voice broke but he recovered quickly. "He took a hit that was meant for me. I was the closest but he flash stepped to my side and threw me out of the way. He—" He indicated Genma with his head. "—was able to stay on his feet long enough that I could collect Sempai and get us away. I don't think they were really interested in us. But I can't help them any more than I have and I think something is damaged on the inside."

From her preliminary scan, she could see that he was right. "Shit. Aiko, report."

"He's stable, but there is fairly significant soft tissue damage and he has a concussion. Nothing fatal now that he can be treated."

Sakura nodded to herself. "Repair the tissue damage and see to the head injury. There was an explosion, so be sure to check his ears and eyes."

"Yes, Sensei."

Knowing Aiko was more than capable, Sakura left her to it and began cutting away Kakashi's clothes. There weren't any visible wounds. "Was there shrapnel or was it more of an explosive energy?"

The young shinobi shook his head. "Nothing that I could see. It was like a wave of energy. Is he going to be ok?"

It was lucky they got there when they had. "He's going to be fine…" She knew he would be because he had to have survived this. Exhaling, Sakura focused. Putting her hands on his abdomen, she allowed her chakra to seep into him, searching out all damage. Realizing how extensive it was, she muttered a harsh swear under her breath. There was very little outward bleeding, but inside… The level of cellular regeneration it was going to take to save him from soft tissue damage alone was extreme. He was concussed, there was damage to his eyes, both inner ears and there were small fractures all over his skeletal structure. It was amazing he was even still alive.

But he was alive, and he was going to stay that way. With another muttered curse and a heavy sigh, she got to work.

Hours later, Aiko had finished with Genma and was beside her, helping with Kakashi. He was stable now at least, but it would take a lot more work before he would be up and walking on his own. He was going to hate the amount of time it was going to take to fully recover, even with her efforts. Her normal store of chakra was almost depleted, and he'd still be nearly blind and deaf if he woke now. It occurred to her that he must have recognized her chakra signature when she entered the cave. There was no way he had seen her.

Sakura sighed, and hung her head.

"Are you alright, Hana-sensei?"

She nodded. "Yes. Hook up the second IV, I need a minute."

Standing, she crossed to the other side of the fire and accepted the offered food. Field rations. Not her favorite, but it would replenish her chakra enough to get her home. She sighed again, and slid down beside Tenzō. "How bad are your injuries?"

He shook his head. "I'm fine." A short pause and then, "He knows you."

"Didn't he tell you what he was doing when the Hokage pulled him from your team?"

"So you're the new girl, then?" Now less worried for his senpai, Tenzō sounded more like himself. She hadn't realized until then how much she had missed him too. Not that she could tell him that.

"Yes. I'm just glad I made it in time. I'm honestly surprised he didn't die immediately." She sighed and finished her food, letting her head fall back against the cave wall.

"Me too. I don't know why he took that for me. He's not nearly so suicidal as he used to be, but still…"

"Well…" She didn't like to think about what would make Kakashi suicidal. "He's your captain, isn't he? That's probably why."

Tenzō scoffed. "It was still stupid. I don't want him to die for me."

"He won't be dying today, but he won't be able to walk out of here on his own either. I can carry him back. You'll need to carry your other teammate. Aiko is a very skilled medic but she doesn't have my strength." Taking a drink from her canteen, she stood and went back to Kakashi's side. "I've got it from here, Aiko. Go rest."

"Yes, Sensei."

As she knelt over Kakashi—mending the damage to his inner ear enough that he would be able to hear her—Sakura wondered again if he had been right about her always having been here.

She wasn't so full of herself to think that no one else in this time would have been able to keep him alive. But… nearly every one of his organs had required intense regeneration. That was a skill few had. Tsunade and Shizune were the only other medics she knew that would have been capable at this level. It was a skill she was currently only teaching Aiko. Even back in the hospital with a skilled surgeon and a team of the best medics Konoha had to offer, he might not have made it. Out here with nothing to work with but her chakra and a field kit? She doubted anyone else besides Tsunade could have saved him.

It was compelling evidence to support his theory.

A small smile slipped onto her face as she thought again about the rakugan. Maybe he really had been thinking about the other night in her kitchen when she had offered him the sweets, all those years in the future on her parents' roof. Them having this friendship now would also explain why he had always seemed to be so distant with her then.

"What…" He sputtered a weak cough. "I can't—" He hissed in pain when he attempted to shift and she immediately moved to push him back. "Sakura, I can't see—"

She put a calming hand against his cheek and leaned close so he could hear her better. "Shh… It's ok, Kakashi, I'm here. Remember you need to call me Hana." When he relaxed, she explained his situation. "There was an explosion. You have been very badly hurt. I will be able to heal your vision but it will have to wait. I have nearly expired my normal chakra just to keep you alive, and we still have to get you home."

He nodded—hardly moving at all—but his muscles contracted and he hissed in pain. Not able to expend much more chakra, Sakura rubbed at his arms and shoulders to help him relax again. She had already injected all the painkillers she'd brought. They weren't going to be enough.

Gradually, he relaxed again, panting hard from the exertion. "An explosion… how are—"

Sakura wished she had a sedative: he didn't need to be talking yet, and she told him so. Then she took pity on him. "Genma will be fine. It looks like you took the brunt of the blow, but he was hurt pretty bad. Tenzō might have a few scratches but he won't let me look at him."

Kakashi frowned slightly, his unseeing eyes searching for her. "How do you know their names?"

She shrugged, sighing. He never was a good patient. "I know them. Don't worry, I haven't said anything to them." Hearing his raspy, broken voice, the reality of what had almost happened hit her fully for the first time. "Dammit Kakashi, you… you really might have died if I hadn't been here." She was glad he couldn't see her tears.

He coughed. "You as in any medic or… you as in you, specifically?"

"As in, me specifically."

"Hmm." His hand lifted slowly, seeking her out. Sakura took it in hers. "Don't… don't do that."

"What?"

"Don't cry… Hana."

Sakura gasped. "How can you tell?"

His mouth twitched in what was probably meant to be a smile and his head lolled to the side. "I can hear it in your voice… Sort of."

"Don't try to talk for now." Sakura squeezed his hand gently, quickly wiping her eyes on her shoulders. "I will finish fixing your hearing when we get home and I have a chance to rest. I only did enough so you could hear me. I didn't want you to wake up and panic."

"How long am I going to have to be in the hospital?" Even with a ragged voice, Sakura could hear the disdain.

"Probably a while, honestly."

His sigh was somehow dramatic despite the situation. "Fine. It's not like I can escape right now anyway… But I don't want any other medics. Just you."

A blush colored Sakura's face at the request. It wasn't exactly new. In recent years, his older self had only ever come to her if he was hurt too. It was the only time he would ever actively seek her out. But he had never said anything about it. She had always just assumed it was because he trusted her and knew she was the best next to the too-busy-for-his-shit Hokage. This felt like something else.

He's not for you.

Remembering herself, Sakura set his hand down and cleared her throat. "Well… We'll see. I am very busy."

A/N *Evil Laugh* She'll figure it out eventually ya'll!