Disclaimer: [insert standard disclaimer about how I don't profit from writing about copyrighted characters here]

Author Note: I'm going to avoid setting anything "in the past" in stone, just to make it easier to write this. I wont be going on and on about how things ended up the way they are. The story is set a few years post canon. All you need to allow for now is that I'm following canon to current (Chapter 470), Sasuke has been reintegrated into the village, and the world is relatively peaceful now. This story isn't about ninja's fighting wars. It's about people going on about their lives. In essence, I want to just focus on romance and the struggle that goes along with it. (Not to say that I will not include violence or death at some point if I become so compelled. Goodness no.) This story has not been beta read, so if you notice anything odd please point it out in case my multiple readings have allowed me to miss something subtle. Also, there is a few footnotes I felt compelled to add at the bottom, just to explain some of the choices I made for the details. Feel free to have a look if you like, and enjoy.

Warnings: Will be added as needed. This is a Mature story.

Summary: Between Sasuke, Naruto, and Sai, Sakura has an interesting love life. Sucks to be her. Well, mostly. Okay so not really. LOL!

Getting Over It

There are a lot of things one can do to fill one's life in the absence of a meaningful romantic relationship, and for Sakura the primary thing was work, work, and more work. It was meaningful work, she told herself, and it deserved the best of her.

She was in the business of healing, and she was damned good at it, so it was no surprise that was the method of choice for her to devote her time to. Relationships were really silly things anyways, she thought, always causing grief and distress that she didn't want to effect her performance at her job, so she was simply better off without one for the time being.

At least, that was the excuse she told herself to cope with the fact that she was incredibly lonely, jaded, and entirely emotionally defeated. Love had not been kind to her in her young life, and she just didn't have it in her to even consider allowing anyone else to penetrate her battle hardened heart.

She would always have her work though, and her studies. Those things she had absolute faith in. There would always be those who were sick and injured, and Sakura had made up her mind that her duty to them was good enough to get her by; at least, until something magic happened. But the days of putting stock in romantic fantasy fairy tales were long in the past. In a few words: she didn't expect that to ever happen.

People always described her, rather insensitively, as the second coming of her late master. Of course they always thought that their comments were meant to be complimentary, since her master was the single most brilliant medical ninja Konoha had seen since its inception. But she also had a very abrasive, domineering personality that drove most men away. Lady Tsunade had lived her whole life having only one serious romantic relationship, it had ended badly, and she never had another love. Although there was a dimwitted male in her life that Sakura always thought her master held deeper feelings for than she let on, but that had ended badly too.

Depressing prospects for Sakura, who was supposed to be following directly in her footsteps.

Maybe the bitter compliments were true though. At least, she was beginning to believe it, even though she didn't think of herself a particularly domineering. A tad abrasive perhaps, but she didn't feel like she was hard to approach, and she went out of her way to seem open and friendly, unlike Tsunade, who was incessantly rude most of the time. It was gradually getting harder for Sakura to keep up the sweet facade though, as she fell deeper and deeper into despair over her lack of romantic prospects.

Her first love was a complete unrequited disaster, and the next rejected her completely even though she had been lead to believe that he felt the same for her. She didn't understand it and she want to. She just wanted the thoughts of them both to just fade away and stop tearing at her mental resolve to remain completely emotionally detached from them.

That was was a huge problem though, because the two men that she could say she really truly had loved were also two of her dearest friends.

Love had to be sacrificed to maintain the relationships, but unfortunately without the romantic dynamic, it was simply difficult for her to continue the relationships in more than just a professional manner. She was even beginning to go out of her way to avoid them both to spare her sanity, but the more she distanced herself the more it ate her up inside.

Which was worse, being painfully reminded of past failures and forced to put on a happy face and pretend that nothing at all was wrong, or simply not allowing herself to be in that situation? Sakura didn't know, but she thought that if she committed herself entirely to helping others she could distract herself from unpleasant realities indefinitely, or at least long enough to allow sufficient emotional healing regarding the both of them to take place. That would have to suffice for the time being.

She put up great efforts against the thought that her torn feelings for them would never mend and she would continue to be miserable and alone for all of eternity.

This was her thought process as she sat surrounded by her friends and colleagues inside a lively karaoke bar in the entertainment district one night after a long day at work.

A couple of tables had been pushed together to accommodate them all, but most of them were no longer in their seats. Naruto was across the room, barking out the lyrics to a popular love song, and the majority of the gang had gone over to cheer and wait for their turn at the mic.

Sakura wasn't really feeling up to making a fool of herself in front of a room full of drunken ninja, so she had, to Ino's chagrin, politely yet firmly declined. And so she sat, as alone as someone could be, even surrounded by her dearest friends.

Sasuke sat at the other end of the table, arms folded across his chest, seemingly watching Karin as she flipped through the DJ's list of songs.

Oh and how Sakura couldn't wait to hear that bitch sing. She was certain it would be...painful to watch.

Actually, for Sakura, most scenarios involving her friends and their romantic dramas was hard to watch, particularly since she didn't have her own scenario to be completely involved in and therefore not have to have any concern for the romantic dramas of her friends.

The Sake was surprisingly as bitter as it was sweet that night.

She didn't bother sipping it like a more proper lady would have. There was a slight sting constantly reminding her of her master's notorious drinking habits, and how she was no doubt being considered as her master's inevitable apprentice, but the more she drank the less it bothered her.

Naruto finished his song and was received with a healthy round of hearty laughter and applause, as well as Ino's not so subtle flirting as he stepped off the stage.

Sakura read her lips as she spoke into his ear.

"This next song is for you," she said with a wink and a smile as she took the mic from him and stepped up to the monitor screen.

Of course she picked the sexiest song she could have possibly chosen. Her infatuation with Naruto had grown from possibly interested into complete lust over time. Poor Ino, Sakura smirked to herself; she hadn't quite learned that throwing affection at Naruto was like running headlong onto brick wall.

Or maybe it was that she thought the sheer force of her libido could pierce his thick head? Either way, Sakura didn't particularly care. As much as she didn't think Ino was a great match for Naruto, she also didn't think it was her place to have any sort of concern for Naruto's love life, or Ino's for that matter.

Ino was popular with men anyways. Naruto was just her current project. Unfortunately for Ino, and the plethora of other girls who wanted a piece of him, Naruto was rarely around and devoted very little time to his love life. Skaura actually thought of it as a blessing that he was so far away from Konoha so often. She could watch him achieve his dreams from a distance, and be proud and happy for him, and she didn't have to look him in the eye.

Sakura eyes floated to the edge of the stage where Hinata stood blushing like a school girl at Naruto, who had commenced heatedly conversing with Lee and Kiba, but not before giving Hinata a look that made Sakura take notice. Sakura didn't bother reading their lips; instead her eyes turned back to the carafe on the table in front of her. It was time for another drink.

'Ah, the gang,' she thought as she poured another cup and knocked it back. They were a ramshackle band of misfits, to be sure, but they all had each others back through thick and thin, and that was one of the things that kept Sakura coming to these celebratory get-togethers. She may have had issues with them, but they would always be her people.

Just as she was about to delve into another tangential introspective stream of consciousness, Sasuke called from the other end of the table.

"Hey, I'm going to get another round of drinks. You want something?"

'How nice,' she thought. Her carafe was just about to run dry too. "Sure." She poured the last drop and held out her cup in a cheeky toast and then took the last swallow. "Another of these, okay?"

Sasuke nodded and promptly headed for the bar. But in that small moment there was an unspoken exchange between them. Lately Sakura had been feeling some pretty intense vibrations in the few instances where she and Sasuke had a moment to interact even semi privately. There was something about when their eyes met that made her want to completely shut down.

It was still strange having Sasuke around even though he had reentered their lives quite some time ago, but Sakura was somewhat getting used to their casual interactions. The alcohol helped.

Sasuke was her first love, but it was an adolescent love, the kind which seemed like the world as it played its course, but in retrospect was so incredibly flawed she felt foolish for ever carrying such a torch. The bond they had developed over time was real though, and Sakura thought it was one worth working for, if only in a friendly way. Just because Sasuke had fallen in love with a crazy, two-faced bitch didn't mean that she had to hold it against him. Maybe that was just the kind of girl he was into.

It really wasn't anything for her to be concerned about, she thought, but there was still that thing between them that bothered her, and Sakura just did not know what to do to to ease the discomfort other than drink. In most instances it wasn't a problem because they didn't have much opportunity to be alone together, but on the occasions when they had, Sakura just could not force herself to forget about the attraction she once held for him. But that wasn't so much the problem as it was she couldn't help but feel like she was getting the same feeling from him.

Yeah, she still had some feelings for him, but he was indefinitely attached and she wasn't about to play second fiddle to anyone even if she was to choose to entertain the fantasy that he returned those feelings.

Even still, as complicated as her feelings for Sasuke might have been, it was easier to come to terms with their relationship than the one she had with Naruto.

Naruto made Sakura absolutely crazy, and she didn't know if there was a force under the heavens that could ever make it not so. She hated him as much as she loved him, which was in both instances to a grand degree.

It wasn't like she had just one day decided that she was in love with him as much as it was one day she had been forced to consider her own feelings and realized that her love for him had far more exceeded what she had acknowledged prior to the revelation.

And he had taken her heart, ripped it into tiny pieces, and scattered it to the wind like so much confetti.

That was why she hated him. It wasn't enough that he called her a liar when she confessed her most precious of emotions, but he had also accused her of doing so because she was in love with Sasuke.

Even if she still had feelings for him, they were not the same intensity she felt for Naruto, and at that time they were not the kind of emotions that brought joy to her heart. Back then Sasuke meant bitterness, pain and heartache, but when she thought of Naruto she felt joy,even if tainted with a crushing worry for his life.

Things had ultimately worked out for the best though, and they had finally been able to return to some semblance of normal life, but the rift between her and Naruto had never been fully healed.

Sakura was just pondering the irony of their tragic relationship as Sasuke returned with a tray of drinks, sat it down, and reached to place Sakura's in front of her.

"For you, Lady Sakura."

"Thank you," Sakura smiled, more to her cup than to her server, all the while biting back a wince at the ill placed reference to Tsunade, 'The Drunk.'

Sasuke slid into the seat next to her and watched as Ino belted out the emotional climax of her song, writhing her hips like an exotic dancer. Karin turned to Sasuke and winked and blew a kiss, and Sakura thought she detected a hint of jealousy cross Karin's face when she saw that Sasuke had come into her direct vicinity.

Sakura had to mentally fight to avoid screwing up her face, but she managed, and even threw in a cheeky wave back at her.

Karin wasn't the most annoying woman in the world, but Sakura thought she had to be pretty damned close. But even as annoying and nerve wracking she was, her affection for Sasuke was genuine, and he seemed to be equally enamored with her, so Sakura thought it best to just suck it up and grin and bear it.

That didn't mean she had to go out of her way to be friends with the woman though. She was just an accessory to Sasuke as far as Sakura was concerned. If Sasuke was happy with her, then Sakura was happy for him, and that was all that mattered.

"So why aren't you up there singing?" Sakura asked, making small talk.

Sasuke took a long pull from his drought and replied flatly, "Because I'm not a geisha."

Sakura laughed. He was embarrassed, she knew, but she chose not to press him. Sasuke had never been exceptionally extroverted, and that was just fine with her, so she let him be what he was to avoid any argument or ill feelings.

"What about you? Why is Ino the one up there shaking her ass at Naruto?"

Sakura bristled, gripping her carafe tightly as she poured herself another drink. "Because I'm not interested in him," she lied. "More power to Ino, I say. Besides," she smiled coyly, knocking back another cup, "Shaking my ass isn't my thing."

Sasuke smiled too. "That's not what I hear..."

Sakura was about to violently object to the suggestion, but the appearance of Sai stopped her tirade before it began.

He walked in casually and scanned the seats searching until he met eyes with her and smiled, sidestepping a waitress as he started over.

Sai and Sasuke could not be said to be the best of friends, and rarely even appeared more than civil to each other, and it was a wee bit awkward when the two were forced to share the same space together for an extended period of time.

Sakura put on a smile and waved Sai over to their table.

The best way to diffuse where her and Sasuke's conversation was going was to add Sai to the mix. She bet that within five minutes one of them would suddenly have something else they needed to do, and that someone would probably be Sasuke, which was just fine with Sakura.

"Sorry I'm late," Sai said in greeting, "I was working..."

Sasuke replied with a nonchalant nod and handed him one of the many drinks from the tray.

"Thank you," Sai smiled charmingly. He turned to Sakura and motioned to the chair on the other side of her. "Is this seat taken?"

It was previously occupied by Lee, but Sakura was pretty sure that Lee had abandoned it long ago. "No. Please," she motioned for him to sit. When he did, she held out her cup to toast his glass.

Sai returned the gesture. "Kanpai."

"Kanpai," she echoed, in turn holding her cup to Sasuke.

"Kanpai."

Their glasses clanked and everyone settled in to watch the ensuing festivities from the safety of the corner of the room.

"So what did I miss?" Sai asked, breaching the conversation.

Sakura let out a chuckle and filled him in on the sweeping details. "Lee decided to have a drink. Long story short, challenges were made. Everyone's up there singing."

"I see." Sai sipped his drink demurely and turned to locate each of the competitors near the karaoke machine, then turned back to Sakura.

"Naruto just finished barking out 'I Will Always Love You.'" Sakura frowned, over emphasizing her disgust. "Ugh...I hate that song."

Sai raised an eyebrow. "Interesting..."

"And Ino just practically did a strip tease for the crowd."

Sai's eyes widened."Oh?"

Lee took stage, and Ino had made her way over to interrupt Naruto's conversation with Hinata. Sakura was sorry she had missed critiquing their body language. Something was up there, she knew it, but she didn't know what that something could possibly be. She knew that Hinata had a crush on Naruto for the longest time, but as far as she could tell Naruto didn't even know about it. Though, she couldn't imagine that the topic had never been brought up by anyone before.

Sakura smirked and turned to Sasuke. "This should be interesting," she said, of course referring to Lee's choice of songs, and certainly not the look on Hinata's face as she was forced to bear witness to Ino's blunt attempt to usurp Naruto.

'Eye of the Tiger' came blasting out through the PA system.

Sakura laughed heartily and took another drink. Out of the corner of her eye she spied Sai quietly examining her, smiling rather sweetly.

She was sure it was more than a little something to do with the alcohol, but she thought she sort of liked the way he was looking at her made her feel. She didn't want to ponder it too deeply for fear of over analyzing it and ruining the immediate sensation, but it was about the closest thing she had to anything any sort of romantic, so it would have to do.

Though she wasn't even slightly inclined to think that Sai could possibly have any interest in her. In fact, she was more than sufficiently convinced that he was gay, but that just meant that he was 'safe', so she indulged.

Sai seemed to notice her noticing him and averted his eyes to her empty cup. He reached for the carafe and waved it almost awkwardly in front of her. "Refill?"

"Thank you," Sakura nodded, grinning as sweetly as she possibly could. Sai had come to be quite the believer in chivalry in the past few years; he opened doors and pulled out chairs like a pro after a while. He was actually right up there with Lee when it came to manners and proper behavior, except without the hugging and the crying all the time, so he actually came out on top in that area.

Sai could also hold his liquor, a feat which Lee just didn't seem capable of doing no matter how many nights out drinking they put in.

Sakura almost didn't even register the instinct to make her lips pucker just so as she sipped the drink Sai had just poured for her, but she did note that Sai's presence had compelled the shift from slamming to sipping, and for a purpose that she didn't care to ponder deeply.

Sai continued to watch her and Sakura continued to monitor her every gesture as Lee slurred the chorus and Sasuke slammed his beer. Sakura bet that as soon as the song was over Sasuke would make his exit, which is why he was working so hard on his glass, not just because he wanted to drown out Lee's terribly enthusiastic crooning.

One last sip finished off her cup, and Sakura was not surprised when Sai reached once again to refill it. To tease him she asked, "Tying to get me drunk, are you?"

Sai's didn't realize she was just giving him a hard time.

"I'm kidding," she assured him. "Please and thank you."

He smiled brightly and let out a laugh. "Just being proper...you know, keeping you satisfied and all." His eyes scrunched up into amused crescents and Sakura suddenly felt her face get hot.

"Satisfied, eh?"

Sakura turned at Sasuke's interjection.

"I didn't realize that she was yours to satisfy." Sasuke's eyes turned to Sakura, almost accusing.

Sakura hated the crushing pressure of being put in an uncomfortable spot and quietly cursed Sasuke for his insolence.

"Oh, well, not in that sense, no," Sai replied naturally, "But it is a man's job to see to a woman's needs in general, is it not?"

Sakura mentally cheered for Sai's chivalrous reply and non-verbally chided Sasuke for his insipid meddling in affairs that were of no concern to him.

Sasuke rolled his eyes, bringing his glass once again to his lips. He finished off the beer in one last gulp and slammed the glass to the table just as Lee's torturous song was coming to an end. "That's my cue," he declared, grabbing two of the remaining drinks.

He headed off toward the stage, and Sakura watched as he sauntered up behind his wife and held the drink over her shoulder to be received, apparently not giving two shits about just dropping the conversation like a stone.

'What a fucking jerk,' Sakura thought as Karin turned and planted a wet, drunken kiss on his lips.

Suddenly the alcohol no longer agreed with her and she made no effort to hide her sour face even though she knew that Sai might see her go from cheerful to bitter in .2 seconds.

It was just too much to have to see them like that. Add to that Ino battling it out with Hinata for the dimwitted affections of Naruto, the hapless fool at love.

Her previous despair returned with a vengeance and she returned to slamming instead of sipping.

"I'm sorry if I offended you or anything," Sai admitted after an uncomfortable moment. "I didn't mean to imply to him that I was interested in you."

Sai's words were not comforting. At all. "Huh? Oh don't worry about him. He's just...like that sometimes." She held out her glass to be refilled, and he obliged her with a shy smile.

Disagreeable or no, Sakura gulped down the last lukewarm gulp and slammed her cup back down to the table. She let out a sigh and steeled herself to put her happy face on once again. "I think I could use some air," she said, bending to collect her personal effects as Karin took the stage. She stood and grabbed one of the two remaining drinks on the tray and gulped it down as she headed for the exit. She stopped and turned to finish the last bit and discarded the glass on the bar.

Sasuke had fallen in next to Naruto and she was acutely aware of them making eyes at her as she headed out. Suddenly she felt compelled to wave for Sai to follow her, but when she turned to do so she saw that he had already began giving chase.

"Do you mind if I join you?" he asked, hurrying to get the door for her before she reached it.

"Sure," she smiled. "If you like." And she stepped out into the night with him, hopefully as Naruto and Sasuke stood watching.

'Fuck them,' she thought bitterly.

The cool, fresh air was a nice contrast to the balmy, smokey air inside the bar. Sakura breathed it in deeply and spun around to face Sai. "So, Lee really is terrible, isn't he," she joked about Lee's singing. It was an to make nice, safe conversation.

Sai didn't reply, but instead his pleasant face fell suddenly serious and Sakura couldn't help but feel a bit threatened by the shift in his demeanor. She hugged her arms against her chest and shifted on her feet, playing innocent as he examined her.

Sai's face remained serious, but empathetic. "You don't have to pretend for me, Sakura. If you're upset..."

"Who says I'm upset," she snapped back. "I'm fine. Why wouldn't I be?" She continued her charade even though she knew full well that he could see right through it.

"Look, I know you and I are not as close as you are with them, but you can talk to me...if you need someone to talk to..."

Sakura turned away and scrunched her eyes closed against the sudden tears she felt about spill out. "I said I was fine, okay? What could I possibly have to be upset about? Everything's fine."

She opened her eyes to find Sai offering her a tissue, like some perfect fairytale gentleman. "If you're so fine, then why are you crying?"

Sakura snatched the tissue and furiously wiped her eyes, thankful that there was no make-up to smear and run. "Why do you care," she sniffled.

Sai flinched as if slightly offended, "Because I thought we were friends, and friends are supposed to be concerned when a friend is in pain."

Sakura chuckled sardonically at the words: in pain. "Pain? This is nothing. It just bothers me more some times than others. Tonight is just a bad night is all." Sakura sighed and crossed the promenade to lean on the rail and stare into the reflection of the moon on the stream below.

A moment later Sai's footsteps approached from behind.

She flinched when she felt the fabric of his jacket around her shoulders, but quickly snuggled into its warmth. He settled in next to her but remained silent, as if waiting for her to spill what ever it was that had gotten her down.

"It's just," she began slowly, scrambling to conjure the proper words to describe it. "Do you ever just feel...completely alone? Like, there's no one in the universe who could ever really understand what you're feeling?"

Sai pursed his lips, considering the question, then smiled knowingly and nodded. "Yeah. I think I can relate to that. Like, I really like Naruto, as a friend I mean, but no matter what I do he will never think of me the way thinks of Sasuke."

Sakura smiled sadly. Maybe Sai really could understand. She had always had a feeling that Sai had some kind of crush on Naruto, which went along with her semi-certain belief that he was into guys, but she wasn't expecting the second point he had to make. "The same could be said about the relationships you have with each of them as well. I mean, you and Naruto...when we were all working as a team back then, you were the first two people who ever just accepted me and wanted me as a friend even when my motives were questionable. The point I'm trying to make is, even though I can never be a part of the bond you three share...that doesn't mean I don't also have bonds with you...and...I don't even know what I'm trying to say. I'm sorry."

"No..." Sakura smiled at Sai's bashful admission. It sort of turned a lot of her preconceptions on their head. Somehow him being flustered put her at ease. "I just get so mad...about everything that's happened. I don't wish that things had turned out differently, but it's still hard, you know? I want so much for everyone to be happy...and I want to be happy for them...but...I'm selfish and I want my own happiness too!"

Sai closed his eyes and smiled. "That sounds like a perfectly healthy desire to me. It's said that the primary pursuit of humanity is to strive toward one's own happiness. I don't think it's selfish at all to want to be happy. It seems like a given to me, even though so many of us choose to endeavor away from that which makes us truly happy. I think...I think that to sacrifice one's own happiness for that of another is conceivably a noble endeavor, but it's ultimately a great disservice to one's own soul."

Sakura blinked, taken aback by Sai's reasoning. She wanted to say something, anything to express the connection she felt with him right at that moment, but she just couldn't, so instead she said the first thing that came to mind. "Yeah..."

Sai shook his head and let out a small laugh. "You must think I sound pretty foolish..."

"No! No...I don't." She actually thought he made perfect sense.

There was a part of Sakura that wanted to kiss the lips that had spoken the words that resonated with her heart so truly.

"I just don't like to see you upset," Sai went on. "I mean, I don't know everything between you and Naruto and Sasuke, but from what I do know..."

The tears suddenly started flowing again and no amount of mental resolve could have stopped them.

It took everything she had to keep the sobbing as silent as possible, just in case someone happened by. She didn't want Sai to see her such a state, but shecertainly did not want anyone else to see it.

She was vaguely aware of his movements but flinched as he brought up his arms and awkwardly reached for her.

"Sakura...I'm sorry...please don't cry..."

She wanted badly to be able to turn it off so easily, but there was just no way. It hurt.

"Sakura, please..." Sai's hands moved up her arms and around her shoulders.

Still sobbing and clutching the coat around her shoulders, Sakura pressed her face into his chest.

"Sakura..." One of his hands came up to pet her hair and the other pressed into her back, forcing her into his full embrace. "Shhhh..."

And still she sobbed, but it was starting to feel better, like something poisonous was streaming out with her tears.

Sakura let go of her grip on Sai's jacket and laid her palms against his chest. His heart was beating fast, but he still breathed calm, quiet breaths. The sound of his heart pumping was as relaxing as it was exciting to be so close to him as to hear it. She hadn't been so close to another person in a good long while. It was nice.

After a while the waterworks started to dry up and Sakura's head started to stop spinning and she realized what kind of position she was in.

No one had ever held her in such a way before. It wasn't the desperate kind of embrace one gives when one is thankful after a close call, or the quaint embrace of friends being polite. It wasn't even the heavy embrace of someone attempting to comfort. Sai's was the sort of embrace Sakura always thought belonged exclusively to lovers either just preceding or just following a passionate kiss.

But no such thing had happened. Sai was trying his best to comfort her, she thought, that's all it was. It worked, didn't it?

The thought upset her because in some way it made her have to acknowledge just how starved for affection she was. Not that Sai wasn't worthy of her affection, it was just that she never expected to find herself in a position like that with Sai.

She began to micro process times they had spent together, searching for some kind of clue, some indication that things between them hadn't exactly been strictly platonic, but there was nothing that she could immediately recall. She never had felt exceptionally close to him, although they had relatively frequent interactions that were for the most part pleasant. It was true that she did find him rather attractive, but again, she had always believed that he wasn't interested in girls, so how could he be interested in her?

It had to have been that he just wasn't experienced at dealing with other people's heavy emotions. That had to be it.

Before she could ponder the thought deeper, Sai's hands slid to her shoulders and he arched back to look her in the face. She tried to keep her eyes averted, but Sai wasn't having it. His hands found her wet cheeks and tilted her head up to look at him.

For some reason, she expected him to somehow be angry with her, but he didn't look angry at all. He looked...sad.

"Sakura," he pleaded. And in the split second between breaths, Sakura ached for him to kiss her. "Please talk to me..."

"I..." She was trembling under his touch, and it took a long moment of speechlessness for her to realize that he was trembling too.

'Kiss him,' she thought, but before she could so much as blink, Sai's eyes darted toward the entrance of the bar and fixed on it.

Sakura started and spun to see what had caught his attention so abruptly only to find Sasuke had exited the bar and was currently watching their exchange.

How long was he there?

Sakura stood fixed for a moment, glaring daggers at Sasuke from across the promenade.

What did he think he was doing? He should have been in there watching his wife dance like a slut, not stalking her into the night. Seriously, what the fuck was his problem?

"I'm not feeling so well," Sakura called to him after taking a moment to collect her head. "Sai is going to walk me home. Please tell everyone I'm sorry, but I had too much to drink and need to go." She abruptly turned to Sai and asked pallidly, "Please...walk me home..."

Sai nodded, and giving one last glance at Sasuke, took her by the arm and led her away into the night.

Sakura knew that she was going to have to say something to Sai, to give him some sort of explanation, but she was still hoping against hope that he would let it slide and not press her.

They made their way out of the hustle and bustle of the entertainment district and into the dim back alleys of the residential area, and when it seemed they were the only ones in ear shot, Sai turned to her and asked softly, "Is there...something going on between you and Sasuke?"

Sakura wasn't ready to reply.

"I'm sorry if it's none of my business, but...well, actually I do consider it my business because I don't like seeing you in such a state." He stopped to throw her a look that expressed his disgust, and continued in a slightly elevated tone. "Hasn't he hurt you enough?"

Sakura felt bulldozed by the question, and snapped back the only way she knew how, "There's nothing between us!"

"Then why," he pressed, "Are you so upset? I'm sorry, but I don't understand any of this."

"Of course you don't understand! How could you?" How could he? He had never been a situation like her. She didn't think anyone could ever understand her pain. Certainly not Sai of all people.

"Well, you could start by telling me what's going on." Sai lowered his head and brought a hand up to push his hair out of his eyes. "I know we aren't close, but...I care about you."

Sakura froze, her rage completely diffused by Sai's soft words. It felt like the bottom of the world had dropped out and she was abruptly plunging desperately into the dark unknown, and she had to fight to keep her fight or flight instinct from sending her swiftly in the other direction.

"I don't mean to imply that I..." Sai shifted into damage control mode and proceeded cautiously. "I mean, I don't know if you feel the same way about me or not, but I consider you a dear friend of mine, and I just want to help."

There wasn't really anything Sakura could think of that would help her, but she knew if she didn't do something she was just going to continue dying inside. "What could you do?" she asked, more to herself than to Sai.

"I can listen to anything you have to say, and not judge you for it, like you've always done for me."

Sakura's eyes shot wide in realization as her thoughts played over memories of time spent with Sai.

She ran into him most often at the library with his nose in some book or another, and they usually spent a good while chatting casually about one topic or another, but it was almost strictly exclusive to academic topics, with the occasional psychological or philosophical debate. Sakura had always enjoyed talking to Sai because it seemed like when she was with him, there was no worry for delving into uncomfortable conversation, and now all of that was out the window. She had to give him some credit though; he seemed to genuinely want to help.

"Sai," she said softly, "I don't want to be alone right now, okay? And I don't want to go home..."

Sakura didn't want Ino stumbling in drunk in the middle of...well, whatever she and Sai would be getting up to whenever Ino decided to come home.

"Okay," Sai nodded slowly and went on, "I could take you for coffee...or we could go to my place."

"Your place." Sakura wanted private time.

Sai's eyes widened slightly, but he nodded and started off in the direction of his apartment, motioning for her to fall in next to him.

Sakura dashed to catch up, still clutching his jacket around her shoulders, and when she reached him he held out an arm to receive her. It felt like she was flying as she swooped in next to him and his hand reached around her waist, coming to rest above her hip. His touch was light, but at the same time suggestive, like he was guiding her along side him.

At that point, Sakura didn't know anything about anything anymore, but she felt safe, and that was all that mattered.

(Continued...)

Footnotes:

*Karaoke in Japan is different than it is here (in the U.S.), so I thought it worth mentioning that my description of karaoke follows the general North American practice, not the more private Japanese manner. I guess if you want more info on that whole thing then try wiki.

*Sakura is drinking Japanese rice wine, or Sake, which usually wouldn't be capitalized, but I decided to make it a pronoun to distinguish it from the English word 'sake'. Traditionally Sake is heated up in bottle and then poured into small cups to drink.

*Yes, I know they are all "Western" songs mentioned. Not Country music, mind you, just that I don't listen to very much Japanese music so it would be a really trivial thing to use Japanese songs.

*I'm thinking as though the characters are about 20-ish here, which is old enough to go to bars in Japan. I know, total cross-cultural flubbing. Whatever. It's a fanfic set in ninja land, not the world as we know it.

Thank you so much for reading! Questions? Comments? Critiques? There's at least one more part to this particular story, but the universe may grow beyond that if there's interest.