A/N: Hello! Been a while. This wasn't done yet, so here we are. I'll probably do an epilogue. Might be a while, as my update schedule for this story is non existent, but you'll probably get one. All and all though, I'm not mad if this was the ending.

Standard disclaimers apply. Trigger warning for discussion of child trafficking.

Itachi stayed with Sasuke and Sakura for two weeks before securing his own place, after his release, and was reinstated for ANBU work. It was an incredibly tense and stressful period for Sasuke as well as made all the more bearable, equally because of Sakura. Her presence made Itachi's proximity feel like a suffocating risk. The last time Itachi had been so close to people he loved, he'd killed them all. By the same token, without Sakura's presence grounding him, Sasuke thought he would bolt entirely and just live at his desk at the KPD.

Still, he didn't let Itachi so much as touch Sakura, even when it probably would have been beneficial. He was still on his unofficial paid leave to watch Sakura and help with her recovery—which Tsunade got away with by assigning it like a mission. She argued that by the end of week one, when Sakura became too antsy and stubborn, it'd feel like one, though officially her justification was that Kabuto was still out there and so Sasuke was functioning as "police detail" for her. Sasuke didn't argue, as he felt Sakura should be guarded either until she'd made a full recovery and was cleared for duty again—meaning she'd be able to protect herself should the need arise, or until Kabuto was caught. Whichever came first. The fact that Kabuto was still at large made him want to hunt the man down himself, but helping Sakura was far more important to him. Though, he did disagree with Tsunade that it would feel like a mission. Even during her most stubborn and obstinate arguments for independence that ran counter to her recovery plan, Sasuke never once felt like taking care of her was a chore. If anything, those moments made him appreciate her on so many different levels, that he was grateful for this assignment. Sakura's fierce and willful need for independence not only drilled in how far she had come from the little girl her parents still saw, and even the girl she had first been when placed on Squad 7, it also made him realize how much she trusted and loved him, to allow him to do things for her. And it was obvious it was hard for her. Even when he saw the insecurities beginning to rise, she loved him enough to let herself depend on him, and that meant everything to him. And there was no way in hell his brother was getting that privilege. Sasuke had always been territorial and possessive, and while he trusted Sakura, there were several reasons he had yet to trust Itachi.

They all felt the tension, and Sakura constantly did her best to try and ease it, always on Sasuke's side, but extending small olive branches designed to get Itachi and Sasuke more comfortable with each other. And they worked. Slowly he and his brother began tentatively sharing things…when Sasuke failed to fall or stay asleep late at night, he'd head to the living room couch where Itachi was never asleep, and the two would just sit at opposite ends and…talk. It was saturated with hesitance and long periods of silence, but then one of them would share a memory of their mother or father, or themselves as children. Their cousin and Itachi's best friend, Shisui, or the girl Itachi had been in love with, Izumi. Or Itachi would ask him about things that happened while he was gone—about the police academy, and Sasuke's friendship with Naruto, squad 7, Kakashi. It took a while, but Sasuke began to ask questions as well. What Itachi had done with the Akatsuki while he was gone, if he forged connections with anyone in that time, why their family had been planning a coup, if he ever missed their family, regretted his actions. Of course they talked about Sakura. A lot. It seemed she became the default topic whenever they hit a wall with others.

One such conversation, the last one they'd had before he moved into his own apartment—somehow in the same building on one of the lower floors—was replaying through his head a lot.

"Nii-san…mother and father…do you think they'd approve of Sakura?"

Itachi stared at him silently for a long moment. "Would it matter to you if they didn't?"

"No." The answer was immediate. He couldn't have been asked an easier question. The way Sakura was able to sooth him with just the sound of her voice, the way she looked at him with those unfathomably open and unguarded jade eyes that made his own walls fall, the way her healing-worn hands were so gentle but so present and firm…He'd still choose to be with her no matter what his parents thought, the same way she'd chosen him over her parent's judgements. The question really didn't matter all that much…and yet, he still wanted an answer.

"I don't think they would have…Mother would have loved her, but Father would have thought she was below your station and unsuitable to bear the family name…and Mother would have gone along with him."

Sasuke stared down the hall at the door to their bedroom where Sakura was sleeping. She wasn't having night terrors every night anymore, though the nightmares were still frequent. He never left her asleep alone unless her face looked peaceful.

"They'd be wrong. If anything it's the other way around. I'm the one not worthy of her."

Itachi considered his brother evenly before letting his gaze drift down the hall towards the bedroom door.

"What makes you say that?"

"Reality. The night I left…She was there. She could tell I was gonna leave. She knew me better than anyone. She loved me, and she told me that, and I…I knocked her out. Left her in her car and took off, after I lead her on and played with her feelings. During that bust…I knew we were there for Orochimaru. I knew he was after her, to use her for repulsive experiments. But all I cared about in that moment was bringing you down. She barely sleeps peacefully anymore because of what that bastard put her through. Because I hated you so much, and couldn't stay focused on the mission."

"Based on what she said about how you two began dating, she's already forgiven you for when you left. And she doesn't seem to blame you for how the operation failed."

"Of course she doesn't. Because she's far better than me." Sasuke spoke tightly.

Itachi was silent for a long moment before shaking his head. "You say that, but to my eyes, it seems like you're both well suited to each other."

Sasuke stared at him unblinking, waiting for him to explain.

"From what I gleaned at the station, here, and from the way everyone talks about her, Sakura is the type who's always the one listening, but rarely listened to. Everyone puts her in the box they need her in, whether that box be up on a pedestal, or buried under kilometers of low expectations. And Sakura prioritizes everyone else's happiness, so she fits herself into the boxes they want her in. Everyone will open up to her. She opens up to a precious few. People ask everything of her, and she does her best to deliver. But asks nothing of anyone. And then there's you. You take what she offers, but ask nothing of her. You listen to her as much as she listens to you. If she seems hesitant to talk about something, you even the playing field and make the space for her to feel safe in doing so. The only one she ever leans on is you. I know you keep me away from her, and I understand why. But there have been moments when you're asleep, or stepped out to buy groceries, where I could have aided her, but she refused any help from me and insisted she could handle herself on her own. But the second you return, she allows you to help her with tasks she refused my aid over. Because you're the only one she trusts to be vulnerable around and not turn that against her."

Sasuke blinked, caught off guard by the detailed analysis. "Is…Is that really how you see it, Nii-san?"

"Yes. You two suit each other…certainly more than anyone else suits her or you. At least that I've seen."

He sounded like his big brother. Like the Itachi he used to idolize. And Sasuke knew that if his parents were still alive, if the massacre had never happened, and if they didn't approve of Sakura, as Itachi suspected, it wouldn't have mattered. So long as his beloved big brother approved of her.

"Father wouldn't have approved, and Mother would have gone along with his ruling. Shisui would have approved and probably agreed with you that she is too good for you. Izumi would have loved her. Probably would have declared Sakura her unofficial little sister, and threatened you that if you ever made her cry, she'd make you pay for it."

"…And you?"

"You already know my answer."

"You approve."

"I more than just approve. I'm wholly grateful to her for what she's done for you. I hope if I'm ever able to earn your trust and forgiveness, and hers as well, that she will rely on me just a little as well, so I can begin trying to pay her back."

Sasuke stared at the blank TV. They hadn't been watching much Hundred Healings recently, since Itachi began staying with them.

"She likes watching medical dramas. The next time I'm out or asleep, ask her to watch one with you."

Itachi had taken him up on that suggestion, the day before he left. Sasuke had been out running errands, and when he returned, he found Sakura and Itachi sitting as far apart from each other as the couch would allow (he was certain that was for his benefit), Sakura loudly critiquing a diagnosis while Itachi stared between her and the TV as if unsure what he was supposed to be paying attention to, her or the show. His face looked torn between amusement, confusion, and minor aggravation.

"So…do you enjoy this show?" Itachi asked hesitantly, when Sakura's tirade lulled.

"Yeah." She stated, like that was supposed to be obvious, bewildering Itachi all the more.

"The fun is in making fun of it." Sasuke informed his brother, making his presence known.

"Tadaima Sasuke-kun!" Sakura greeted cheerfully, making that ever familiar warm heat erupt through him.

"Welcome back little brother. The Prime Minister wanted to see me, so I think I'll leave the rest of this activity to you. You seem more suited to it." Suited to it. Sasuke couldn't shake the feeling that what he really meant was that he was more suited to her. Sakura baffled Itachi—which was fine, she baffled Sasuke. But Sasuke responded to that bafflement far better than Itachi did. He was reminded in force of what Ino had said when she first recommended this trick to cheering Sakura up. She said it would be annoying, but Sasuke had yet to find Sakura's ongoing commentary through TV programs even the slightest bit annoying. Sakura's stubborn independence in the face of her recovery could get a little annoying, yet still never felt like a chore, as Tsunade said it would. He couldn't help thinking of Itachi's words from the night before.

You two suit each other…certainly more than anyone else suits her or you. At least that I've seen.

Maybe he could see where his brother was coming from.

Sakura's eyes widened a little. "You didn't have to wait! You should have just gone! Shishou hates tardiness!"

"I wanted to wait until Sasuke was back."

Sakura narrowed her ever-perceptive eyes. "I don't need a damn babysitter! I'd be fine on my own for fifteen minutes!"

"Protective detail assignment protocol: The assigned individual must have one or more members of their protective detail within a twelve meter radius at all times." Both Uchiha brothers quoted in unison.

Sakura groaned, her head falling against the couch in exasperation, making the Uchiha brothers crack a small smile at her pouting. Itachi headed for the door, stopping in front of Sasuke to grab his keys from the table.

"See you later, little brother." Itachi said, tapping his middle and index finger against Sasuke's forehead. They both froze, awareness dawning on Itachi's face, like he hadn't even been aware he was doing it when he'd used the gesture, while Sasuke stared at him wide eyed.

Itachi recovered first, schooling his expression into neutrality, grabbing his keys and brushing past him. But he let out a faint apology as he did so, for only Sasuke to hear.

Sasuke didn't look at his brother as he left, hearing the door close softly behind him. His gaze fell on Sakura, who was sitting on the couch with her arms folded over her chest in annoyance, her eyes closed. He wondered if she'd seen the interaction or not.

Gathering himself, he slid next to Sakura on the couch, placing his arm around her shoulders on instinct. When she still didn't open her eyes, he kissed her softly on the cheek, the corner of his lips twitching up when he saw her act break. A soft smile painted across her face, her cheeks tinted pink.

"Do you want some space?" He asked her softly. He knew how exhausting it was to constantly be around people, and because of Tsunade's orders and her recovery cutting down her independence, Sakura almost never had a minute to herself anymore. "Having me and Itachi constantly watching over you…"

Sakura shook her head softly. "It's not that, Sasuke-kun. You don't drain any of my social battery. I like being here with you more than I like being alone…It can be a lot with Itachi…but he's out more than he's here, so it's not a big problem. I just hate feeling like I can't do anything." She muttered, glaring down at her injured leg.

Sasuke's concerned expression softened. "You'll be able to start PT soon. It'll get better." Sakura moved when she was stressed or frustrated. Being stuck unable to move freely must be driving her insane. "Are…are you going to be able to do gymnastics again?" He was hesitant to ask incase the answer was no.

Sakura looked down at her leg in thought. "Mmm. It'll take a while…but if I'm really good about my PT I should be able to, yeah."

"Good."

Sakura leaned into him and smiled. Their attention fell back to Hundred Healings, but it didn't stay there long.

"So that forehead poke is something Itachi used to do?" Sakura asked her tone light and casual.

"So you did see." He muttered with a sigh. "I think it was my mother who started it, although the only one who ever used that gesture with me was Itachi. It meant—"

"I know. I could tell."

"Hn." Sasuke dipped his head to her hair, hiding his smile. "Of course you could. I think my brain stopped when you did it to me back in the gym."

"Good. It was pay back from the morgue. Do you know how out of it I was cause of that? I didn't even remember getting from the morgue to the briefing room."

"Hn."

"I can feel your self satisfied smirk from here." Sakura said dryly, without looking at him.

"You know me so well." Sasuke chuckled. He couldn't remember feeling this content and happy in his entire life. Itachi was right. He and Sakura were well suited for each other.

Starting physical therapy was a great relief to Sakura, and she approached it with fierce determination to push herself and speed up her recovery as much as possible. It was probably a very good thing that Tsunade had anticipated that and made sure she was the one overseeing Sakura's physical therapy—or Shizune when she got too busy. They were the only two who could say no to Sakura and reel her in when she insisted on pushing herself too hard. If it was Tsuande working with her, Sasuke went to the station until she was done, but if it was Shizune, he hung around in the unlikely case Kabuto attacked. Every single time, no matter how exhausted she was, or how hard she pushed herself, she always insisted on them visiting the hostages she freed, mainly the little boy, Ashitaba. No one had been able to figure out anything about him, because Sakura was the only one the boy seemed comfortable talking to.

The little boy had joined several of the pediatrics ward patience in their cries to either be adopted by or married to Sakura. Thankfully, Ashitaba had fallen on the adoption camp, so that was one less little boy directing glares Sasuke's way.

"Nee-chan…I shoulda stayed when the bad man—" The boy cried, seeing her in a wheel chair. With her clearance to begin physical therapy had been the clearance to use crutches, which Sakura had been borderline gleeful about, but after a long physical therapy session where she definitely pushed too hard, Shizune and Tsunade had mandated she stay in the wheel chair for the rest of the day.

"Nah. I'm glad you didn't. That guy sucked. Terrible conversationalist. No need to stick around for that."

"You can stop playin' it off. I know what gettin' hurt looks like."

Sasuke eyed the kid sadly. To end up in Orochimaru's clutches, the kid had to either have been plucked directly off the street, or sold off to him. Either way, he'd definitely seen some shit. Far more than a child should have to.

"I know, or you wouldn't have been there." Sakura's answer was measured. "It's not that I'm talking down to you. It's easier for me to cope, if I frame it like that; if I make it a game, or nothing more than a bad conversation, it's easier to talk about. Less scary that way, you know?" Sakura asked lightly, leaning back in the wheel chair.

The boy paused, processing what she was saying. "You're not gonna die, right?"

"Not even close. And I won't be stuck in this chair either. In six months I'll be able to do flips and stuff."

The boy gave a relieved smile. "You can't do a flip."

Sasuke huffed a laugh. "Wanna bet?"

Ashitaba's gaze shifted to Sasuke. "How much?"

"So you're familiar with gambling. Family member?"

The boy's mouth snapped shut as he stared at Sasuke. Not glaring but not so much as blinking, his face expressionless.

This was partially why they were here. Aside from Sakura wanting to check on him, Tsunade had asked them to try and get some information from the boy about his past, so they could figure out what to do with him. Everyone got barely two words out of him. Sakura was their only hope at this point.

"Damn. If I'd known that, I would have bet you how long it'd take to win our game of hide and seek." Sakura said lightly. "Oh well. Missed opportunity I guess."

Ashitaba shook his head. "No you wouldn't. You're no gambler. You'd suck at it Nee-chan. You're too nice."

"Gambler's aren't nice?"

"They suck." The boy answered flatly. "They don't care about anythin but money. And they don't really care about that either since they're willin to lose it so easy."

"So I guess that means they only care about winning, no matter what it costs them, huh?"

"And playin'. Not sure which part matters more…the winnin' or the playin'."

Sasuke didn't even have to look at her to know they were thinking the same thing. Very likely, one of this kid's parents had a gambling addiction, and there was a good change they had gambled their son away.

"Sounds like you know a lot of gamblers." Sasuke said quietly. Again, the boy's gaze fell on him, blank and unblinking. After a long moment of staring Sasuke down, the boy looked straight ahead, giving a short, sharp nod.

"Is that how you ended up with him? Were you a bet?" Sakura asked gently, leaning in closer to the boy.

"Not to the hospital guy…the bet was to someone else."

"Who?" Sasuke asked softly.

The boy shrugged, his legs drawing up to his chest, arms wrapping around his knees, shoulders hunching. Sasuke recognized that closed off, receding-into-yourself posture that came from seeing far more than you should, far too young, and only having yourself to rely on.

Sasuke's eyes widened when despite her orders to remain in the wheel chair for the day, Sakura pushed herself up and onto the boy's hospital bed, next to him.

The boy looked up at her, surprised to see her in front of him, and even more surprised when her arms gently pulled him into her.

"Nee-chan…"

"You don't have to say anything you don't want to. You can just nod or shake your head, and if you don't want to answer anymore, just say 'game over,' is that ok?"

Sasuke saw the boy's expression shift through several different emotions before settling into comforted sadness, his head pressed into Sakura's chest. He gave a soft nod, his tension dropping as he leaned into Sakura more.

Sakura caught Sasuke's eye, her head tilting slightly to the other space next to the boy. He felt his own eyes widen at her message. She wanted him to sit on the other side of the boy and comfort him, as she was doing. But that was foreign to Sasuke. He had no clue how to provide comfort. At least to anyone other than Sakura. And even then, he'd needed Ino's help to cracking the code on that.

But Sasuke could already feel himself giving in to Sakura, already felt his body shift forward, his legs carrying him to the bed, and seconds later, he was seated on the other side of the boy. He met Sakura's eyes again searching them for answers on what he was supposed to do next. Her endlessly open eyes were as kind as ever, blinking softly. She gave a small nod, her eyes dropping to the boy in her arms.

Sasuke hesitantly placed a hand on the boy's shoulder. Ashitaba stiffened briefly before his body relaxed. His arms tightened around Sakura as he looked over his shoulder at Sasuke.

"What happened to you wasn't right. It wasn't fair. It was never something you should have gone through. But you did. We can't undo that, but we can catch them, and make sure they pay for what they've put you through." Sasuke said. Comfort wasn't his strong suit—at least not for anyone but Sakura—but reassurance he could do. Justice he could do. "And we can make sure they never do to another kid what they've done to you." Sasuke knew how to speak with absolute surety.

The kid stared over his shoulder at him unblinkingly, before whispering one word. "Promise?"

"Yeah." He glanced up at Sakura who sent him a pointed look. "I promise."

Ashitaba nodded. "O-Okay."

"The one the bet was too…was it a guy?"

Ashitaba buried his head in Sakura's chest, holding her shirt tightly, and nodded.

"Did he wear a black coat with red clouds on it?"

Another nod.

"Did you hear his name?"

Another nod.

"What was it?"

The boy buried his head deeper into Sakura's chest. She brought a hand up to his hair, stroking it soothingly.

"You don't have to tell us if you can't. If we showed you a picture, could you nod, or would that be too hard?" Sakura asked gently.

Ashitaba shrugged. After a long moment, there was a mumbled, "I don't want to see him…"

"That's okay." She said softly.

"Were his eyes…strange?" Sasuke asked, making conscious effort to gentle his tone. "Red, maybe?" He knew Itachi had to do some atrocious things in deep cover. He hoped this wasn't one of them.

Ashitaba shifted slightly. "Not…the bet guy…but two of the others with those kinda coats had red eyes…" Sasuke met Sakura's confused gaze, clearly mirroring how he felt. Two red eyed members? Itachi and…was there someone else with a genetic mutation like his? Or even…had there been another Uchiha left alive after the massacre? They'd need to talk to Itachi. There had been some members he hadn't been able to gather much information on, but at the very least he should have been able to verify their appearances. And if there was another Uchiha, he and his brother would definitely be having a few words, and maybe some punches.

But Ashitaba had more to say. "…and there was another guy with purple swirly eyes…and…the bet guy…his eyes were a normal color, but the white parts were black."

"Did they immediately trade you to the hospital guy?" Sakura asked gently.

Ashitaba shook his head, his voice toneless and flat when he spoke. "No…they held on to us for a while. One of them would stop in and ask one of us if we believed in some guy named Jashin. If you said no he'd take you, and we never saw them again. If you said yes, he'd take you and we never saw them again. He never asked me. Konan was nicer. She brought us food, and would stay and fold paper animals for us. She was real good at folding paper. But when one of the older ones tried to take my food…she threw the paper and it cut them…bad. They didn't die…but they hurt. It looked pretty bad. There was a lotta blood. The eyed guys didn't visit us much…one of them barely looked at us. The other wore a mask all the time. I didn't even know that his eyes were red for a while…he was just the mask guy. The hospital guy visited one day with the puppet man, and started pointing to a bunch of us. And then we went with him."

Sasuke exchanged another look with Sakura. The puppet man could only have been Sasori of the Red Sand.

"I…don't wanna talk about this anymore." He said quietly after a small pause.

"Game over?" Sakura asked gently.

"Game over." He nodded.

"It's okay. You did good." Sasuke said, placing a hand on the boy's back.

The boy looked back at him wide eyed. Sasuke had the distinct impression that Ashitaba had never been told he'd done well in his life. "I did?" Bingo.

"Yeah. You did." Sasuke gave into the sudden compulsion to tussle Ashitaba's hair gently.

The boy blinked at him, and then gave a very small smile. "Thanks…Nii-san."

Sasuke felt a kernel of something fierce and protective burn in his chest. He'd make those sick bastards pay for what they did to this kid.

"You should get some rest." Sakura said, everything about her radiating gentle warmth and comfort. How she could go from the fiercest woman he ever met, who pushed herself too hard in physical therapy, which was necessary because she single-handedly fought her way out of a hospital-turned-fortress crawling with armed guards and psychopath, and took two bullets to the leg, to the gentlest, most caring, deeply kind woman on the planet.

Amazingly, despite the trauma they just forced the child to relive, he let out a yawn, leaned back in the bed and snuggled into the pillow. Sakura pulled herself up, shifting so she was on one leg. Sasuke immediately stood, his hand wrapping lightly around Sakura's waist to help stabilize her. He could tell she was tired, and likely in pain from the move onto the bed earlier, based on how she leaned into him so openly. Sakura pulled the blankets up, tucking Ashitaba in, in a way that was so tenderly maternal, he wondered how she could have ever questioned her maternal ability.

He helped her settle back in the wheel chair, and the two left once Ashitaba fell asleep. As he wheeled her down the hall, she asked quietly.

"How do you feel about legal guardianship?"

"We'll talk about it."

Sakura's PT was going well, and she was recovering far more rapidly than even Tsunade had anticipated. It was only a few more weeks before she was aimed strong enough to be able to defend herself should the need arise, so Sasuke was called back into the station. That alone would have been fine. But he was called to Tsunade's office, alone. Without Naruto. That…was a less than ideal way to start his first day back at the station.

When he pushed open the door, steeling himself for some lecture about how much of a rat bastard he was for ever letting that bust go so wrong, how it was his fault Sakura got hurt, how unworthy he was of her.

He was met with the sight of Itachi's back, Tsunade's fingers steepled grimly in front of her face. He could clearly imagine what Naruto would have said if he was there—"so who died this time?"—Sasuke had far better sense than Naruto, and knew instinctively not to say that.

In fact, he chose not to say anything. He stepped further into the office, the door swinging shut behind him, foreboding curling in him at the resounding bang. Taking his place next to Itachi, the two brothers stared at the prime minister silently.

After a few long seconds, Tsunade twitched. "Really? Neither of you are going to say anything?" She devolved into a series of grumbles where he definitely caught a few muttered, "damn Uchihas, always a pain in my ass." She broke off taking a steadying breath, before fixing them with stern and unwavering amber eyes.

"We got some intel from Interpol. Danzo's underground somewhere in Kumo. There are rumors that he's in contact with the Akatsuki, though as of yet, these rumors are unsubstantiated. They're also forming an Akatsuki apprehension task force, which they've requested your participation with, Itachi. Let me make it clear…it wasn't really phrased as a request. For Konoha, you may have been under deep cover, but for the rest of the world, you've done a fuck ton of damage. This "request" was more of a threat. Either you help Interpol take out the Akatsuki, or we turn you over to them to be tried for crimes against humanity. If we fail to comply, they will declare war on us. I assume you accept the terms." It wasn't a question.

"Yes." Itachi nodded firmly.

"Nii-san." Sasuke began, they were still working on repairing their relationship. If he left now…it felt wrong.

"There's been sightings of Kabuto with known Akatsuki member, Sasori." Tsunade continued, as if Sasuke hadn't spoken. He stiffened at her words. Both people he had a vendetta against, Danzo and Kabuto, were connected to the Akatsuki. He was suddenly very aware of why Tsunade had called him here. She'd promised him she would assign him Danzo's case. She was upholding her end of the deal. Which meant joining the Interpol task force…which meant leaving Sakura.

Tsunade's eyes were on glued on him. "What do you want to do?"

It occurred to him that life was really unfair. He promised Ashitaba they would catch the Akatsuki. For his mother and father, for his whole family…for Itachi, he needed to catch Danzo. And for Sakura and himself, he needed to catch Kabuto. But…there wasn't a single part of him that wanted to leave Sakura. Again.

"When do you need an answer by?" His voice was rougher than he'd hoped it would be. Somewhere down the line, he must have gotten terrible at hiding his emotions where Sakura was concerned.

"End of the week."

"Is that all?" Itachi asked, his voice as even and steady as always.

"Yes. Itachi, since you've given your answer already, you'll be leaving in two days. We've got a plane ticket for you, and a member of Interpol will meet you at Kumo Skyveiw airport. Don't expect a warm welcome. They all hate you."

"I understand."

"Sasuke. Give me your answer by the end of the week."

"Alright."

"Great. Get out of my fuckin office."

Neither even considered lingering for longer than that.

Sasuke stood in the station's gym, pummeling a punching bag for all it was worth. It was growing late. Later than he wanted to be away from Sakura. But he couldn't quiet figure out how to face her yet. The second she saw him, she would know something was off. She could read him like no one else in his life could. He didn't want to leave her. Not again. Not ever. He also didn't know how he could let Danzo, Kabuto, and the Akatsuki be.

"Bit late, ain't it Bastard? You don't wanna keep Sakura-chan waiting." Naruto's abrasive voice managed to make him punch the bag even harder, cause wasn't that just it? He'd already kept Sakura waiting. It wasn't fair to make her wait longer. It wasn't fair to ask her to wait longer…and yet…Danzo, Kabuto, the Akatsuki…they'd hurt so many already. They had to be brought to justice.

Naruto appeared in his line of vision, catching the swinging punching bag. "So what did grandma want this morning?"

"Hypocrite. What's your excuse for keeping Hinata waiting?" Sasuke countered, dodging the question entirely.

"Hinata-chan's getting dinner with Hanabi, who's not a huge fan of me, so I've got time to kill. So I don't need an excuse. You on the other hand?"

Sasuke said nothing, throwing another round of punches at the sand bag Naruto was holding.

"Seriously, what did Grandma say to you?"

"Kabuto and Danzo have both been connected to the Akatsuki."

"With the Akatsuki? Doesn't that make them international?"

Sasuke said nothing.

"So we can't do anything to go after them."

"Interpol can."

"Inter…wait. Are you—but what about Sakura-chan?"

Sasuke's jaw tightened, the sandbag trembling between Naruto's hold and his pummeling.

"Ah, Jesus! Lay off a bit, Bastard!"

Sasuke's punches slowed, his breathing heavy.

"Oh. This makes more sense now." Naruto said knowingly, before fixing Sasuke with his piercing blue gaze. "What're you gonna do?"

Sasuke stared at the punching bag for a long time, breathing heavily. He closed his eyes, envisioning pink strands of hair, endlessly open pale green eyes, a warm welcoming smile, soft peals of laughter that un-tensed his muscles and soothed his heart pounding.

There's nothing I can say that will make you trust me and believe that I won't leave again…But…I promise it it crosses my mind…If I start to think I might, I'll talk to you about it first.

His own words echoed back to him.

"I'm going to talk to Sakura." Because he promised her he would. He might not know what he was going to do, but he'd said if he started to think he might…and right now there was a chance he would. So he had to keep his promise. They could figure the next steps out together.

"Well, yeah, obviously you gotta and if you didn't I'd pound your ass into the pavement, but like, are you gonna join Interpol?" Naruto asked, both getting the point, and somehow not at all getting the point.

"I'm going to talk to Sakura, Dead last." Before he talked with anyone else, he'd work through this with Sakura first.

When he got back to his and Sakura's apartment, he was greeted by the warm scent of curry. Sakura still wasn't cleared for work yet, though she could now move unaided. She'd be cleared back for hospital duty and KPD medical consultant within the next two weeks but for now, she was still to finish focusing on rest and recovery.

Sasuke wandered into the kitchen, leaning against the table as he watched her move easily around, like she belonged here, like she'd never been hurt. One of those was true. The other was made apparent as a falsehood when she opened a cabinet and had to go on tiptoe in an attempt to reach the sesame oil. He couldn't see her wincing, though he could easily picture it, but he did see the muscles in her leg jump in protest. He was behind her immediately, his fingers curling around the bottle, while his other hand rested lightly on her hip, helping steady her.

Like it was instinct, she leaned into him, her muscles relaxing. "Long day?"

"…Sort of…"

"What a very un-Sasuke-kun like answer." Sakura said turning to look up at him, her face breaking into a frown as her eyes scanned over his face. "What's wrong?"

"What's so un-me-like about it?"

"Typically you would say "something like that." "Sort of" is more Naruto."

Sasuke grimaced. "Great…"

Sakura turned so she was facing him, and placed a hand on his cheek. "Seriously, what's wrong?"

Sasuke stared down at her, taking every feature in. She was the reason he'd made as much progress as he had. She made him better. All he wanted to do was be with her, support her the way she supported him. How was he supposed to just leave her? But in the same breath, how was he supposed to just leave Danzo, Kabuto, and the Akatsuki? Kabuto and the Akatsuki were part of the reason she'd been injured in the first place.

Sakura stared at him, waiting patiently. She was so patient with him. Was it fair to expect her to continue to be patient?

"Sakura, Kabuto has been sighted with the Akatsuki. Danzo has also been implicated in connection with the Akatsuki…Interpol is forming a task force and has demanded Itachi-nii-san's cooperation."

Sakura glanced over at the stove, checking on the curry bubbling away, before taking Sasuke's hand and leading him to the table.

"Are you alright with that? You've only just started working things out." Her voice was soft as they sat down, facing each other.

"That's…not quite the problem…I've been offered the option of going with him."

Sakura fell very still, which was an unnatural state of being for her. "Oh." Was all she said for a very long time, staring at him unblinkingly.

"I…don't know what to do." He whispered, returning her stare. "I don't want to leave. I don't want to be away from you."

"…You can't leave them out there. They need to be brought to justice. The victims…Ashitaba, me, your family…we deserve justice." Sakura's voice was also a whisper. She clearly meant every word, but the way her eyes were growing mistier was a clear indication that she felt equally as emotionally conflicted as he did.

"I promised you I would talk with you if it ever felt like I might leave again…I…really don't want to…you're right though…I can't just leave them be."

Sakura gave a short, sharp nod. "I know…I…" very abruptly she shot to her feet and kicked the table with a sharp cry of "Damnit!"

Sasuke was pretty sure he heard wood splinter.

"This fuckin' sucks! I literally just got better—like we just got back the chance to have sex again and you have to go! And don't tell me you won't, because I won't let you! You need to go! I know you need to go! Even if I don't want you to go, I know you have to cause those fucks can't just be allowed to walk free, and you promised Ashitaba! Those assholes need to be brought to justice! I know that! I want that! I just…really wish you didn't have to go…" She deflated, plopping back into her chair and burying her face in her hands.

Sasuke stared at her for a second, before leaning forward, gently dragging her hands away from her face, and leaning forward to look into her wet eyes.

"Sakura…I'll get them. I'll get them all locked up. I'll do it within two years. And when I come back, I'm going to marry you."

The inhale she took was sharp, but her exhale was soft, as was the kiss she gave him when she leaned forward and pressed her lips to his. When she pulled away, just a few centimeters, he felt his heart thundering through his just, electricity pouring through his veins.

"Stay here." He murmured.

"I already broke my lease." Translation: she had no where else to go.

She pulled away a little farther. "I want to take legal responsibility for Ashitaba."

"I will as well. Until I get back, I can be solely responsible for financial support."

"You don't have to—"

"Together. We do this together. I can't be there for two years. It'll just be on you. So until I get back and can help more directly, the only way I can support you both is financially."

Sakura pursed her lips, and then nodded. "Alright. You'll write?"

"And call when I can."

"When do you leave?"

"A week."

"Let's not waste it then."

Sasuke grabbed her hand, pulling her against him and kissing her, intensely and thoroughly. He wouldn't waste a single minute with her. Without separating from her, he towed her to the stove to quickly shut off the burner, before they both made their way to the bedroom, separating for no more than a second to catch their breath, before joining together again.

He wouldn't waste a single second.

Author's note: So I sort of sped through some things a bit and definitely shortened Sakura's recovery time, like inhumanly, but like let's say it's a few months. I have a feeling no one will be too happy with me about Sasuke leaving again. It was always my plan from the second I wrote the car scene where they first get together. I'm a theater person, there's a rule called Chekov's smoking gun, which is essentially a literary rule that amounts tp anything small you include needs to return to further the story. Sakura didn't trust Sasuke was going to leave again. That needed to be brought up again. Sasuke promised if it happened he'd talk to her about it. So that promise had to be delivered. Plus it tracks with Canon. And genuinely, yeah, this Sakura would definitely want to see Danzo, Kabuto especially, and the Akatsuki brought down. So as long as Sasuke talks to her about it first, she'd want him to go after them. Similarly with Ashitaba, he needed to come back and get resolved because I gave him so much emotional value to Sakura. I like the moment of Itachi trying to watch TV with Sakura and just not...getting it. It was something I sort of tried to build up in the other chapters but really hammer in in this one. Tsunade, Ino, Naruto, Itachi, they all love Sakura, but they can't always handle her. Her stubbornness and quirks aren't necessarily annoying to them, but they can't always deal with it. Sasuke always can. It doesn't annoy him. He accepts it as fully her, and that's part of why they're so compatible with each other. Because they're both like that. They fit each other. They're suited for each other.

Thank you so much for you patience and for following this story. I know it seems like I left it hanging, but I promise I never once forgot about it, and will see it through fully. Just one chapter left. Thank you so much for reading this far!