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Covenant


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Synopsis: In a harmonious world, who takes the blame?
What sins are punished and who decides?
Does vengeance leave with the last of its enemies?
As society rebuilds itself, Sakura learns some things can't be restored.
Not all beginnings start anew—not every ending brings closure.
And sometimes, peace isn't always that peaceful.

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3:14. A Contest


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HER EYES flew open. For a split second, she could hardly breathe. Sakura lurched up, gulping down air, vision spinning. Her hands groped for whatever they could find—an anchor, a tether, anything at all.

But she found only an unfamiliar tent and a strangely thin bed sheet.

Dread sunk into her gut. It wasn't the same color as the Allied tents. It wasn't furnished like base medical. Wasn't made of the thick material they used for winter. Outside was quiet as death, inside was hushed and empty save for her panicked heaving.

Yet, most damning was what she noticed next. She was all alone. Sasuke was gone, and his absence could only mean one thing. If Sasuke wasn't here…

Then Madara must've caught her.

With that, it all crashed upon her like a tidal wave. They had failed. She failed. She was trapped, the Allies lost, Naruto was unconscious, Kakashi was on the run. And they were all going to die because—

Sakura remembered everything. Everything.

She couldn't breathe. Couldn't leave. Couldn't do anything, hadn't done anything.

Why didn't Sasuke keep her unconscious if the jutsu wasn't successful?! He promised, didn't he? She was sure she heard him say it—sure he'd muttered the words. He'd fucking promised…!

"Calm down, kid. You're safe." Fingers wrapped around her arm and Sakura's heart about tore from her chest. Shrieking, she jerked away, whirling towards the sound behind her. Suigetsu lifted his palms up, startled. "Uh, my bad?"

The sight of him rammed her into reality. Made her realize—

It wasn't real. A shudder shot down her spine. It was just a dream.

Whatever expression she wore had Suigetsu's brows nearly touching his hairline. Sakura turned from him to hide her dwindling confusion, pushing against her heart to physically pin the panic and tried to catch her breath.

Not real. Only a dream, she slowly repeated. Eyes squeezing shut, she dragged facts from under the fear to calm herself. Naruto was safe. Kakashi was safe. She was safe.

They weren't in Lightning.

Madara wasn't coming.

This was Kiri, and Madara was dead. He'd been dead for a year, body completely destroyed so he could never return. His ashes were scattered across the continent. Their locations were Classed so no one could find them.

The war was over.

None of that had been real.

Only a dream. Right. That strange scene had only been—

Her head whipped back to Suigetsu. "W-wait. Was that real? Is that what happened? Was that hidden in the box the whole time?"

"What box?" Equally confused amethyst peered back at her. "You lose it again or something? What are you on about?"

"Thebox, Suigetsu. The box. I asked why it was there, but he never—I remember Naruto. He was hurt—I thought no one—but—and I was the one who—!"

The smirk slowly spreading across his lips might've angered her in a different situation. "You'll have to wait for Sasuke, 'cause I got no clue what you're blabbering about. I've dealt with your crazy enough for a lifetime. Way above my pay grade at this point." Leaning back, he nodded towards the mat below her. "Lay down. The snake said you'd wake up with a nasty headache. Well, if you woke up at all."

"No, Suigetsu, I need to know—the box—in Lightning—"

"Whatever you need to know can wait. Just lay down."

"Listen! Naruto was out of position. In the forest. And we were alone, I thought, but then… Did—"

"Seriously, I don't know what the hell you're saying, so lay down and relax. Bossman will be back in a little. Chill out 'til then."

Growling, her face scrunched in frustration. How could he possibly expect her to chill out? Why wasn't he even trying to listen?

It couldn't have been a dream. It felt too real to be one. The fear. The defeat. The unyielding desperation that only violence could overpower. As if she were right back in the middle of a hopeless war she didn't believe in, fighting for something she no longer understood.

She blinked at him, mentally parsing her next words so he might understand. Willing her brain to work through the pounding in her head.

It'd felt too real—because it was real. Her imagination wasn't so good it could create something that detailed—that painful. That had been a memory.

One that settled itself in like dust with the rest of them now that it was free, like it always meant to be there. Filed itself neatly into the shelves Sakura labeled Lightning Ambush deep in the recesses of her mind.

And if it was real—then Sasuke had indeed kept his promise. He'd successfully locked away his terrifying extraction and her hopeless resignation, protected it with a jutsu, and layered it within their covenant seal. Exactly as she'd implored.

A seal they'd finally rid themselves of…exactly as he wished.

So she wouldn't just lay down. How often had she laid down and let the matter lie with her to keep the peace? Kept quiet so others wouldn't be distressed? Backed down when someone wouldn't answer her questions?

Not a single time more—she knew that much.

"Did Sasuke find me in Lightning?" she tried again, leaning forward. "During Madara's final attack on the Allies' battle base, did he come for me?"

Suigetsu didn't look at all surprised. "Oh, that… Did the fuinjutsu finally break?" If anything, his smirk grew. "Congrats."

"Answer me!"

"Hey, don't yell at me. I wasn't the one who knocked him out back then. That was all Orochimaru. Take it up with him if you're mad."

Sakura fought the scowl, knowing well enough that showing Suigetsu how much he got under her skin wouldn't help.

But she was so exhausted. So sick of people keeping strategy and information and schemes from her. Tired of the games that didn't matter anymore. Maybe none of it ever mattered in the first place.

Because if it was real, if it was a memory… Then wasn't the past year and a half a lie? Some grand performance where everyone knew their roles but her? Even once the war was over, they'd all kept up the charade. Left her in the dark, again, when it'd been her idea from the start.

The pain she endured, watched Ino endure, the executions she witnessed and now, it seemed, fully facilitated. All along, it'd been but a simple, flawed suggestion. Rashly made by a foolish girl in five minutes of panic then hidden from her long after necessity called for.

Sasuke had been right. It was a terrible plan. Crude.Costly.

…So why hadn't anyone told her that it was all her fault?

Sakura could barely grasp the enormity of it. The question ballooned in her thoughts, overwhelming and savage, until she was choking under its burden.

A sudden snicker to her left jolted her back to the present, reminding her she wasn't alone.

Glancing sideways, she focused her gaze on Suigetsu to ground herself. Inventoried the things she'd seen hundreds of times, things that simply were—that didn't need to be understood to know. His white hair. His purple eyes. The sharp teeth jutting over his lips.

It was the tilt of his mouth that was hardest to read. She couldn't tell if he found her rambling amusing, relished in her obvious pain, or delighted in the fact that he knew something she didn't once more.

After wrestling control of her lungs, her sights narrowed at his visible mirth. "That's not what I asked. Did Sasuke save me and Naruto in Lightning? Was he the one who freed me from Madara's Black Receivers?"

"Of course it was him. He's an idiot. That whole attack was a fucking nightmare. Wish we'd done a better job at knocking him out so I didn't have to deal with the shit that came after." He cleared his throat and looked up at the tent's ceiling. "I mean—not we. Like I said, the snake knocked him out. I just, uh, followed along. Had no part in the decision at all, actually."

Sakura nodded, searching his face for deception and finding none. That mostly confirmed it was a memory and not some new delusion. These days, she could never be sure.

But really, it wasn't Suigetsu she needed to talk to.

Sasuke was the person best suited to answer these questions. While she had no reason to think he wouldn't, since she wouldn't deny that they'd gotten closer… There was no reason to believe he would, either.

He never had before.

She also wouldn't deny that Sasuke clearly cared for her—but she couldn't be certain about that care's exact nature or extent. At least, she hadn't been certain…without the memory. And without hearing it confirmed from the horse's mouth, she refused to linger too long or put too much meaning into it.

How could she hold him to something he shouted at someone bleeding out on the outskirts of a battle? At a dying woman he was pacted to with devotion, even if she'd recently come to suspect his care did, in fact, amount to love.

…Or whatever love meant to a man like Sasuke Uchiha.

Moreover, he wasn't here now. He'd left only Suigetsu waiting for her to wake up, though he must've assumed she might remember everything. Must've known she'd have all these questions only he could answer.

Not half a minute prior to Orochimaru undoing their seal, Sasuketoldher that he wouldn't leave if he woke up first.

So she couldn't trust Sasuke on this. And if he intended to keep silent and breeze past this revelation, then Suigetsu was her best shot at getting any sort of corroboration. Especially here, with no one around to monitor his words.

Suigetsu was a talker, after all.

"But he still came, didn't he?" she reiterated, wanting a firm response.

"For Gods' sake, woman. I already answered you. Yes. Do you remember or not? Because I really can't tell."

A hundred drums beat against her skull as the seconds passed, black dots increasingly spackling her vision. The absence of Sasuke's chakra within her was intangible and omnipresent, as if she'd lost a part of herself. If she were a weaker shinobi, she might've thrown up from the pain.

Instead, she gulped down bile and finally laid down. Lifted a green hand to her temple in the hopes of staving off the worst of it.

Before she could formulate her next query, Suigetsu continued on. "But I was right, wasn't I? Now's the time to praise me."

"Right about?"

"It was stupid, that plan of yours. I told you it was. Or maybe I said you were—stupid, that is."

"You didn't tell me anything," she snapped, immediately irritated with the arrogance in his tone and how she couldn't deny the statement. Right now, already reeling from the fact that far more was her fault than she ever imagined, Sakura couldn't handle hearing another person call her out for it. "You weren't even there."

"I was there. Eventually. You were already unconscious when Orochimaru and I arrived."

She glared at him. "Then you didn't know about the plan and couldn't have told me anything. You were late and therefore useless."

"Useless?" Scoffing, he rolled his eyes. "In case you forgot, I was the one who kept you alive in the dungeons after Lightning. You're welcome, you ungrateful hag."

"Watch how you speak to me, Suigetsu. I bested you once and I can do it again."

"Oh my God, this again? I told you before, I stood there andletyou win that time!"

"Whatever. Just shut up."

"Yeah, yeah, whatever. You're mad 'cause I'm right, huh?" He grinned once more, pointy teeth flashing behind his lips. "The plan was stupid, and you were stupid for doing it."

The healing jutsu wasn't helping. Mood and emotions in confused shambles, Sakura's annoyance boiled over.

"Seriously, fuck off if you're just wanting to boast, Suigetsu. My head already feels like it's about to explode."

What did she care what Suigetsu had to say, anyway? Why had she bothered with him in the first place? He only wanted to make fun of her. Obviously thought it hysterical how foolishly she'd thrust herself into the enemy. Gotten hundreds of people murdered. Lost her mind.

So funny that she'd tried to kill herself. Funny she'd come out of that place forever scarred.

Funnythat her best and first friend had probably never left those cold, horrid dungeons where they tortured her merely for Sakura's loyalty.

It was all so fucking funny, wasn't it?

The first warning of tears burned as her throat swelled shut.

He chuckled like he could read her mind, wholly undeterred. "His touchiness is wearing off on you, kid. I'm just playing. Lighten up. Sasuke explained what happened as soon as we got there. Told us all about your stupid plans to play the great, holy martyr. And I was only late 'cause I can't jump across continents without a port tag." He waved a limp hand in the air. "Not that I wanted to be in that bloodbath."

It was as close to an olive branch as Suigetsu could offer. And she supposed, if he wouldn't pick at the wound, talking was better than letting her sanity wander down the wretchedness of it all. Even now, Ino's light, cheery laugh jingled behind the harsh pulse in her ears, threatening to send her over the edge.

Only ghosts awaited her in silence, and Sakura didn't want to break in front of Suigetsu anymore. Didn't want the sadistic bastard to see the battlefield that still consumed her in these newly peaceful times.

Shoving down the dark opinions and cruel words she had for him, Sakura forced out a soft, "Please. You love killing," though it lacked the humor it should've carried.

"True, but it was less fun with two Uchiha breathing down my neck. Killing under orders takes all the enjoyment out of it. Hunting is better when it's done freely."

"You're awful."

"All shinobi are."

She paused to consider that, shocked he'd said something almost profound. "I guess so." And when he had nothing to add—"But you should've warned me about that bloodbath, you know. I was your contact. Even for shinobi, leaving me blind like that… You should've let Sasuke warn me even if you couldn't. Why did you knock him out?"

"Not me. Orochimaru. He thought it was best to keep Sasuke safe in Water since the Kage were going to lose the battle whether we warned you or not."

"You don't know that."

"Be real. The Allies were always the weaker of the two armies. By the time we attacked, your numbers were super depleted and morale was low. Your dumb leaders didn't even move bases after retreating twice to the same location."

He wasn't wrong, but out of habit, Sakura's tone dropped into something like a warning. "Don't insult the Hokage, Suigetsu." Misgivings about how the Kage handled the latter part of the war weren't something a former enemy had any right to comment on, no matter their validity. "Or the Mizukage. You're no longer a nukenin."

"I'm just saying. With less than a day's notice, Madara rallied his entire army. Everyone, even those based out in Earth and Sand, were ordered into Lightning. Warning you wouldn't have given time to evacuate."

She wasn't sure why an argument was burning the back of her throat. Everything he said was true. If she were honest, she'd thought the very same things countless times. That the Lightning loss was inevitable. That the Kage made too many mistakes.

That, perhaps, the Allies shouldn't have won at all.

"We could've gotten enough out," she said instead. It nearly sounded believable. "The losses would've been mitigated, at least."

He stretched his legs and settled onto his back a few inches away, pillowing his head with his arms. "Sure. And with that many people evacuating so suddenly, it would've confirmed the leak Madara was already suspicious of. It would've put Sasuke in danger."

"Madara trusted Sasuke," she countered.

"Madara trusted no one." Peeking at her, he winked. "Least of all the biggest threat within his own army."

It was strange, talking about the bloodiest battle of the war as if merely analyzing pieces on a chess board. Debating different strategies of a game she'd already lost without teetering on a panic attack.

And with Suigetsu, of all people.

Suigetsu had fought in the war just as long as she had, however. Probably was on the front line far more times than she'd been. Sometimes she nearly forgot that fact.

That underneath all his snark hid a dangerous, seasoned fighter. In moments like these, when he dropped the childish antics, she could almost respect the man who'd risen to a lieutenant, half the time being a traitor.

Almost.

Though he could've been simply regurgitating ideas Orochimaru voiced once, for all she knew.

"Then why didn't you all drop the agreement and defect back?"

"Why would we do that?" he asked with a grimace.

"Well, it's what Sasuke always threatened. If the Allies were obviously going to lose, he'd abandon us, and you three came as a package. But he stayed loyal, so he must've believed we could win. And you knew he did or you wouldn't have tried to keep him from the battle."

"It wasn't about whether the Allies could win. We just wanted to stop Sasuke from getting himself killed. Or more like we had to. Sasuke told you about the jutsu his brother forced on us, right?" His mouth twitched in irritation. "And fucking inconvenient as it is, it's probably kept me alive more times than I can count."

"One leak wouldn't have led back to Sasuke. The Allies had many gatherers."

"Has anyone ever told you you're dense?"

For a second, she had trouble forming words. "...Excuse me?"

"I'm the first, then?" he taunted, pleased. "Thought you were supposed to be the smart one from your old team."

"What the hell does that—"

"Let me dumb it down for you. It's simple as this. Sasuke was always going to get you out of that battle, whether the Allies lost or not. And they were definitely going to lose." Closing his eyes, Suigetsu shrugged. "The moron was probably going to blow his cover."

His delivery was slow, like speaking to a child. The tone verged on mockery.

But there was an admission underlying his statement. An implication that superseded the sneering she might've snapped at him for any other time.

And since it wasn't him she wanted to hear that sort of confirmation from, all she could think to say was, "You're lying."

"Why would I lie? Even though we—Orochimaru tried to stop him, that's exactly what happened, isn't it?"

Was it? It felt like time in the cramped tent slowed and sped up all at once.

"He went and got you out. Sort of. Not very well, but whatever. Even you, dense as a rock, can't pretend like he didn't get you out of earlier battles, too."

Did he…?

"He even tried to order that hot Hokage of yours to remove you from combat entirely. Multiple times. Wanted a whole guard and extraction squad assigned specifically to you in medical." He hummed, glancing her way. "Don't tell him I told you that bit. I don't feel like taking a beating."

Her brow furrowed as they stared at each other, his words spinning in her psyche. She'd never heard any of this—never even considered it.

"Ah, this is nice, kid. I never get to gossip about Sasuke without him being a total dick or someone ratting on me. And everyone in Kiri hates him, so there's no point." Suigetsu rolled onto his side to face her, head propped up on his hand. "So? What else do you want to know?"

He looked expectant—excited, even.

Not a single coherent thought was running through her mind.

Was she dense? Had Sasuke done something like that before Lightning? Carefully, Sakura shifted through the fights she'd been in after becoming the contact.

She supposed Suigetsu had helped her in Sangosho under Sasuke's orders, though she'd hardly call that getting her out. And Sasuke knocked her out when she'd taken too long to withdraw during the Iwa battle—but she was certain she would've won that without him. She hadn't been in any danger.

Is that what Suigetsu was trying to allude to? Two fights out of dozens? Those barely counted, in her opinion.

She hadn't so much asseenSasuke in the other battles.

And the other part—guards and extraction teams? Medical was always assigned guards. The owl-masked ANBU was her detail long before Sasuke came along. He knew the Allies didn't have the depth to assign whole squads to a single kunoichi. His requesting such a thing, from the Hokage, seemed nonsensical.

"That doesn't sound like Sasuke at all," she disputed.

"I'm telling you, he'd already planned it. Gave me and the snake orders to help him and everything before he went to warn you. He wasn't gonna fight. Just find you," he pointed at her chest, then jabbed his thumb over his shoulder, "port you out, and hide you somewhere away from Lightning until it was over."

That sounded even less like something Sasuke would do than the rest of it. "Now you're just making things up. Where would I even go?"

"Exactly. You get it. Once the Allies went down, you'd be fucked. The only place to hide you was in our base, which we couldn't have done forever. Maybe we could've deserted, but where the hell could we run with the Allies dead and Madara unchecked? It was stupid."

"Yeah. Exactly," she parroted. "And again, that doesn't soundat all like a plan Sasuke would make."

"You don't know him as well as you think you do, then." He smiled. "Or you're just dense and oblivious."

By now, her heart was drumming nearly as hard as her head. What Suigetsu suggested was completely absurd. Totally inconsistent with the shinobi she knew Sasuke to be. He'd never been one to choose a person over a cause; never cared for bonds more than his own goals.

He would never get himself killed or captured to help her, especially during that time in the war—is what she would've reasoned only days ago. The image of him on his knees, staring up at the sky, turned everything she understood about Sasuke on its head.

Then none of us are leaving. We'll all get caught, he'd whispered. I won't leave you.

Before Orochimaru had put them both to sleep, she would've laughed in Suigetsu's face if he'd told her this nonsense. Even as the snow fell over Sasuke in her thoughts, even as his onyx gaze dimmed in resignation—Sakura still felt the inclination to tell Suigetsu he was delusional.

So caught on the contrast between the man in that single memory and the carefully cold man who routinely walled her out, she took too long to respond to the one in front of her. Suigetsu was suddenly yawning as he scratched his stomach.

"You good?"

"Ah, sorry, I'm just—" Sakura didn't know what to say. Didn't know what to think. Talking about what Sasuke did without hearing from him first suddenly felt so…wrong. "My head." Making a show of rubbing her temple, she closed her eyes. "I think I better try to sleep it off some more."

"Ugh, no fun," he whined. "Fine. I'm gonna go get some food. Cover for me if I'm not back before them."

"You're leaving me by myself? When I'm going to sleep?" Frowning, she glanced between him and the tent's opening. Surely, Sasuke and Orochimaru wouldn't like that. Anything could happen without Suigetsu here.

After pushing onto his feet, he leered down at her with crossed arms. "It's not my job to keep you locked up anymore, is it? Sleep, leave. Go pick flowers or whatever you Konoha shinobi do for fun, for all I care. I'm hungry."

With that, she was frowning for entirely different reasons.

He was right, of course. The war was over. He wasn't here guarding her…

"...But what if someone attacks?"

"Who in Kiri would attack you? You're like a real deal war hero around here." He laughed. "You'd think you and that fox jinchuriki were Gods, the way people talk about you two. Almost wanna tell them how pathetic you looked as Sasuke's prisoner and ruin it for them. Clueless, aren't they?"

Her lip curled at the sight of his grin. What had possessed her to tell Naruto that this man was anything but the world's biggest asshole?

"Lovely as always, Suigetsu," she sneered, flipping him off for good measure. "For all I care, don't bother coming back."

"Heard. Then I'll be back soon, Miss Greatest Medic Alive!" And he was already leaving, calling it over his shoulder as if he hadn't seen her gesture.

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A soft shaking roused her next. Sakura wasn't certain when she'd fallen back asleep.

Groggily, she rolled over and rubbed her eyes. "Yes?"

"Are you well enough to stay up for a while? You should eat something." His voice froze her whole body. "It's been over two days."

Sasuke crouched beside her, appearing no worse for wear than when they'd laid down for Orochimaru. The ANBU mask was propped up on his head and a long cloak billowed about his body, damp from the Water Country mist.

Had it been Suigetsu, she would've inquired whether the Mizukage was suspicious of her prolonged absence. She didn't even think to ask how long she'd been out the first time she woke up, or what excuse they'd used to explain it.

He cocked a brow. "Or do you need more rest?"

There was a conversation they needed to have, but, "You said you wouldn't leave if you woke up first," was tumbling out before, Did you mean it, Sasuke? could slip its way in first.

"I'm sorry," he answered quietly.

"Where were you?"

"My old base in Water. Orochimaru stashed the scrolls he stole from Konoha there."

Sakura scowled. "You couldn't wait for me? I would've gone with you."

When she tried sitting, his hand moved from her shoulder to her back, guiding her upright. A canteen was thrust in her face the next second, already tipped like he meant to pour it down her throat if she refused.

"I sent a note to Kakashi when you didn't wake up after the first day. He ordered me to find the scrolls in case Orochimaru had tricked us. I waited another day, just in case, but…"

"Since when do you follow the Hokage's orders?" she wondered, contemplating his fleeting grin as she swallowed the water he offered.

"I never said I did it because he ordered me to."

In the hush that followed, his lips dropped back into indifference, and she studied the way he stared straight at her. Calm and confident. Expression empty as ever. With the seal, she could've prodded at his emotions. Gleaned something under the surface of all the nothing he was showing outwardly.

It was like looking at a virtual stranger.

She had no idea how to handle him without the seal. She couldn't mentally tell him things she was too afraid to say aloud, couldn't let him in her mind to explain what he didn't comprehend through words.

Even when she could feel him out, he was an unsolvable puzzle—so different from her in every way. How they reacted to things, how they treated people, their world views and outlooks on life. Sometimes she doubted whether even a single commonality existed between her and Sasuke.

How on earth could she understand anything now when all he gave her was this tightly stoic face?

"Was it a trick, then?" she ventured.

"No." Though no hint of it was visible, she felt like Sasuke was studying her in a similar fashion. "...It was the jutsu I placed on you that kept you asleep so long."

Maybe it was how he held her gaze as he uttered the admission. Maybe it was the subtle shift of his fingers on her back as the words came out. She couldn't pinpoint it, but whatever it was, an unspoken invitation lingered in the air. Almost as if he wanted her to ask about it.

Why else would he bring it up?

He merely crouched there, stony and mum, watching her. Sight steady and posture eased. Bright purple shone in the shadows of the tent, peeking out between his tousled bangs.

If he didn't want to discuss it, why didn't he leave like usual? Why not avoid the subject altogether?

What was he waiting for if not to hear her ask?

…But what, exactly, was she supposed to ask?

Why did she need to ask at all?

After all this time, couldn't he be the one to come to her? It had always been Sakura chasing after Sasuke—always her begging him to open up. To share something real. Always her job to pick up the pieces, and let things slide, and find the truth behind the walls he erected.

Since he mentioned it, he plainly knew she remembered. He ought to know her enough to realize she was confused. If anyone could understand what she wanted—no, needed—to hear, it was Sasuke.

Here, under his muted, unreadable scrutiny, Sakura could see no difference between asking him for confirmation he clearly didn't want to offer on his own and begging for the kind of affirmation that he'd never given her before.

And suddenly, she was incensed.

He'd played his part so skillfully. For a while there, in Madara's clutches, she had believed he despised her. Had honestly thought he betrayed them. Even when she sensed something amiss in his behavior, he'd fooled her so completely that she never once entertained the idea he might still be loyal to the Allies until the night before they came.

For an entire year and a half, he'd concealed that from her.

No—much longer, in fact. He'd been hiding something from her for eleven years. Possibly many more than that. Since they were children was too vague a timeline to know anything… If what he admitted was true.

Perhaps that was precisely the question he was anticipating. It was the one she'd wanted answered the minute she woke up.

But in this moment, quite abruptly—Sakura didn't feel like asking it, anymore.

Eleven years, she thought, was a long time to be in love alone. Eighteen months was too long to live in the dark. And maybe Sasuke, of anyone left alive, owed her nothing. Though if there was ever a time he did, if ever there was something he could've given without making her beg for it, this would've been it.

So she returned his vacant regard, molded her features to the same controlled mask he wore, and calmly said, "I see."

He blinked. Sakura would've missed how his mouth twitched down a beat later if she wasn't examining him like one of her patients.

"...Suigetsu said you two talked about the Lightning attack. Do you remember now?"

While she hadn't known what to expect, him touching on it again so swiftly was still surprising. Not so surprising that she'd cave, however.

This time, he would explain it. He would be the one to meet her, without her having to pressure him.

"If I do, would you have something to say?"

Brows knitting together, his hand dropped to her elbow. "What do you want me to say?"

Irritation flared in her gut. Wasn't it obvious? Either way, telling him what to say was even worse than asking him to confirm what he knew she wanted confirmed.

"Whatever you want to say, Sasuke."

That familiar, calculating glint flickered to life in his eyes as he peered over her. She lifted her chin, determined to keep the glare out of her own.

They'd been on good terms over the past few weeks. Better than good, really. Honestly, she couldn't quite place what was making her so petulant over this issue. Any version of the Sakura she used to be wouldn't have tested him like this.

He had come for her. He'd followed basically all her orders. Had let Kakashi take Naruto to safety, kept her alive in Madara's bases, gotten her back to the Allies. There wasn't a single thing Sasuke did wrong in Lightning, and very little he'd done after went against what she'd explicitly requested of him on that snowy field.

But he should've told her what she'd done. What she made him do.

And there had been hundreds of opportunities to admit he loved her again—if he ever meant it. That he hadn't, not once, fundamentally meant something else. Probably meant he never meant it at all, the more she thought about it.

Was it only the seal, after all? Had he realized that, and regretted yelling such a thing at her once the situation calmed down? Was that why he wanted the seal gone so badly, when she hadn't minded it staying forever?

Did the seal's compulsion truly explain his occasionally treating her tenderly this whole time?

It was always mental acrobats when it came to him. Not days ago, she was almost certain Sasuke loved her. Now, in front of him and with the knowledge that he had conceded he did love her, months before—oddly, she felt more confused than ever.

They hadn't spent five minutes together and his inability to clarify anything without her forcing it from him was already sending her into a spiral.

And why was she responsible for addressing that problem every time? Why did she need to spell it out for him when he clearly knew what she needed?

Breaking the silent stare-down, he asked, "Why are you angry?"

"I'm not angry." It was so easy to lie to him now.

"And yet, it seems like you are."

"You tell me why I'd be angry since you know me so well," she quipped.

Sighing, he inspected the floor. "There's no way for me to know if you don't say anything, Sakura. We aren't sealed anymore."

"Right. We're no longer sealed, just like you wanted. Now that you're free of it, does it matter if I'm angry or not?"

"Do you think I'd ask if it didn't matter?"

It sounded like he was getting irritated, too.

Good, she thought. It wasn't fair being the only one continually upset with their situation. And seeing Sasuke feel something was better than that stupid, impassive guise he always wanted to bury himself under.

"Most of the time I have no clue what you think. That's the problem."

After a pause, he tilted his head with a smirk. "Then, do you want to know what I'm thinking right now?"

At the lifting of his lips, her heart thudded treacherously hard, though she'd been wholly set on not letting him win just moments ago. She scolded herself and looked away.

"Will you even tell me if I do?"

"If you ask."

Her vision narrowed on the burlap wall. That almost sounded like he'd deduced what she was up to, didn't it?

"Well, I'm not going to ask," she vowed.

"You sure?"

At that, it was impossible not to glare at him. Her head snapped back to shoot the daggers. She batted his hand off in defiance as they locked eyes.

Was he teasing or was he seriously ignorant as to what unsettled her? Whichever it was, his straightforward yet obscure prodding made her feel ridiculous, even though she had every right to be frustrated with this undefined energy swirling around them anytime they came within fifty yards of each other.

Undefined only because he refused for years to define it. And despite the perfect opportunity to do so right now, he wasn't.

Sasuke simply smirked back, propping his elbow on a knee and leaning back on his heels as if getting comfortable.

They hadn't had a real argument since the first night they'd spent in an inn. She didn't really want to argue with him now. Nonetheless, everything about the way his demeanor had shifted from brick wall to discreetly amused was goading her into a fight.

Just as she opened her mouth to accuse him of knowing exactly what she wanted him to say, why she was angry, and why she wasn't going to ask any of it—a loud growl rumbled through the tent. Sakura gaped down at her stomach, cheeks aflame.

Nostalgia burned her throat when Sasuke hit her with a slightly amused: "Hungry?"

She wasn't so mad as to curse him out this time, however. It wasn't a pleasant memory she wanted to linger on, either. Better that she pretend he hadn't momentarily transported her back into a different tent, in a different country.

"...Yes."

The embarrassment cooled off her face. It'd been two days. It was only natural. And it wasn't like he hadn't heard her stomach growl plenty of times in the past.

Once she ate, she might feel calmed enough to have this strangely maddening battle of wits he appeared eager to wage with her, though it made no sense why he would.

If he already inferred what she wanted, why drag it out? Unless, of course, the only answer he had was the one she didn't want. But if that were the case, he could've easily told her that everything he'd said and done was because of the seal—since he shouldn't care about hurting her anymore. And if he hadn't inferred it yet, why talk in this roundabout way that would obviously provoke her?

With her assumptions surging, she made to follow him as he stood. Catching her unaware, he leaned over, lightly pushing her back onto the mat.

"Stay. I'll bring you food."

"Sasuke, I'm hungry, not immobile," she mumbled, slanting out of his touch.

"You have a habit of putting words in my mouth. I didn't say you weren't able to get up." His hand caught her shoulder again, trapping her on the ground. "Let me bring it to you."

Rolling her eyes, she flopped onto her back dramatically. "Maybe if you said more words, people might understand you better."

"I don't care if people understand me. I never offer to help people."

Sakura peered at him, hoping he might complete the thought. Willing him to affirm that there had, in fact, been emphasis each time he'd said the word people. But Sasuke only waited a few seconds, as if assuring himself she wasn't going to leave the sleeping mat, before slipping out of the tent.

It didn't take long for him to return with a snake on his heels.

Looming tall inside the smallness of the tent, Orochimaru cast a sly smile upon her, watching as she accepted the bowl Sasuke offered. Yellow eyes apathetically drifted over her body. The distinct and swift appraisal of a medic.

Grimacing, she turned her attention to the unappetizing soup in her hands. It was a relief he'd done the job they requested without killing her, she supposed. But she hadn't wanted to remove the seal, so she wasn't going to thank him. And she wasn't in the mood to play more word games with the one who'd taught Sasuke how to win them.

"How are you feeling, Sakura Haruno?"

"Better than the first time I woke up."

"Have you sensed any complications?"

"No." After a pause, she added, "Not yet."

Orochimaru turned to the man beside him. "You see? I've done nothing to her."

"Check her anyway," ordered Sasuke.

Coughing on the food in her throat, she shook her head. "A-absolutely not."

No way would she let the Sannin scan her. Allowing him complete access to her unconscious body for the removal was plenty of contact with the man's repulsive chakra for the year. She couldn't believe Sasuke had suggested it in the first place. Last she remembered, he'd been threatening to kill his shishou. Was he still worried enough about her, even without the seal, to forget that?

Orochimaru's sharp gaze flitted back to her. "It'd be an insult for me to check her now that she's awake. She's the better healer. If something was wrong, she'd know."

…Now that the snake mentioned it, it did feel a bit insulting. It wasn't that he was worried, but that he didn't trust in her ability?

"It has nothing to do with healing. You've more knowledge on seals. Make sure there's no lingering traces of the jutsu in her channels."

She scoffed. A master of chakra control, unable to tell if another's jutsu tainted her pathways?

Just who did Sasuke think she was?

"I'm fine, Sasuke. Leave it."

A challenge hung over the tent. And once again, it seemed Sasuke was on the losing side—Orochimaru didn't move an inch from where he'd first planted his feet. Sakura poked at her bowl; Orochimaru simpered at Sasuke glaring at her. As if that look could cow her, anymore.

"What time is it?" she asked, changing the subject. "Or what day is it, for that matter?"

"Nine in the morning. And it's already Thursday, little medic. You slept for much longer than anticipated. I thought Sasuke might kill me a third time."

"I wasn't saying you aren't capable, but let him check, at least," said Sasuke.

She ignored him. "What excuse did you give the Mizukage?"

"I hear you had some urgent business with a Konoha jonin up north." The Sannin tapped his chin, amused. "Seems he ingested some nasty poison by accident while on a mission."

"A mission in Water Country?"

Sasuke took a step closer. "Sakura."

"A number of teams from Konoha were dispatched to Water recently. Kiri can't manage the remaining nukenins with their numbers, so Fire and Sand offered to help. But you knew that already, didn't you?"

Her spoon froze over the bowl. Yes, she knew that; she was Classed to know such things. But—

"How do you know that?"

Orochimaru's eyes narrowed into half-moons. "Sometimes that fish I made makes himself useful. Your Hokage really ought to warn his shinobi not to drink if they can't handle their liquor."

"If you don't want him to check you, then will you read the seal's scroll and check yourself?"

It appeared Sasuke wasn't going to give up. Sighing, she set the food on the ground and stood on shaky legs. Her body felt weak, but two days without eating wouldn't kill her. She'd lived through worse.

Having Sasuke hover over her like this with Orochimaru watching from the sideline stirred that same sick nostalgia she'd had earlier. And currently, she possessed neither the spirit to deal with it nor wished to further overthink Sasuke's pushiness when he'd explained absolutely nothing.

The more she thought, the more she would want to confront him and ask. She had already made up her mind not to beg him, however.

"I'm going to the hospital," she announced. "I've got work to finish."

"Hold on." Sasuke stepped sideways, blocking her path. "You need to recover first."

"It's a hospital, Sasuke. Everything I need to recover is already there, and I'm sure they've got better food than whatever mush that is," she intoned, pointing at the discarded soup.

"Now, now, Sakura Haruno. Don't be rude. My dear student cooked that meal for you."

Sasuke tsked as he ducked closer and lowered his voice. "...Just tell me why you're upset."

Why should she? Why did she have to?

…Why was she so angry about this situation? It was everything. It was nothing. If she could put it into words, maybe she might've confessed before leaving so he could stew on it while she was away. If she was certain he would care enough to be bothered, she might've said a few accusations to make him just as upset.

But she only shrugged. "I'm not upset." It was so easy to lie.

Maneuvering around the two men, she slipped through the opening and strode into the forest.


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I know, I know...sorry for the delay. I missed you guys :)

and thanks to Leech for beta-reading