Important! Read the Author's Note!

A/N: this story was written little by little during my exams, in the very short breaks I took between hours of studying hard. Therefore, it is partially narration and partially described in actual scenes.

Well, I'll admit, I'm very nervous about how it turned out. It's an experiment, I've never tried anything like this before.

Warnings: I changed the ages of the characters. I will write them down fully at the beginning of chapter 3. Some characters are OOC. Later on, there will be some suggestive dialogues which come very near to the M rating. And yaoi will be marginally implied for two secondary characters.

That said, I hope you enjoy!

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CHAPTER 1 – THOUGHTS

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Itachi was looking forward to some time alone.

He was tired. As usual, he had spent the whole day in the main room of the Uchiha Headquarters, discussing strategies with the other members of his family.

But now he wanted to relax a little. He had to think about war all the time. It was only fair that he had a few moments to himself.

He knew a perfect spot, in the forest, where no one would find nor disturb him. It was in the land between the two sides of the battlefield, but very close to the neutral countries, not likely to be used for nocturnal incursions, therefore quiet and peaceful.

The moon was coming up right then. Itachi arrived near the clearing silently as he always did, and was about to go sit under his favourite tree, when, suddenly, he sensed something.

He was immediately alert.

No matter how tired he was, he couldn't let his guard down. And he had sensed a chakra approaching.

Normally, he wouldn't be too preoccupied. He was a master at hiding his own chakra, so the other person shouldn't be able to spot him. Unluckily, he had been so eager to reach his calming sanctuary that he hadn't masked his vital force as usual. He cursed inwardly. He would not do such a mistake again.

But now it was too late. Itachi was wary, because that unknown chakra was directly on the opposite side from where he was coming. In other words, it was on the enemy's side.

To his partial surprise, however, the other person seemed careful and wary as well.

That was strange. Itachi had seen the Senju and the Uchiha in battle: as soon as they sensed each other, they attacked. Immediately.

It was not something the raven-haired young man liked. He preferred to wait a little and make sure he was really attacking an enemy, and not someone else.

He himself had not attacked right then not because he had any doubts about the other person's identity – since the chakra was coming directly from the Senju Headquarters, there was no chance it was not an enemy –, but because he didn't want to fight. War was already a continuous slaughter. Was it really necessary to add more violence?

And the other person, astonishingly, seemed to ponder its moves as well. It was not attacking. It was approaching, but slowly, and not in a menacing way. At the same time, it wasn't reckless. It seemed to know what it was doing.

When Itachi and the mysterious person were about twenty metres apart, they both stilled. They were almost able to see each other, if it wasn't for the trees and the darkness. They studied each other silently. Both were ready to act if the other did something, but neither was taking the initiative.

Itachi did not want to fight. He wondered if it was possible to speak to this person, without spilling blood. He had seen enough of the latter already. The question was, what kind of person was his opponent? Itachi observed the individual. It wasn't very tall. It had long hair, or so it seemed, tied up in a ponytail. It was probably a woman, a young one. Apart from that, it didn't seem eager to jump into combat.

So Itachi decided to try. He opened his mouth to speak and noticed the – probably – woman doing the same.

"Don't attack, please," they both said simultaneously.

Surprise, together with faint amusement, flickered in the eyes of both. But since neither could see the other clearly yet, they weren't aware of that.

Then Itachi took a few steps forward, in order to make himself visible under the moonlight.

He wasn't stupid. He was perfectly aware that he was trading dangerous grounds, giving her – yes, he had heard a feminine voice – a better attack opportunity, if only she wanted to attack. But he was confident in his own abilities. And, however foolish that may be, he wanted to believe her words. She had asked, as he had, not to attack. He was giving her the upper hand, so to speak, to show her that he had been serious and accepted her request. Now he was curious to see what she would do next.

The Uchiha actually half-expected her to try to attack him.

After all, they were in war.

They were enemies.

They fought for their lives every second of every hour of every day.

Why should this time be different?

Instead, the woman came forward as well. When she arrived under the moonlight, she stopped.

Itachi was taken aback. Not that he would show it on his stoic face, but he was still surprised.

She was quite attractive. She wasn't tall, as he had expected. She was dressed as a Jounin-level ninja, but had also a katana on her back. Her attire was simple and practical. Quite unassuming clothes, excellent for disguise, a grey vest and dark blue short pants, with black gloves and black boots. A little white symbol on her left arm identified her as a medic. The Senju symbol was in her headband, and her hair was in a high ponytail, as he had been able to determine before. It was difficult to verify because of the dim light, but her long hair seemed to be pink, while her eyes were a clear emerald green.

Itachi immediately realized that her eyes were the key to her soul. Even if she seemed able to control her emotions, everything she thought was reflected in them, and those same eyes enraptured him. In that moment, he could see that she was careful and guarded, and observed him attentively as well.

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Sakura, after yet another long day, had decided to take a break. She had needed some time in which everyone would just leave her alone, so she had gone to the quiet spot between the two battlefields. But she had then suddenly felt a chakra approach her favourite place, so she had been on guard, even if she didn't want to fight. To her astonishment, the supposed enemy didn't seem eager to attack any more than she did. They had then spoken at the same time, and that had surprised her to an even greater extent. But what had amazed her more than anything else was the fact that he had walked out in the moonlight.

It was a way of showing his trust.

Of course, it didn't hurt that she had been able to have a good look at him as well. He was a tall, very handsome shinobi. If his black hair and black eyes hadn't been enough to identify him as an Uchiha, he had his family's crest, the red and white fan, on his headband and clothes. Those were all dark, and he had a katana on his back, together with other weapons she couldn't see clearly. His hair was quite long and tied in a low ponytail. He had deep stress lines on his face, but those didn't really capture her attention.

His eyes did. Those obsidian pools were deep and seemed to read her; even if they were guarded and were currently analyzing the situation, Sakura was able to see more in them than that. She could see, even if just barely, the man that was behind them. And she was fascinated.

Both stayed silent for a long time, only observing each other. Neither lowered its guard.

Finally, the woman spoke. "Don't attack, please," she repeated, and Itachi was able to hear her voice more clearly this time, since before they had spoken at the same moment. She tilted her head to the side.

"You are an Uchiha," she then stated, matter-of-factly.

Itachi's expression didn't change. "You are a Senju," he replied.

She seemed to ponder something. Then she said, "I do not wish to fight, Uchiha-san, if you agree with me."

He nodded. "I agree with you. However," he added, "it's not advisable to trust only our wishes."

The woman nodded as well. "Very well," she said, and continued, "Then I give you my word as a ninja, Uchiha-san, that I will not attack nor harm you tonight, unless you're the one who attacks or harms me first."

Itachi raised an eyebrow. He was surprised. That was quite a huge promise. Even if she seemed to be a trustable person, it was still something out of the ordinary.

Sakura knew she was doing something very risky. Promising neutrality to the enemy without the guarantee of the same was reckless. But he had taken the first step, by showing himself in the moonlight and making himself a better target for her, so it was only fair that she did something to show her trust as well, foolish as it may be.

The Uchiha pondered her words for a short while. He wanted nothing more than relax a little. Not fight.

So he answered, "Thank you for your trustfulness, Senju-san. I give you my word as well."

The atmosphere had been tense until that moment. But now it relaxed, even if only a little.

They were enemies. They fought on different sides. Yet, they had just made a short truce for that night.

The man and the woman observed each other for a while longer. Then she took a step away from him, to get to the nearest tree, and let herself fall graciously next to its base, where the roots had created a comfortable seat. She let out a contented sigh.

She had not lowered her guard completely. She was still ready to defend herself if necessary. But they had made a treaty. And she had come there to relax. Since they were now neutral, she was not going to be deterred from her original plans.

Itachi observed her during those actions. He decided he could afford to do the same. After all, he was tired. So he went to his favourite tree and sat down as well, as elegantly as she had.

They stayed there, calmly, for quite a long time, just enjoying the soft breeze and the wind.

Then the woman asked, a bit timidly, "Can I… can I ask for your name, Uchiha-san?"

The man turned his head to look at her. He seemed to think over her words.

"I'm Senju Sakura, if that helps," she added, with a hint of a smile.

The man's expression didn't change, but a faint touch of amusement was evident in his voice when he answered, "Uchiha Itachi."

Both then remained silent, mulling over those new informations.

Sakura knew that Uchiha Itachi was the heir of the Clan. He was known as a genius, and his skills both in and outside the battlefield were almost legendary.

Itachi had heard about the adoptive daughter of one of the most important Senju members, Tsunade. The young pink-haired woman was best known for her strength and medical abilities.

Neither of them deemed it necessary to speak more.

The night went by, with the soft wind blowing, and before they were ready to leave that peaceful place, it was already time to go. The sun was beginning to rise.

They stood up simultaneously, eyeing each other. They didn't have the time to say anything of significance, since they knew they had to go back to their respective Headquarters.

Itachi inclined his head to the side, politely indicating that he would take his leave. "Have a good day, Senju Sakura. Goodbye."

The woman nodded in thanks. "You too, Uchiha Itachi. Goodbye."

They turned their backs to each other and swiftly returned to their sides of the battlefield.

While he crossed the distance, Itachi wondered if he would ever see that woman again. After all, they were at war. They could die any moment. Maybe they would even have to fight against each other.

He shook those thoughts away. There was a war going on there. No distractions allowed.

He sped up to the Headquarters.

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Unbeknownst to him, Sakura was having his same thoughts.

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