My Eternal Rival, Angellwriter, and I are embarking on a very unique collaborative story. I don't think I've ever seen a story like this and we're going to have a lot of fun writing it.

To break it down, this story takes place a year or two after the war. As you may have garnered from the summary, Sakura and Sasuke are going to be traveling to different AU dimensions. The way this story works is that Angellwriter writes Sasuke's experiences in each world and I write Sakura's.

However, we are not simply telling the same story from two points of view. Essentially, we are splitting the story between us. Angellwriter writes one half and I write the other. To get the whole story you have to read both parts.

Both stories are called Serendipity and have the same summary.

This chapter is not an AU. Those start next chapter. But, fair warning, we will not be updating the same AU world for each chapter.

I know. Long AN. It's over with now though. Except for the required Disclaimer. Neither I nor Angellwriter own the Naruto series or its characters. That right belongs to Kishimoto.

Edit 8/18/14 - misspelled and missing words.

Sakura didn't want to do this, but it couldn't be helped. Left with no other choice, she took a deep breath, brushing nonexistent lint off her short pink apron skirt. Aside from the green flak jacket she wore over her red shirt, Sakura's outfit had remained unchanged.

She was very proud of the vest. It may have been given to every register Konoha shinobi during the war, but Sakura had earned the right to wear it with pride.

Her target looked up when she threw open the door to the break room. The hospital's work never seemed to end. They were just as busy now as the medics had been on the warfront. Shinobi willingly came through the door in droves. Sakura thought that last point was worth celebrating. She could name several of her comrades that were notorious for avoiding the hospital even when she could see bone. For that one fact alone, she was grateful for the war. It had taught ninety percent of the ranks that they could not skip out on checkups.

Due to the staggering number of injured shinobi and the limited amount of medic-nin, each ninja that came in for healing was scheduled for an hour long, once a week session until they were ready to return to the active ninja rosters.

The system was working thus far. Life threatening injuries had been given priority and dealt with immediately, but cases like broken bones were often realigned and the attending medic-nin encouraged new bone growth, but left it to heal naturally. Some shinobi complained bitterly about having to heal the civilian way, but Sakura had to make a tough call. She chose to preserve her healers. They'd be doing nobody any good laid up in their own hospital beds from chakra exhaustion.

Despite being the one to design the system and put it to work, the pinkette didn't adhere to it more often than not. She pushed her chakra to its limits in order to see to more patients and to see them one hundred percent healed.

Or as close as she could get. It was as much matter of pride for her as it was that knowing every ninja who came through those doors was used to immediate gratification. Sakura was considered a medical prodigy, a miracle worker amongst her coworkers, but she couldn't replace lost limbs.

She'd give her friends dozens of excuses for why she was too tired to go out to eat. Hinata was concerned for her. Occasionally, Sakura would arrive home at her apartment to find that the Hyuuga heiress had left her a decadent and generously sized portion bento.

Hinata was the only one that didn't berate her for being a hypocrite, and Sakura appreciated her silent support. She may not have understood why Sakura pushed herself so hard, but she wasn't going to pry.

The Head Medic's reasoning was really simple. Medical ninjutsu was one of the few shinobi arts she outstripped everyone else in the world at. She had the ability to do so much for the men and women who she had fought beside.

How could she call herself a medic-nin if she only did the bare minimum and sent them on their way with a reminder to be back next week?

She couldn't. So she made the choice to work herself to the point of fatigue, swallow a chakra pill, and go home and sleep for ten hours, then wake the next day and do it all over again. Her chakra would be nearly full when she woke. All things considered, Sakura saw no need to change her routine. As long as her performance was unaffected, she would continue doing her job as she saw fit.

Sakura weaved through tables and plastic chairs toward Ino, whose hand was raised in a universal gesture of come join us. Ino was already eating with her cousin and student, Memori Yamanaka. The elder blonde was talking excitedly, giving Memori an impromptu lesson on what the foods a person ate could tell you about them. If Sakura didn't know better, she would have thought her best friend was Ibiki Morino's long lost daughter and destined to follow in the interrogator's footsteps.

She shivered unconsciously at the thought. Ino would do very well in the interrogation forces without her clan's jutsus. It was part of being a gossip queen. If she didn't already know it, she would soon enough. She always managed to wriggle Sakura's secrets out of her. Ino was very subtle. Sakura wouldn't realize she had done it until it the blonde let out an exclamation of "Aha!"

The accomplished medic-nin slid into the hard plastic seat across from the two blondes who gave her a quick nod of acknowledgement but didn't break off their conversation. It didn't bother Sakura because it gave her more time to prepare a speech to use against Ino.

When Ino finally turned her glittering blue eyes on the pinkette, she nearly changed her mind about coming to her. They were practically twinkling with curiosity.

"It's not often you grace us common medic-nin with your presence, mighty Billboard Brow," Ino said coyly. Sakura punched the other girl's arm. It was a testament to Ino's pain tolerance that she didn't yelp and simply massaged the already purpling flesh. "What brings you here?"

"Can you take a couple hours of my afternoon shift? Just at the beginning. Not the whole thing." Sakura hurried to say when her friend arched a sculpted eyebrow. "Naruto said he desperately needs my help for the new seal he's working on and you're the only person I could think of to cover me."

She figured a little flattery never hurt. Ino's face lost the skeptical quality to it as she seriously considered the plea. "What's the idiot working on this time?"

Ino should thank her stars that the word idiot was spoken with affection, or Sakura would have decked her, best female friend or not. Naruto had worked so hard to gain acceptance from everyone in Konoha, acceptance he shouldn't have been denied. Kumo treated their Jinchuuriki with respect. The man shouldn't have had to defeat Pein or Madara to get a village to love him.

Sakura was ashamed of the way she used to treat the blond. He may not have been the smartest in the academy, but that was because he learned better by trying than listening to lectures. Naruto could makes plans on the fly and adjust them just as easily.

"I don't know," Sakura shrugged. He was a genius when it came to seals though.

Activation component. Limiters. Ofuda. The technical terms went over her head every time the hyperactive ninja tried to explain it. She was smart. She had an IQ close to 170. Even Shikamaru Nara with his IQ of over 200 couldn't follow Naruto's explanations. He had a gift for Fuuinjutsu and she didn't. The most she would ever be able to do is activate one.

"You'll owe me a favor."

Sakura didn't manage to hide her wince. Ino's ideas of favors weren't exactly of the equal exchange variety. She wouldn't be taking up some of her hours in repayment. It was more likely that the Yamanaka would forcibly drag her to the bar or Yakiniku Q. They were her generation's usual haunts and Sakura had been avoiding them like they were cursed.

She felt out of place amongst them. Emotionally, the pink haired woman had come out of the war fairly unscarred. Aside from the normal trauma associated with fighting a war, she came out fine. She didn't belong to a clan. Her parents were civilians. Unlike most of their shared friends, she hadn't lost anyone. Ino had lost both her father and sensei and so had Shikamaru. Team Seven was the only team to not lose family members to the war. But they didn't have any to start with, so it didn't really count.

Plus, now that Sasuke was back, Sakura found herself at a lost how to act around him. It wasn't often she saw him anymore. What with her always at the hospital and Sasuke joining ANBU. Any time they were in the same area she felt like the last Uchiha was always staring at her. Intensely. Sometimes, Sakura thought he was following her. He was always there when she looked over her shoulder. It was unnerving, especially since he never approached her or tried to talk to her. He just watched her like a hawk.

She didn't know where she stood with the avenger. Whatever relationship existed between them wasn't just as teammates, but Sakura wouldn't consider them friends, either. Every time her green eyes clapped on his form, her heart started racing and a flush would cover her cheeks. Even after all this time, she still liked him.

Sakura pushed those feelings away. She knew there was no way Sasuke felt the same and all her previous experiences taught her that thinking with her heart around him would only cause her grief. He was always calling her weak and over emotional.

The two of them were like water and oil. She and Sasuke just didn't mix. They had changed too much. The war especially. If she distanced herself, those feelings would eventually wither and die and it wouldn't hurt her so much to be around him. So, to avoid being uncomfortable and awkward, she spent more time working at the hospital and less hanging with her friends.

It was for the best really. She missed going for a quick bowl of ramen with Naruto and training with the team. But, after a rather disastrous morning practice where Kakashi had paired her and Sasuke together to fight two on one against him, she had made her decision. Needless to say it had not gone well. She and Sasuke were constantly tripping over each other and had no coordination to speak of. Kakashi had beaten them soundly in only ten minutes and they hadn't so much as landed a scratch on him.

It had been the last sign the pink haired woman needed that she and Sasuke just weren't meant to be anything more than comrades.

Naruto didn't ask for her help often. He didn't understand why his two best friends were avoiding each other, but he had stopped trying to force them to resolve their issues, realizing it was something they would have to work out on their own.

Since he had been so understanding of her need for space, Sakura didn't have it in her to say no, even though she was sure this new seal would probably result in a pretty explosion.

So, despite whatever exorbitant favor Ino would ask of her in return, Sakura would agree because she owed it to Naruto. Still, that didn't mean she couldn't try to minimize the damage.

"I'll buy you a pair of shoes." She brokered.

Ino's eyes narrowed. "Three."

"No way. Two."

"And a week manning the counter of the flower shop."

"Deal," Sakura said, before Ino changed her mind. Normally, she would have protested at doing Ino's job for a week when the girl was only filling in for Sakura for a couple of hours. But Ino's mother had taken Inoichi's death really hard, and her daughter was struggling to run the shop by herself. Sakura would have gladly helped if asked, but Ino had her pride. Not to mention she probably thought Sakura would start using her shop as another excuse to avoide the group.

Besides, working in the Yamanaka flower shop would be a nice change of pace. Relaxing and nowhere near as harrying or demanding as a ten hour shift at the hospital.

"Thanks, Ino. You're a lifesaver," Sakura said, standing.

"Where are you off to already?"

She flashed a grin that showed off all her teeth. "Going to meet Naruto, of course. My shift starts in twenty. Don't be late!"

With that, Sakura turned tail and ran, conveniently ignoring Ino's shouts on how she needed to give a girl more warning than that. It was Sakura's revenge for the second pair of shoes.

The jounin set a fast pace towards the training grounds Team Seven still used. She found the blond waiting there; crouched over one of two of the largest sealing scrolls the girl had ever seen. If it was standing upright, Sakura estimated it would come up to Naruto's shoulders.

She froze at the sight of a dark haired figure hovering over his shoulder as he wrote the characters. She was momentarily short of breath. Naruto hadn't told her Sasuke was going to be there, too.

Maybe she could get away unnoticed if she walked away now. She'd claim an emergency came up at the hospital. Then she'd sneak a peek at the missions list to see when Sasuke would be out of the village and make it up to Naruto then.

"There you are, Sakura-chan!"

Or not.

"Hey, Naruto," she greeted, and as if an afterthought, she tilted her head in her second teammate's direction. "Sasuke."

She was surprised to see him here. She had been rather diligently avoiding the Uchiha since the end of the war. Sakura didn't think she had spoken more than a "welcome back" to him when they first got back to the village. She'd never tell anybody, but she had never quite forgiven the man for leaving her on a bench in the middle of the night.

Dark eyes bore into her. With a grunt he turned back to the seal Naruto had been in the middle of writing. Cautiously, Sakura stepped up beside him, mentally scolding herself for acting like he might stab her with Kusanagi at any minute. For Naruto's sake, she could stand next to Sasuke for an hour.

Emerald green eyes darted left and right as she inspected the blond's newest masterpiece.

As usual, she couldn't make heads or tails of the seal structure. Because Fuuinjutsu was such a precise, meticulous art, the instructions had to be written entirely in hiragana and katakana. Naruto studied those characters for months so he could learn Fuuinjutsu. Using kanji, which could represent more than one meaning, tended to set the scroll on fire.

Sakura shook her head. For someone that didn't like standing still, Naruto put painstaking care into clearly and explicitly writing exactly what he designed a seal to do. She wondered how much better he would have done in the academy if he put the same amount of effort he did into his homework as he did creating new seals.

She could pick out a few words. Other. Understand. Soul. Or maybe it was spirit. And she thought that one was the symbol for the mind. She knew that one to be seal, although she didn't know why it was included. Was he going to seal something in them? Because she had not signed up for that.

She couldn't decipher enough characters to discern what this particular structure was for. Naruto was the only one that knew, so she nudged her shoulder into his. "So, what's this one for?"

The Fuuinjutsu prodigy was positively beaming as he explained. "You see this?" He pointed to the symbol she believed to be spirit or soul. "This seal is supposed to connect one's soul and mind. Then this one here," Naruto pointed to a second symbol with his foot, "allows for you to transfer your consciousness to another person."

"That sounds like the Yamanaka's clan jutsu."

"Well, yes. That's where I got the idea." Naruto shrugged haphazardly, not really caring that he was essentially ripping off a clan technique. "This is just a prototype. I need the base to work before I can modify it. Which is why I needed you two to be my guinea pigs!"

Sasuke grunted at the label. Sakura looked from him to Naruto, who was still grinning widely and now performing some kind of happy dance. She was starting to regret promising to help him test a new seal.

"If there are no further protests." Naruto directed his friends to each stand in the circle of one scroll. When they were in position, he ran through a long sequence of hand signs.

Really long. Sakura fidgeted in place when he showed no sign of stopping. She glanced at Sasuke, casually standing four feet from her with hands in pocket and looking bored. She thought she caught a hint of red in his eyes, but she whipped her head around when he saw her staring.

Finally, Naruto slammed both hands down, one in the corner of each seal.

All three of them waited with bated breath. Sakura had no idea how this seal was going to connect consciousness or souls or whatever Naruto said it was going to do, but she expected it to be flashy. A plume of smoke. Bright light. The inked letters crawling off the page like one of Sai's drawings. Anything.

Sakura was about to say that that had been anticlimactic and that Naruto should try again when the ink began to glow.

She closed her eyes to shield them from the bright light the seal was emitting. When she opened them again she was in a place she had never been to before. But Naruto's description was enough to recognize it.

And if it wasn't, the giant nine-tailed fox behind the gold gate that separated her from the Bijuu was a pretty good clue.

She surreptitiously edged away from the gate, one eye always on the sleeping fox. He may have been Naruto's friend and partner now, but that didn't mean he felt the same for every person that found themselves in his inner sanctum.

She had seen Naruto work his magic first hand, changing the mind of every enemy they had fought until they were one of his friends. But even if he had changed the Kyuubi's mind, it was still the Kyuubi. Sakura had to refrain from reaching up to rub her shoulder. That memory would always be fresh in her mind. She wasn't certain she'd ever be comfortable being in the fox's presence.

"Alright! It worked!" Naruto cheered.

Sakura jumped. Her heart raced when she noticed the Kyuubi lift his head, one red eye opening to pin her with an appraising look.

Her anger at Naruto overcame her fear of the Kyuubi. "You mean you meant to do this? Why didn't you say so? I almost had a heart attack, you idiot!"

"Sakura-chan," he whined, furiously rubbing the already forming lump on his head.

"Tch. Dobe."

Sakura shot a look at Sasuke, for once not feeling uneasy that his eyes were practically glued to her, because she could see the annoyance in them and she knew how to deal with an annoyed Sasuke.

Not to mention that she agreed with him. The two of them knew all too well how Naruto got when he had some harebrained scheme. But Sakura thought this one took the cake. What was he thinking when he decided it would be a good idea to drag her and Sasuke into his mindscape when the blond already shared it with the Kyuubi?

That was just begging for something to go horribly wrong.

Naruto apparently didn't see the problem. He sauntered over to the gate that kept the Kyuubi inside the seal, reaching in to pat the side of his paw his head rested on. The fox's eye never strayed from her and Sasuke though.

"It was actually Kurama's idea," the Jinchuuriki said blithely. "He finds it amusing when humans squabble over petty things. His words not mine," Naruto hurriedly defended himself when a tick mark marred Sakura's forehead.

"Originally, I was going to have you guys go into the other person's mind. That way you could really know what they were thinking and feeling."

"You were going to have us switch bodies?" Sakura sounded scandalized. Was that even possible? Certainly even someone as unpredictable as Naruto wouldn't think it was a good idea for her to switch bodies with Sasuke.

She resolutely ignored the fleeting amusement she felt imagining Sasuke having to deal with her emotions, considering he had the emotional range the size of a smoke bomb. There was no way he'd be able to handle it. She, on the other hand, would only have to act surly and not talk to anyone, let Naruto drag her around, and never remove her eyes from herself.

It only served to remind her why she was avoiding Sasuke. Recalcitrant bastard.

"But Kurama's idea was better. So I made it bring you here instead. Now get on with it." He ordered.

Sakura stared at him flabbergasted. Get on with what? She looked at Sasuke again to see if he had any idea what their knuckleheaded teammate was talking about. She only got a slightly raised eyebrow, which she took to mean he didn't have a clue either.

"Well," Naruto said insistently when neither of them responded to his demand. "Aren't you two going to say something? Clear the air? You guys haven't spoken since Sasuke came back."

Sakura couldn't stop herself from looking at Naruto incredulously. That's what all this was about? He wanted her and Sasuke to work things out? This was all another plot to make them work out their differences? She thought he had given up on those.

"Look, Naruto, not that I don't appreciate it," she started gently, "but this really isn't necessary. Sasuke and I . . ." she floundered trying to come up with the words that could describe the relationship she had with the dark haired male. "We just don't get along. He's an uncaring bastard and I'm too emotional. We're better off being just teammates."

Sakura flinched at the wounded look on Naruto's face. She hated breaking his heart like this, but it was true. She stilled cared for Sasuke, and stars how much it hurt her to care about an arrogant man that treated her like trash for most of the time she knew him. But she wasn't going to act on her feelings. They were just left over from her gennin days and it would only cause her a world of pain to try for anything more than friendship with Sasuke.

Everything they had gone through up to this point only served to prove how incompatible they were. The gulf that had been between them as gennin. The ease at which he rendered her unconscious and fled the village.

The only time she ever had anything remotely worth mentioning with Sasuke was when they, Naruto, him and herself, fought during the war. The three of them had been a sight to see. Naruto, cloaked in his Bijuu mode, would bust out his one man army. Sasuke, armed with his sword and Sharingan, would cut through White Zetsus like they were made of paper. And Sakura would have been using her chakra enhanced strength to her full advantage, sending White Zetsus flying.

That time they had worked together phenomenally. The three of them had been untouchable. With Naruto on the offensive, Sasuke backing up the blond and using his Susano'o to protect them, and Sakura to heal and cover the defensive, dealing with Madara had been easy.

Powerful though he was, the Uchiha ancestor was still just one man.

She turned to Sasuke, hoping to get him to support her, and was surprised by the restrained fury smoldering in his eyes. He took a step towards her and Sakura instinctively took one backwards.

Before she could protest, Sasuke had closed the distance between them, put one hand on the back of her neck, and his mouth was on hers.

Sakura used to daydream about what it would be like when Sasuke kissed her. In her mind it was soft, sweet, and gentle. It would right after he professed that she was the only girl for him. She would close her eyes and melt into his embrace.

This was nothing like that.

It was better.

It was hard and furious and passionate. It was demaning and possessive. It was electrifying and dizzying. It sent fire through her veins. She had dated Kiba a couple months back, but his kisses never provoked this kind of response.

Sasuke drew back, satisfied smirk on his face. She stared at him, dazed.

"Wha. . . what was that for?" she asked, breathless.

"You're annoying. A ninja shouldn't have to ask."

Fury replaced pleasure. She pulled her elbow back and let her fist slam into his eye. He dropped her like a paper bomb to press his palms into it like it would ease the pain. Her anger roared in her ears. No, that was the Kyuubi chuckling.

"See Naruto! That right there is why I could never get along with him." She shouted. "He's always ridiculing me and calling me annoying."

Naruto actually looked uncomfortable. Maybe he thought she and Sasuke could talk like the mature adults they were, but that was clearly asking too much of the Uchiha.

"Look, uh, this is rather personal. Kurama may like this stuff but I don't." That damn fox was still laughing. Sakura didn't find any of this amusing. Sasuke kissing her then insulting her. Naruto's deciding they need to fix their relationship in the first place. "I'm going to let you guys work this out. Kurama will let you out of the seal when you've made up."

With that, Naruto was gone, missing the horrified look she sent at him. Kurama, the giant nine-tailed fox demon that took pleasure in watching humans fight was in control of when they could leave? Sakura was going to kill him when she got out.

Helplessly, she faced Sasuke. He hadn't moved from where she punched him. Every line of his body was stiff and Sakura couldn't describe the look she saw in his eyes.

"Look, you must want to be doing this as much as I do. What do you say we pretend to be friends around Naruto and go back to our separate lives?"

Sakura thought it was a reasonable offer. If they could be amiable when in Naruto's presence the blond wouldn't take such drastic actions again and they would both be free to go about their lives without all the drama.

Sasuke's jaw was set, though. "No," he said flatly.

The pinkette wanted to curse. Why did he have to be so damn stubborn? She threw her hands up in exasperation, turning sideways so he couldn't see how much he was affecting her. "Then what do you want?" she asked, frustrated by everything at this point.

"I want to know what happened to the Sakura that didn't hesitate to throw herself into a fight where her friends were concerned. I want the Sakura that's strong enough to crack mountains. I want the Sakura fought when all hope seemed lost. I want the Sakura that doesn't run away the second she realizes I'm in the room. I want the Sakura that didn't let her fear of the unknown, of defeat, of getting hurt, turn her into a coward."

"Coward?!" Sakura yelled, incensed. She had been taken aback by Sasuke's speech. She hadn't had the faintest hint that he thought of her that highly. She thought Naruto was the only person he would ever hold in that regard.

She let him rant because he was right. She had vastly changed from the Sakura he witnessed during the war. She came home and immersed herself in her duties at the hospital. She hardly made an appearance at the once a week training sessions Team Seven held, which were every man for himself battles to decided who would pay for lunch. She made excuses to leave the second she saw him.

But calling her a coward was the last straw.

"I'm not a coward. Just because I don't solve my problems like fighting like you and Naruto do doesn't make me a coward."

Sasuke scoffed. "You didn't solve your problems with me at all. You tucked your tail in and ran at the mere mention of me. You can't even bring yourself to look at me unless you're yelling at me."

Startled, she turned towards him. He didn't look as angry as she'd thought he'd be after that admittance. Guiltily, she realized he was right.

Beyond exhausted, Sakura slumped to the floor, uncaring that is was covered by a layer of dank water or that Sasuke came to sit beside her. "I'm sorry, Sasuke, but I don't know what you want me to do. You hardly liked me when we were gennin. You tried to kill me once."

"You tried to kill me first."

Sakura laughed. Of course he wasn't going to apologize for nearly murdering her. Sasuke never regretted anything he did. "We both know I never would have been able to go through with it."

Her retort was met with silence. Then, miraculously, two words shattered it. "I'm sorry."

Sakura twisted her neck to look at him. She had never been good at reading him but the softened face, slightly widened eyes, and small smile all spoke of sincerity. It looked rather out of place on the man she was certain couldn't show anything other than hate.

It was odd. There were times where she inherently knew Sasuke, like how she knew he was going to leave that night. Then there were times like this where he surprised her and Sakura thought she'd never truly know him.

"Me too, Sasuke. Me too."

There was a splashing of water as he gained his feet. Then his hand was in front of her face. She quickly glanced at his face. It was as impassive as ever and yet more open than she had ever seen him. Sakura placed her hand in his and he effortless pulled her to her feet.

She didn't let go once she was standing, nor did he make any effort to pull away.

"Friends?"

She caught a glint of something in his eyes but it was gone as quickly as it had come. "Ah."

"Are you hairless monkeys done? That wasn't nearly as entertaining as the brat promised it would be." The Kyuubi drawled languidly.

Only Sasuke's steady grip on her hand kept her from jumping out of her skin. She had forgotten that the two of them were in there with the fox. She had been so focused on Sasuke, who was exposing his true emotions for the first time, that she forgot they weren't alone.

Without warning the fox's red chakra bubbled, rising flying towards them at an alarming speed.

Sakura had one second to realize that even if they moved now they would still be hit by the Kyuubi's chakra. She hadn't thought when Naruto left the responsibility of removing them from the seal that the fox would do it so violently.

There was a burning pain on her right arm. Sasuke's hand was torn from hers and she was thrown backwards, heavily impacting the stone wall.

The last thing she remembered was the fear in Sasuke's dark eyes and him screaming her name.