A/N: sixth instalment of the Italian saga, after "Cambiare Idea". It's not strictly indispensable to read the others first, but it surely helps.

There is a time-skip of a few months.

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Months later, ANBU squad Alpha was in a hotel in a faraway land, discussing a deal with a potential client who needed some ninja services. They were negotiating a future mission, and all the most important details had already been settled.

The man who had asked to meet them nodded in agreement when Itachi was done speaking, but he still wasn't finished. His gaze wandered over to Sakura, appreciatively. He could not see her face, since they all still had their masks on, but her figure was visible. And the lust in his eyes was unmistakable.

"To conclude our transition," he murmured lasciviously, "I request something else. I need… company for the night. I've been informed that female ninja have interesting ways of keeping men entertained during their missions." He grinned lustfully, still eyeing Sakura.

The medic went rigid, but managed to keep her composure and not show how those comments affected her. It was not her place to speak. The captain was the one who made the arrangements.

The man, with the disgusting grin in place, continued, "So, unless the young lady here is emotionally involved with someone…"

"She is," Itachi interrupted, calmly.

If Genma and Shisui were surprised by his words, they didn't show it. Seeing that, Sakura guessed it was a lie to stop the request and conclude the transition as quickly as possible.

The man, however, was not deterred. "Oh, well, that might change things, yes… but after all, her partner is temporarily not around, so why not take advantage of the freedom? And whoever he may be, this–"

"That would be me," Itachi interrupted again.

Now Sakura was thankful for the mask she was wearing, because her mouth had dropped open in shock. Her captain had just said what?

The lecherous man couldn't find an adequate answer. So he mumbled something incoherent and then changed the subject. A few minutes later, everything was settled and the ANBU squad took its leave.

After they left the transaction room, they took their masks off and moved towards their respective bedrooms. But before Itachi could go far, Sakura approached him. Genma and Shisui were already gone.

The young medic titled her head to the side. "Thank you for defending me in there, Taichou," she said, with a small smile. Then she frowned a little. "However, it wasn't necessary for you to expose yourself like that. You didn't have to pretend we had a relationship in order to stop that lecher."

Itachi observed her for an instant. Then he replied, slowly, "I did what I felt necessary to make that distasteful man shut up. I wanted him to understand that you had already ties with someone else."

Sakura frowned again, confused. "Exactly. So you were just pretending there were feelings between us, weren't you?"

The sudden warmth and also tiny amount of smugness in his gaze made her heart stop for a moment. "Was I?"

Sakura took a step back, suddenly nervous.

"Wha-what do you mean, Tai–"

"I already told you, it's Itachi for you," he interrupted her, taking a step forward.

She retreated again. She was now with her back against the wall. Her heart was beating fast.

She had not thought that such a thing could happen. She respected and admired her captain. She enjoyed being in the same team with him. She trusted his judgement and his skills. She loved their sparring sessions. And she admitted that he was good-looking. Too good-looking, if that was possible.

But still, from that to something more… the step was too big to take. And too sudden as well. Or maybe she just hadn't really thought about it? Maybe it was the fact that it was something unknown that scared her.

Before she could do anything else, he gently put his hands on her shoulders and pressed his lips against hers.

Sakura's eyes went wide.

Itachi moulded his lips slowly, carefully, on hers. The next instant, his tongue made contact with her lips, gently coaxing them open.

When his tongue managed to touch hers, a sudden rush of emotions filled Sakura. Maybe… the step to take wasn't too big after all. Maybe she wasn't as indifferent towards her captain as she thought she was. Maybe, if she gave it a chance, there could be something concrete between them.

Without thinking, the pink-haired woman put her arms around his neck and pulled him closer with a moan. The Uchiha immediately emboldened his actions, deepening the kiss and eliciting another throaty moan from her.

They stayed like that for a while, happily ignoring the rest of the world, until Sakura suddenly scrambled away from him. It had occurred to her that he hadn't told her anything about his desires, only one cryptic short sentence that she might have misinterpreted.

Panting heavily, she refused to meet his eyes. "What…" she took a deep breath, still shaking a little, "what exactly are your intentions, Taich- I mean, Itachi?"

He was not unaffected by their mind-blowing kiss. His breath was a little laboured as well. "I thought that was obvious, Sakura." He enveloped her name with his tongue like a caress.

The raven-haired man took a step towards her, fully intending on resuming their previous actions, but she took a step back. She met his eyes, this time, and the doubt and mistrust in them made Itachi stop.

"No, it's not," she said, very seriously. "This is no joking matter. Either you tell me the truth, you say what you want from me, and you be completely honest about it, or you can go to hell."

In a matter of seconds, she was pinned against the wall and caged by his arms. Itachi was breathing heavily, his face mere centimetres away from hers.

"What I want, Sakura," he said quietly, "is you. I want everything you are, and I want it forever."

She was too stunned to say anything. Outside, the sounds of a storm approaching could be heard. She was able to see a flash of lightening from the corner of her eyes, but she paid it no heed. What Itachi had said was far more important.

His hold on her loosened a little. The corner of his mouth tilted upwards a little. "I realize it's a bit much to ask right now. I'll give you all the time you need, my precious, beautiful, Sakura. So, for now, I'd like to just be with you, as much as you'll allow me to." His eyes were completely serious. "Also, let me be clear: if you do not agree to my wishes, it will hurt, but I will accept it. If what I'm telling you is unwelcome, I will stop. If you are truly not interested, I will leave you alone. But it will not change what I feel towards you."

Haruno Sakura was not a woman that was easily left without words. But right then, she was utterly and completely speechless.

Uchiha Itachi had told her he wanted her. He wanted her forever. He had made his wishes clear. But he was not demanding anything, professing his love and expecting it to be returned. He was giving her the choice.

How was anyone supposed to answer that?

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A/N: poor Sakura... What a situation for her...

"Dimmi La Verità" is in Italian and it means "tell me the truth".

The next one is going to be called "Sacrificio".

Thank you very much to those who were so kind to leave a review in the previous one-shots! It means so much to me!

KitsuneMiyuKendraHyuga