The Long Road Home
Chapter 6

Sasuke is in Sakura's room, and Sakura's not happy.

He is almost able to taste her unhappiness – he sees it in the stiffness of her jaw, the stress that lines the corners of her mouth. The irony of the situation doesn't escape him. Years ago, Sakura would have shrieked in excitement to find him in her bedroom.

Sasuke wants to scoff, to sneer. He doesn't want to be here anymore than she wants him here. He decides resolutely that he isn't going to look at her either. Instead, he glares hard at an invisible spot on the wall opposite him.

Sakura steps hesitantly into her room. She is speaking now, but Sasuke isn't listening.

With her entrance, Sasuke becomes even more acutely aware of where he is. He has never visited Sakura's home before, he realizes. He's always known where she lived – Naruto unfailingly points it out every time they pass her apartment block – but he's never actually stepped foot into her flat.

But there's a first for everything. Now that Sasuke is here, he sees how Sakura's personality writes itself into every corner of her bedroom, every rumpled crease of her curtains and bed sheets and unfolded laundry. There are heavy medical tomes tucked precariously onto her bookshelf, and small photographs decorating her desk.

The photo of Team 7 from their childhood inevitably catches his eye. For a second, Sasuke can only focus on the brightness of their smiles, frozen in time. It makes his lungs ache in a most unfamiliar, unpleasant way.

Sakura is before him now. Sasuke notices the careful distance she has deliberately put between them. It is short enough to feel intimate, and far enough for the promise of safety to hang between them. He can't help but approve. She's grown smarter over the years, Sasuke thinks bitterly, and is glad.

"I don't understand," Sakura says softly then. He pretends that he doesn't hear the slight tremor in her voice. She is nervous. "Is this about what happened in camp that night?"

He grits his teeth and tries his best to hold back a snarl. But it's been a long day, and Sasuke's self-control has always been weakest when it matters most, so he doesn't quite succeed. He is humiliated by his loss of control that night, and he is ashamed that Sakura, of all people, had to see it. The recollection of his hands clutching at her throat again sends revulsion pooling in his stomach.

Sasuke's jaw tightens. "What the fuck would I be doing here otherwise?" he mutters derisively.

Sakura flinches at his words, but to her credit, she doesn't look hurt. Instead, he sees the familiar slow burn of anger in her eyes, the stiffening of her shoulders. It is almost delicious. Sasuke realizes right there and then that he is itching for a fight with somebody – anybody.

Naruto should be here, he thinks in irritation. Unfortunately, Sakura is the only one around.

But Sakura doesn't cry. She doesn't yell at him, and she doesn't try to approach him. Instead, she holds herself very still, very carefully. A moment of uncomfortable silence passes, and then Sasuke finally decides to look at her.

Sakura is watching him. There is an uncharacteristic stillness to her features; her face is so blank that Sasuke ends up staring back at her, discomfort prickling at the back of his neck. Then Sakura glances away. The glimpse of disappointment that flickers across the shadows of her face annoys him. It is as though she was searching for something, but found him wanting. Sasuke doesn't like it.

He has upset her, he thinks distantly. This recognition doesn't bring him the satisfaction that he thinks it would.

"Something happened," Sakura guesses, breaking the silence. She holds herself stiffly, putting two and two together. She's always been annoyingly good at that. "It's Naruto, isn't it? He has something to do with this."

Sasuke seems to think about her words carefully for a moment, before giving a curt nod. Sakura is right, of course. He had stepped out of the shower earlier to find Naruto pacing his room. He pauses, feeling the words take form in his mouth like little cool balls of lead.

Experience teaches Sakura to wait patiently for him to speak. An entire childhood of watching Sasuke's every move has to count for something, she thinks, and feels a little sad.

"Naruto says Konoha may decide to extend my probation if this continues," Sasuke says flatly, at last. His lip curls slowly, and viciousness leaks into his next words. "I might be a threat if I weren't stable."

He's not entirely right, Sakura thinks privately. Sasuke is almost certainly classified as a threat at the moment, regardless of his mental state. She doesn't think it will be appropriate for her to share this with him, however. In fact, she doesn't think it's appropriate that they are even having this conversation at all.

Instead, Sakura lets her mouth twist into an unhappy frown. "Naruto, you idiot," she mutters under her breath. She looks murderous. "That's classified information."

"So it's true." Sasuke sounds calm, but the narrowing of his eyes doesn't escape Sakura. She shifts uncomfortably under his gaze, and suddenly she can't help but feel sorry for her former teammate. Sasuke is, and has always been, intensely private and independent. To be trapped within the village and to have his every move observed by ANBU must be incredibly difficult for him.

Sakura clears her throat. "Nothing's been decided," she clarifies firmly, and hopes that Sasuke will leave it at that. But Sasuke's dark gaze sharpens. He begins looking at her in a different way, as though he's suddenly come to a realisation about something.

"You-" he begins, and stops. He frowns. "They're going to base any decision on my medical report," Sasuke says slowly. His gaze is intent, cutting. "You're in charge of that report."

There's no masking the understanding and disdain in his voice this time. Sakura looks away. She thinks she can detect a note of betrayal underneath his words. She has the decency to feel uncomfortable, even though she knows that she has done nothing wrong. As a kunoichi, her loyalties to Konoha come above everything else.

"I am your physician," Sakura says at last, waveringly. She's taken a few moments to weigh her words carefully. She sounds very formal, and very tired. "It is my duty to help you, Sasuke-kun."

"Then you will make sure Konoha doesn't extend my probation," Sasuke says shortly.

"I'd do my best," Sakura answers fervently, and it is nothing but the truth. After all, Sakura knows that an extension may well push Sasuke over the edge. She looks at him seriously. "I'd do everything within my power to ensure your recovery," she continues. "But are you ready, Sasuke-kun?"

"Hn." There is a sneer on Sasuke's face and a challenging glint in his eyes.

Sakura pretends she doesn't notice either. He doesn't actually have any idea what he's asking for, she thinks, and sighs softly to herself. Suddenly, the weariness of the past weeks comes rushing back into her bones. The world seems to spin, and the nausea that accompanies the exhaustion nearly bowls her over. Sakura has to tighten her grip on the kunai she still clutches in her hand, and remind herself to hold it together.

This ridiculous conversation has gone on long enough, Sakura thinks with dismay. Sasuke needs to leave now. So she shifts slightly to her right, clearing a path to her bedroom door.

"Can we talk about this in the morning instead, Sasuke-kun?" Sakura asks delicately. She gestures towards her door, a pointed signal for him to leave.

But Sasuke is obstinate, and Sasuke has always been good at disappointing. He stares hard at Sakura, his lips pressed into a hard line. "You'll do it," he says insistently. He doesn't budge from where he is seated.

Sakura can feel the beginnings of a migraine taking hold. Her head throbs unpleasantly, promising an evening of discomfort. She bites her lip. "We can discuss this in the morning," she says again. She is beginning to feel lightheaded, and Sasuke's presence does nothing to help. "I'll think of something," she says distractedly, and tries to keep her shoulders from shaking. Sakura knows she's failed, however, when Sasuke's expression shifts minutely. He straightens, watching her closely.

"Please, Sasuke-kun," she tries again.

Instead of compliance, Sakura receives an intent gaze and a raised eyebrow. From Sasuke, it is as good as outright concern. She wants to swear, or possibly cry. For once in her life she doesn't want Sasuke's concern; she just wants this conversation to end. She wills Sasuke to please, please cooperate for once in his damned life.

"Please," Sakura repeats. She flushes when she hears her voice crack slightly at the end. "In the morning, okay?" Anxiety seeps into her voice despite her best efforts, and Sakura has to fight not to cringe in mortification.

There is a moment of silence, awkward and precarious. Then: "Are you ill?"

Sasuke's words are sudden and blunt. He's looking at her strangely now. Sakura shakes her head. She attempts to smile, but it comes out a little crooked. "I'm a little tired," she answers instead, softly. It is a half-truth.

Sasuke stares silently at her. After a long moment, he finally rises to his feet. "Tomorrow," he tells her coolly, fixing her with hooded eyes.

Sakura wonders faintly if the nausea clinging to the back of her throat is an effect of her oncoming migraine, or a reaction to Sasuke's incredible arrogance. She nods anyway, ready to do nearly anything to cut short this strange and awkward conversation.

Satisfied, Sasuke slips his hands into his pockets. He ignores the path Sakura has created to her front door – it is as though he is trying his best to piss her off, she thinks with growing irritation – and slips noiselessly out through her bedroom windows instead.

It is seconds before Sasuke is swallowed up by the unrelenting blackness of the night. A second later, Sakura feels the muted chakra signatures of his ANBU guards flicker out of detection.

Sakura stands completely still. In the welcome silence of her bedroom, she closes her eyes and breathes a little easier. She counts inaudibly to herself: one, two, three. When she reaches ten, she crosses the room in bold, purposeful steps.

For the first time in years, Sakura locks her bedroom windows before she goes to bed.

The edges of the sky are stained a deep purple when Sakura leaves her apartment.

It's a shit start to the morning, Sakura acknowledges. Her migraine is gone, but the shadows beneath her eyes have only darkened. She didn't get much rest during the night, because her dreams – every single damned one of them – had all been filled with Sasuke, Sasuke, Sasuke. After jerking awake for the ninth time, Sakura had finally dragged herself out of bed and into the shower.

Nonetheless, when Sakura steps out onto empty streets, she stops in her tracks and takes a moment to enjoy the view. Konoha is beautifully, surreally peaceful at this early hour. Sakura has long discovered that this is one of her favorite moments of the day. The sight makes her feel a little better, as it always does.

Then she turns, and begins a slow journey in the direction of the Hokage tower.

It takes her less than twenty minutes to reach the Hokage tower by foot. Sakura greets the jounin who is on night guard duty absentmindedly, pondering her next actions. Tsunade is nowhere in sight. That is unsurprising; Sakura does not expect her drink-loving mentor to be up at this ungodly hour. She is a little surprised, however, that Shizune isn't already hard at work.

Shrugging, Sakura decides to return later. She needs to hand in her team's medical evaluation reports personally anyway. Tucking the folders under her arm carefully, Sakura waves goodbye to the jounin guard and turns to leave.

Instead of leaving the building, she heads for the Hokage's private library.

Being Tsunade's apprentice comes with a lot of perks. For one thing, Sakura is one of the very few people who have been given access to the Hokage's private library. There are certain scrolls and records within the library that remain off-limits, of course, but Tsunade values knowledge, and has always been fairly relaxed about letting Sakura poke around.

The entry to the library is tucked away behind a well-concealed door, some distance from the main stairway. Sakura stops before the door. She presses her fingers gently against a small panel, sending a wisp of chakra into the wall. It unlocks immediately, swinging gently towards her. Her entry will be logged, she knows, but it's nothing unusual. Sakura probably spends more time in here than Tsunade herself.

Sakura steps in and shuts the door quietly behind her. She coughs slightly, making a face at the musty smell assaulting her nose. They really need to clean this place up at some point, Sakura thinks, and resolves to bug Shizune about it.

But first… Sakura has something to take care of.

She switches on the lights and begins heading down the short flight of steps that lead into the library. Her footsteps echo lightly off the walls. Tsunade hates paperwork with a passion, so Sakura's suffered plenty of hours being trapped in here and forced to do research on her behalf. She knows this place like the back of her hand by now.

Sakura breaks into a soft mindless hum, pulling various scrolls and leather-bound tomes from the shelves as she moves slowly about the room. When she's amassed a suitably formidable-looking pile, she makes her way to a desk by the side of the room. Then she dumps her precious load of books and scrolls unceremoniously on the desk.

It takes another moment of consideration before she reaches out for the heavy drapes and draws them apart gently. Dust coats her fingers as she pulls them away, but Sakura's gaze is drawn to the view outside the window. The sky is light now, dawn breaking gently across the horizon.

Sakura makes herself comfortable in a chair, and begins to read.

As the sun rises, watery sunlight begins to stream through the gap in the curtains. The light pools onto the table, illuminating tiny dust motes that lie suspended in mid-air. Sakura does not look up from her books. Instead, she reads like a woman possessed, her eyes flickering rapidly over the faded ink. Occasionally, she stops to scribble notes in the margins of a notebook she's brought along with her.

Hours pass. Sakura is relentless in her work. She stops only long enough to retrieve more books.

Eventually, though, Sakura begins to tire. She closes the book she is currently reading and rubs her eyes wearily. Her stomach chooses that moment to express its discontent, letting up a loud grumble.

"You sound like you could use a lunch break," a familiar voice says suddenly.

Sakura lets out a small gasp, spinning around sharply. One hand shoots up to clutch protectively at her throat. Her other hand has already curled tightly around a kunai, pulling it up defensively against her front.

Kakashi stands a short distance behind her. He holds up one hand in a placating gesture. His eyes crinkle in amusement, but Sakura can see the slight glint of concern as he takes in her defensive pose.

"K-Kakashi-sensei!" she stutters. Her heart is still pounding, fluttering in her chest. "When did you get here?!"

"A little while ago," Kakashi answers casually. He shifts and peers down oddly at her. "I wasn't being particularly quiet, but I guess you were too busy to notice your dear old sensei."

Sakura laughs sheepishly. Kakashi is only being honest, she can tell, and her lack of awareness is all the more embarrassing for it. "Sorry," she mumbles, feeling her cheeks heat up in mortification. "Guess I was really out of it."

Kakashi shrugs off her apology. He reaches out then, and ruffles her hair. Ever since the war ended, they have become a little closer, a little more affectionate with each other. It is a bond that Sakura never enjoyed with Kakashi as a child, and it is one that she increasingly cherishes. "Don't worry about it," he says, and there is something like kindness in his voice. Then he gives her a careful look. "Everything okay? You're looking a little tense."

Sakura looks down and realizes with a start that she is still gripping the kunai she's pulled from her holster. Flushing brightly, she quickly tucks it away. "Sorry," she says again. She chuckles a little nervously. "I was just trying to figure something out."

Kakashi steps slightly closer towards her. Sakura tries to discreetly obscure the titles of the books on her table, but there are too many of them, and Kakashi's eyes are much too observant. "Memory and mind jutsu," he murmurs, scanning the books on her table. He regards her curiously. "I'd offer you some help, but it's not exactly my area of expertise."

Sakura smiles briefly. "Thanks anyway, Kakashi-sensei," she says casually. She turns back to her books and begins to gather them up to be returned to the shelves. Her fingers pause, hesitating on one particular scroll. But Kakashi's sharp eyes keep her from lingering too long, so she sweeps it up quickly into the pile. "Yeah, I think I'll get Ino to help me out with that," she says lightly instead.

Eager to change the topic, Sakura looks over at Kakashi. For the first time, she notices the sheets of parchment Kakashi holds carefully in his right hand. He looks slightly miserable, actually. "Did you need help finding something, Kakashi-sensei?" she queries delicately, still balancing a heap of books in her arms.

"Ah, yes, actually," Kakashi answers, scratching his head. He sighs, and Sakura can already tell that Kakashi might hate paperwork even more than Tsunade does. "I need to find a letter from Suna from three years back about weapon shipments. Any idea where I should start?"

Sakura smiles and points him in the right direction. "Trade correspondence records are on three shelves to your right," she tells him smartly. "Correspondence from Suna should be on the fourth row. Anything from the last two years will be upstairs in Shizune's cabinets." She knows all of this, of course, because Tsunade had once forced her to do the filing and reorganisation, as a punishment for turning up late for training.

Kakashi looks pleased. "Thanks," he drawls. "You always were my favorite student."

Sakura rolls her eyes at the blatant lie, but a fond smile breaks out across her face anyway. "Tell you what," she begins, rising to her feet and heading for the shelves. "Treat me to lunch, and I'll help you find the document."

Kakashi's eyes twinkle. "You have yourself a deal."

They return to the Hokage tower after lunch. The sun hangs bright over Konoha, and the sky is a clear, glorious blue. True to his word, Kakashi treated Sakura to lunch, ignoring her protests that she was only joking. They even stop for anmitsu on the way back, despite Kakashi's dislike for desserts. It is an act of kindness that does not escape Sakura. Now, her former teacher walks with her, looking positively gloomy with every step they take towards their destination. Sakura gathers, from their lunchtime conversation, that Kakashi isn't quite enjoying the paperwork part of his Hokage training.

They part on the second storey of the tower. Sakura waves Kakashi goodbye as he disappears noiselessly to wherever he needs to be. Then she continues her ascent towards Tsunade's office.

When she reaches Tsunade's office, Sakura discovers that her mentor is seeing someone at the moment. She shrugs, resigning herself to the wait. In the meantime, she decides to entertain herself by striking up conversation with Shizune. It's been some time since she's had a chance to catch up with the older woman anyway, and Sakura has missed her.

Shizune is halfway through her complaints about Kakashi leaving his porn in the filing cabinets when the door to Tsunade's office finally swings open.

Ueda comes striding out then. An unlit cigarette dangles from his fingers. He is a tall, lean man, with dark hair and angular. Beside Sakura, Shizune falls silent at the sight of the new arrival.

"Ah, Haruno," Ueda greets, looking slightly surprised to see her there. He's holding a thin folder in one hand, and Sakura guesses that he must have just submitted the mission report to Tsunade. "How are you feeling?"

Sakura nods back politely in greeting. "I'm good, thank you," she answers automatically. "I'm heading to the hospital later to check on Tenten, actually." She knows she's promised Kentaro not to come into the hospital, but Sakura feels just fine today, if not a little tired. Besides, she likes to know how her patients are doing.

Ueda inclines his head in acknowledgement. "I just saw her," he says. He gives a little grim smile. "She looks better than she did yesterday."

"She'll have to be taken off duty for some time," Sakura replies. She thinks of Tenten, small and pale and bloodless against the white of her hospital sheets. "But she should make a full recovery."

Ueda nods. Then he raises a hand in farewell as he heads towards the stairs. "Thanks for the hard work, Haruno," he calls over his shoulder. "I imagine we will work together again soon."

Sakura watches him curiously as he leaves. She doesn't quite know what to make of Ueda's parting words – should she expect a follow-up mission soon? Before she can ponder over this, Tsunade's bellow comes ringing out from next door.

"Next!" her mentor hollers. "Hurry up, do you want me to wait all day?!"

Shizune grimaces. "She's a bit grouchy today," she whispers to Sakura, looking embarrassed.

"No kidding," Sakura mutters. "What happened?"

Shizune chuckles sheepishly. "I hid her sake again," she confesses.

Sakura hides a giggle behind one hand. "Good thing I came prepared then," she sings. She raises the small bag dangling from her left hand and jiggles it teasingly before Shizune.

Shizune's eyes widen. She shakes her head reproachfully. "You've just made my work even harder," she sighs unhappily, propping her cheek up with one hand.

Sakura laughs then. She reaches into the bag and pulls out a wrapped rice ball, depositing it gently on Shizune's table. "I got something for you too. Here you go," she tells Shizune sweetly, and smiles as the older woman's eyes light up. "Brown rice – that's your favorite, isn't it?"

The smile that Shizune sends her makes her day feel just a little bit brighter. With a little wave, Sakura turns and heads into Tsunade's office.

"Tsunade-shishou," she greets. Tsunade is scribbling away furiously on some sheets of paper. She does not look up when Sakura enters the room, although she does raise a hand and flaps it at her in a sort of impatient manner.

"Well?" the blonde demands snippily. "Have you come to hand in your report?"

Sakura slides the file over. "Yes, of course," she answers serenely. "I've also come to feed you," she adds. Before Tsunade can respond, Sakura pulls out a small flask of sake and a bag of chicken skewers from the bag she has brought along with her. She sets the items down before her mentor with some triumph.

That gets Tsunade's attention at last. She puts down her pen and scrutinises the offerings, before she finally looks up at her apprentice.

"All right," Tsunade drawls suspiciously. She reaches for one skewer slowly, her brown eyes flickering keenly over Sakura's form. "What do you want from me now?"

"N-nothing!" Sakura sputters. She looks affronted. "Can't I do something nice because I feel like it?"

"Of course you can," Tsunade retorts. She takes a bite out of her chicken, and nods in approval. "But you usually don't."

Sakura glares, and chooses not to answer. The truth is that there is something like guilt curling and bubbling under her skin. But Tsunade doesn't need to know about that. Before she can say anything else, however, her attention is diverted by Tsunade.

"Good job on getting hold of this," the older woman says briskly. She brings up one perfectly manicured finger and taps it on the table, directly over a piece of parchment. Sakura glances down, and immediately recognises the map she's lifted off the drunk merchant during her mission. "It's turning out to be quite useful."

Sakura nods, glad that she's managed to get hold of something important.

"Also, about that girl, Tenten," Tsunade says then, slow and deliberating. Her eyes glint in the florescent light of her desk lamp. "I want you to pull out her psyche report."

Sakura straightens attentively. "Shishou?"

"I want a follow-up evaluation done," Tsunade continues. She looks contemplative, if a little tired. "The situation is delicate. I want to know when she's ready to go back into the field."

Sakura's heart clenches. She thinks of Tenten's eyes, dark and blank and lost. There is a feeling of dread taking form in the pits of her stomach. If Tsunade is already thinking about sending Tenten back out onto the field, then something serious must be happening. But it is not her place to question Tsunade, so she clutches these thoughts close to her heart, afraid of voicing them.

"Understood," Sakura replies steadily. She tries her best to keep her voice even, but Tsunade's already picked up on the distress underlying her voice.

The older woman regards her carefully. For a moment, she seems like she wants to say something. But the moment passes, and Tsunade looks down to scan the papers on her table. "Don't look so upset, Sakura," she says calmly. She ignores Sakura's look. "We're monitoring the situation. Hopefully, by the time Tenten has to head back onto the field, this case will be Kakashi's problem instead."

Kakashi's coronation ceremony is not for another six weeks, Sakura thinks slowly. She nods, musing over the possibilities in her mind.

Tsunade clears her throat then. "You can do the psyche evaluation, or you can get her medic to handle this. I don't really care. When can I get the report?" she asks instead.

"Next week," Sakura promises at once. Ino was the one who handled Tenten's case after the war, if she remembered correctly. She'll have to ask if Ino wants to do the follow-up. Since Ino's started working at the Interrogation Unit, her caseload at the hospital has diminished significantly. She's still holding on to a number of patients though – mostly psych cases, like Tenten's.

Tsunade looks satisfied. "Good," she utters, reaching out to pour herself a drink. Then she gazes up at her apprentice. "There may be some difficult missions coming up," she warns. "You should be prepared to leave for extended periods of time."

Sakura nods. There is a familiar prickling at the base of her nape, a whispered promise of lethality and peril. Sakura's not fazed by Tsunade's words in the least – in fact, a part of her is even looking forward to it. In their line of work, it has always been like this.

She thinks that this may be the end of their conversation, but then Tsunade surprises her by gesturing to the seat across her table. "Sit down, Sakura," Tsunade exhales, and her voice is firm.

Sakura blinks, caught off-guard by Tsunade's request. Slowly, she sinks into the seat opposite Tsunade. When her mentor slides a sake cup brimming with liquor across the table, however, she doesn't hesitate to take it. She tosses back the drink in one gulp, letting out a soft hum of enjoyment when the sake sends heat scorching down her throat and settling pleasantly in her stomach.

"You look terrible," Tsunade tells her bluntly. Sakura smiles, almost tickled by the way her mentor never bothers to soften the blow. Her next words, however, send the smile slipping away. "What's going on with Uchiha?"

Sakura shifts in her chair. She thinks for a moment before replying. "Sasuke-kun is responding well to daily training," she begins slowly. "But I've had to put him back on the alpha-blockers because he doesn't sleep otherwise. I'm looking to reduce this once we start the chakra sessions." She pauses, then she continues in a cautious voice, "You might have already seen this on Shikamaru's team report, but Sasuke-kun doesn't sleep on missions. He struggles with nightmares."

Tsunade nods impatiently. "Yes, Nara says that you woke Uchiha up on one of the nights, and then he had a bit of a meltdown," she says. She rolls her eyes with a contemptuous sniff, making her disdain clear. "But what has he done now?"

Sakura blinks, startled. "What makes you think he did something?" she counters, fidgeting in her seat.

Tsunade's response is a loud snort. She leans forward in her chair and gazes intently at Sakura. "Fool," she says, but it is not without affection. "The only time you get that look on your face is when the Uchiha does something idiotic."

Sakura feels her face heat up at once. How humiliating, she thinks wryly – let's all line up and read Haruno Sakura like an open book. She groans silently, knowing that there is very little she can hide from her mentor. "He came to my house last night," she admits glumly. "He wants me to start working on the chakra healing process, but I don't think he's ready."

"He came to your house?" Tsunade arches one fine brow. "Are you having sex with him?"

"What?! No!" Sakura cries out. Her blush is in full force now; her cheeks are actually burning in mortification. "Shishou!"

Tsunade releases a cackle and takes another swig of sake. "No? Maybe you should sleep with him," she suggests with a lewd snigger. It's hard not to tease Sakura when she's blushing like an overripe tomato. "He'd probably behave a lot better if you do."

"Shishou!"

Tsunade chortles sharply. "Ah, Sakura," she chuckles. "So why did he come running over to you if he's being so difficult?"

"Naruto," Sakura answers. She scowls hard now, and for a moment, Tsunade gazes at her daughter in everything but blood. She watches Sakura, captivated by the brightness of her eyes, the high color in her cheeks. "Naruto told Sasuke-kun that the Council would prolong his probation if he weren't considered stabilized."

Tsunade nods thoughtfully, sipping slowly from her cup. "So he came running over in a frenzy. Well, that much is true," she states blithely. "Although that idiot really needs to learn how to keep his mouth shut."

Across her, Sakura gives a snort. She pours herself another drink of sake. "I have half a mind to rip him a new one," she mutters in annoyance. Tsunade laughs. There is a moment of quiet as they knock their cups gently against each other's and drink.

Then Tsunade looks up from her cup. She rests one cheek in the palm of her hand. "Do what you have to do, Sakura," she murmurs gently to her apprentice. "I trust your professional judgement." She pauses meaningfully then, before continuing in a quieter voice, "Just make sure you don't do anything stupid."

"Do something stupid? Me?" Sakura jokes, feigning offense. She pretends that her breath hasn't hitched ever so slightly at Tsunade's words, and that the back of her neck isn't prickling in warning. She's nervous, and she wonders if Tsunade knows. "Shishou, you know I'd never."

Tsunade lets out a short, breathy laugh. "You say that now," she begins, giving her student a pointed stare. "But you know as well as I do that Uchiha Sasuke's always been at the heart of the smartest and stupidest decisions you've ever made."

"Oh." Sakura smiles then, and it is a little tremulous. "Yes," she says agreeably. "I suppose that's true."

Naruto has barely stepped onto the Uchiha training grounds when a kunai comes flying towards his head. It whizzes past his ear and lands with a loud thud in a tree behind him.

"Whoa!" Naruto protests, coming to a stop. "What the fuck?"

Sasuke stalks up towards him. His eyes are narrowed, his chakra curling and fluctuating around him in volatile swells. Naruto eyes him doubtfully as he approaches.

"Spar," Sasuke growls. His features are twisted in an unhappy grimace. He stops a distance away, moving fluidly into an offensive stance.

Naruto shrugs. He pulls off his shirt and tosses it to the side carelessly. The weather is bordering on being uncomfortably humid this afternoon, so he'd much rather have a spar without his shirt on. He'd never say no to a brawl with his best friend. The tension in Sasuke's form, however, is a little unusual, even for him. "What crawled up and died in your ass today?" he demands instead.

Sasuke's jaw tightens. He doesn't reply, but he isn't quite able to stop the image of deep, unhappy green eyes from surfacing in his mind. He hasn't slept well last night; the nightmares came, as usual. But something else is clawing at him from the inside of his mind – he woke up with a faint memory imprint of Sakura, hunched and pale, her face drawn in discomfort.

Sasuke shoves these thoughts into the recesses of his mind fiercely. He won't think about this. Instead, he gives into the itch just under his skin – the itch that sends him hunting for a fight. He stares hard at Naruto, then he raises a clenched fist and drives a brutal strike towards his friend's head.

Naruto grunts as he leaps backwards. Sasuke's fist misses his nose by a hair. A ghost of a smirk curls on the blonde's lips, making his features look distinctly fox-like. Sasuke wants to throttle him.

"Well," drawls Naruto lazily. He drops close to the ground, his leg coiling and lashing out in a powerful kick. "Aren't you a ball of sunshine?"

Sasuke leaps into the air, barely missing Naruto's kick. He lands lightly, then he is rushing forward, fists raised and eyes burning. Naruto receives him with open arms and relish written all over his face. He parries, twisting to the side and pulling back up. Spotting an opening, Naruto pulls his fist back and drives it forward forcefully. The hit lands square in the middle of Sasuke's abdomen, driving the air from his lungs.

Dull pain spreads from where Naruto's fist has landed. Adrenaline sings through his blood – the feeling is fantastic. Sasuke grunts and recoils defensively, his eyes narrowing and his senses screaming. He spits into the dirt behind him. Then he is running forward again, aiming a hard vicious blow at Naruto's temple.

The blow sends stars bursting into Naruto's vision. Naruto snarls, then he smirks. Before Sasuke can respond, he jerks his head forward, slamming hard into Sasuke's head with a resounding crack.

"Fuck," Sasuke grouses, stumbling back. Pinpricks of light dance before his eyes. "You fucking knucklehead!"

Naruto lets out a chortle, even as he pants for air. He seems to be particularly tickled by this insult. They spring back, eyeing each other for a moment. Then Naruto charges forward with a holler, and Sasuke prepares himself, smirking in anticipation.

The spar lasts longer than usual. There is an itching burning under Sasuke's skin – an itch to snarl and hit and tear something apart. Now that Naruto is here, Sasuke is fully intent on getting rid of this itch. He doesn't bother holding back with Naruto. If anything, he pushes himself even harder. If his strikes are particularly wild or brutal, Naruto doesn't seem to mind.

Eventually, however, they tire. Sasuke senses Naruto starting to flag behind on his assaults, so he holds up a hand in a temporary truce. Naruto flings himself to the side with a sigh of relief. He gulps in deep breaths of air as he flops down ungracefully to the ground. Sasuke isn't doing much better either. He pulls himself to a nearby and collapses heavily underneath it.

For a few minutes, the silence is broken only by the sounds of their labored panting. Sasuke, in a moment of vulnerability, lets his eyes slide shut. A soft breeze picks up around the clearing, tickling gently against the damp locks that cling to his forehead and nape.

"So… Ya feeling better, bastard?" Naruto calls out at last. There is no animosity in his voice. Sasuke sneaks a glance over at the blonde, only to find that his eyes are closed. Naruto's lips are pulled into a relaxed, contented smile. The wind ruffles his hair gently as he lies eagle-spread on the ground.

Sasuke doesn't reply. He admits privately to himself, however, that he is feeling better. The itch has finally dulled, and the unbearable tension that had gripped him over the past few days has disappeared, replaced by the familiar, comforting burn of aching muscles and throbbing bruises. He lets his eyes drift shut again, content to relax in the shade. Some distance away, he hears the sound of Naruto shifting, pushing himself off the ground.

"What the hell," Naruto grumbles. He winces as he pokes gingerly at a tender spot. "Asshole, I think you gave me a black eye… I thought we agreed to keep the face out of it!"

"Be grateful I didn't break your nose," Sasuke informs him condescendingly. He doesn't bother to open his eyes.

"Ow," Naruto grunts. He's ignoring Sasuke in favor of poking at the rapidly-darkening bruise on his face. "Ow, ow, ow."

In spite of himself, Sasuke snorts. He sounds almost amused.

Naruto sighs then. He removes his hands from his face. "Man," he says idly. "If only Sakura-chan were here. She'd fix my face up real quick."

The mention of Sakura's name sends something heavy and uncomfortable pooling in the bottom of Sasuke's stomach. He doesn't say anything, however, and is thankful that Naruto seems not to notice.

Before he can spare this topic another thought, they are interrupted by the sound of frantic, beating wings. A moment later, a messenger bird darts out from the thick undergrowth, circling the clearing once before it lands lightly on Sasuke's shoulder.

Sasuke's eyes open. He raises his hand, and the small wagtail hops onto his finger lightly. The bird holds still, patiently awaiting his acknowledgement. Carefully, Sasuke extracts the message that has been tied to its leg. He unfurls the parchment and reads it quickly –

Sasuke-kun,

Please come down to the hospital on Thursday morning at 10 a.m. It would be best if you avoid heavy meals before the appointment. Thank you.

Sakura

Speak of the devil. Sakura is good at keeping her word, so he's expected her to get back to him, but he didn't think she would send him a letter by messenger bird. Thursday is three days away; he supposes a few days of waiting won't make much of a difference at this stage.

His brow furrows slightly as he reads the short message again. The clipped, formal tone of Sakura's note doesn't escape his attention. His lip curls slightly in a grim smirk. Sakura is, evidently, still upset about the way he interrupted her evening, but Sasuke cannot really find it within himself to care.

At least she's still addressing him by 'Sasuke-kun', a strange random voice pipes up within him. Sasuke, in a rare moment of unguardedness, snorts out loud. The thought is amusing, almost comforting.

"Good news?" Naruto says then. Sasuke looks over to find his oldest friend eyeing him with palpable curiosity.

"Aa," Sasuke replies, after a moment of thought. Ignoring Naruto, he pulls himself to his feet slowly and begins heading back towards his house.

Tenten wakes up to soft sunlight and the smell of crisp, green apples.

She blinks drowsily, a lazy sigh escaping her parted lips. It takes a few moments before the haze of sleep leaves her, and the dull pain in her bones begins filtering through her senses.

"Good morning," says a familiar voice. Tenten looks up to her left and sees Sakura standing over her, a kind smile on her face. The medic is writing something down, her eyes shifting carefully over her bedridden form as she checks her vitals. Tenten turns her head slightly and notices a plate of freshly sliced apples beside her. It sits quietly on her bedside table, just in front of a huge bouquet of blooming flowers that Lee brought over the previous day.

Sakura catches her gaze and gestures to the apple slices. "I thought you might like something different to start the day," she says. She moves forward slowly and lets her hand hover a short distance away from Tenten's chest. Green healing chakra flickers and gathers under her palm softly. "Take a deep breath for me, please," Sakura instructs calmly.

Tenten complies, and doesn't bother holding back a sigh when Sakura pushes the soothing chakra into her skin. The tightness in her chest lightens at once.

Sakura pulls her hand away, humming under her breath. "Everything looks good," she announces. Her eyes do not leave the clipboard she is holding as she scribbles something down. When she is done, she moves to the base of the bed and hooks the clipboard in its hold. "We should be able to get you out of this place in two days," she tells Tenten.

Tenten's lips curl into a smile. "Finally," she says, with a roll of her eyes. "I'm starting to be bored out of my mind."

Sakura shakes her head, smiling. Like most shinobi she has treated, Tenten has grown increasingly twitchy at being confined in the hospital. "It might be a while before you can get back to active duty, though," she warns. "Take it easy, okay?"

Tenten nods in agreement. She lets out a long, tired sigh. She's already made plans to visit Neji's grave when she can leave the hospital – there's nothing strenuous about that, she thinks.

"What time is Ino coming?" Tenten asks absentmindedly instead. Sakura mentioned yesterday that Ino will be coming by to do a follow-up psyche evaluation, as per the Hokage's orders. Tenten isn't unreasonable; she knows that her emotional slip-up on the mission had put her entire team at risk, and she's certainly not proud of it. So she knows that it is only understandable that the Hokage wants to make sure that this doesn't happen again.

Ino had been completely professional the last time she'd performed a psyche evaluation on Tenten. That had been just after the end of the war – back then, all of Tenten's dreams had filled with Neji and blood and dead children and Neji and blood and Neji. In desperation, Tenten had come forward and asked Gai-sensei for advice. It wasn't long before she finally received help in the form of counselling, antidepressants and streams of Ino's steady, calming chakra.

Nonetheless, there's something incredibly vulnerable and violating about allowing someone to pry into the deepest recesses of your mind. As much as she appreciates and trusts Ino's professional competence, Tenten isn't looking forward to their upcoming appointment.

"After lunch," Sakura answers her then. "It's still early. Want me to get anything for you?"

Tenten smiles slightly and shakes her head. "I'm all right, thanks," she says. They're not particularly close, but Tenten thinks that Sakura's a good person. "You should probably get to your next patient."

Sakura sneaks a peek at the clock hanging on the wall before she gives Tenten an apologetic look. "You're probably right," she admits. The thought of her next patient, however, sends something fluttering unpleasantly at the bottom of her belly. She smiles anyway, trying her best to keep her dread from showing. "The nurses will be coming by with your morning meds soon. I'll see you later, okay?"

Tenten nods and waves briefly in response. Giving her patient a final scan, Sakura turns and leaves the hospital room.

She steps out into the corridor and shuts the door gently behind her. Slowly, Sakura makes her way to her office, nodding in greeting to the colleagues she passes by. It's not yet ten o'clock, but she's willing to bet that Sasuke is already here for his appointment. He's always been fussy about punctuality, she thinks distantly.

Kentaro confirms her suspicions just as she turns the corner to her office. Sakura smiles and thanks the boy, but his announcement of Sasuke's arrival isn't exactly necessary. She can already feel Sasuke's chakra signature just beyond her door. It is calm today, slow and powerful, and in spite of herself, Sakura shivers.

"Hi," she says quietly, as she enters the room.

The first thought that comes to Sakura's mind, as she lets her gaze fall on the form of the young man she's loved for close to a decade now, is that Sasuke is beautiful. He's taken a seat in the far corner of her office, just beside the window. Sunlight streams in through the glass panes and drenches him softly. It lights up his strong, chiselled features in a way that sends an unexpected pang of wistful longing surging through Sakura's veins.

Sakura sighs to herself, annoyed with her own unwanted reaction, and looks away at once.

The silence hangs between them, uncomfortable and oppressive. She gives herself a little mental shake and reminds herself: You're a medic, Sakura. You're a professional. You need to act like one. She steels herself and smiles.

"How are you feeling, Sasuke-kun?" Sakura says instead. She's desperate to make things less awkward, so her voice is cheerful, even if her smile doesn't quite reach her eyes. She's not going to make any reference to their odd, uncomfortable encounter a few days earlier, and it seems like Sasuke is happy to do the same.

Sasuke inclines his head ever so slightly. It's not much, but it's a response all the same. His small action is encouraging – with Sasuke, Sakura has learned to appreciate every gesture he makes, no matter how insignificant it may seem – so she smiles a little more warmly at him.

"Come here," Sakura says. She pulls apart the privacy curtains that shield the examination table from his view, and pats the table lightly.

Sasuke rises and moves silently across the room. He sits himself so gracefully on the raised examination table that Sakura wants to roll her eyes. Seated, Sasuke now towers over her, and she has to tilt her head back slightly to look at him. He eyes her expectantly, his head cocked and his stance deceptively relaxed.

"Right," Sakura says. She clears her throat a little nervously and takes a step closer. "I'm going to start with a simple psyche evaluation," she tells him. She isn't really meeting his gaze, but she feels it on her all the same, heavy and intense and dark. "Have you had one before?"

Sasuke stares at her. Then he shakes his head mutely.

"Okay. Well, um, this could feel a bit intrusive," she cautions mildly. It won't be anything as bad as what Sasuke must have had to bear during the interrogation he underwent when he first returned to Konoha, of course, but Sakura reckons it doesn't hurt to give him a little warning. "I need you to relax and clear your mind."

I need you to trust me, Sakura wants to add, but she can't bring herself to say it.

Sasuke gives a small, low sigh then. "Let's get this over and done with," he says flatly. He avoids looking at her.

Sakura can't agree more. She takes another step closer, stopping just before him. Then she raises her right hand. Chakra gathers gently at the tips of her fingers. "I'm going to start now. Close your eyes, please," she murmurs.

When Sasuke complies, Sakura touches her fingers lightly to his temples and lets her own eyes slip shut.

This is not the first time that Sakura has had to carry out a psyche evaluation. It isn't really her area of specialisation – it's more of Ino's thing, if she's honest, and Sakura has always preferred being in the operating theatre. But Sakura is proficient enough, and her excellent chakra control gives her a bit of an advantage in handling something as delicate as the human mind.

The world falls away around them. There is an odd, tingling pressure building up behind Sakura's eyes as she delves carefully into Sasuke's damaged mind. She imagines that it must feel so much worse for him.

Before her, Sasuke tenses up almost immediately. His instinctive reaction is to fight the intrusive, unpleasant probe of her chakra, sinking steadily into his psyche. He jerks almost imperceptibly under her fingers, and Sakura imagines his jaw tightening, his fingers reaching out to grasp the edge of the examination table in a stiff grip.

Relax, Sasuke-kun.

Having Sakura's disembodied voice echo in his mind is a shock, and Sasuke, to his humiliation, gives a physical start. Sakura seems to have anticipated this, however. Distantly, hazily, he becomes aware of gentle fingers covering his. They sweep soothingly over the knuckles of his right hand. It is not a doctor's detached, cool touch – it feels too kind and intimate and entirely too much like Sakura for that.

That thought sends his mind rearing back in bewilderment, but then Sakura's fingers withdraw. He is unprepared for the faint sense of discontent that settles over him, as he loses this warm living anchor to the real world. Gradually, carefully, Sasuke forces himself to release his tight grip on the examination table.

It'll be over soon, Sakura's voice promises then. Sasuke can sense her sincerity, trickling through his thoughts. He thinks it may be the strangest sensation he's ever felt.

But then the pressure behind the back of his eyes intensifies and expands. Sasuke has to grit his teeth and force himself to relax. He can feel Sakura, moving carefully around his mind, and it sends bizarre sparks of heat and anxiety coursing through him. Sasuke feels completely exposed, and it is alarming.

When Sakura finally pulls away and the uncomfortable intrusive pressure dissipates, Sasuke has to fight to hold back a sigh of relief. He is disgruntled to find himself breathing a little harder than he would have liked. As he opens his eyes and blinks to adjust to the light, he finds that Sakura has already turned away. She is writing something down in a folder.

Sasuke folds his arms and watches her. He waits silently for her to explain her findings.

When Sakura is done with recording her observations, she puts the file away and pulls out a medical textbook from a nearby shelf. Then she drags a chair up to sit before Sasuke. Flipping open to the section on the human psyche, she points and holds out the book quietly to Sasuke. He takes it from her gingerly, and she can feel his gaze, heavy and expectant.

"The human mind," Sakura begins reciting slowly. "Can be thought of as a plane or space, in which our memories, emotions and knowledge are organized and stored. Some people like to think of the mind as holding our very essence. The landscape of the mind, as well as the systems used to organize it, vary from person to person. Some people use boxes or trays, others use vaults. You can tell a lot when you enter someone's mind – what they're most recently preoccupied with, what they have difficulty putting away."

Sasuke cocks his head, and Sakura knows that he is listening attentively despite his look of aloofness. "In your case, Sasuke-kun, your mind uses wooden tansu chests," she continues. Sakura doesn't mention how tickled she had been by the sight of those ornate handcrafted chests with intricate carvings lining the borders of his mind. It is so traditional, and so very Sasuke, that it makes her heart ache.

Instead, she busies herself by reaching out and flipping a couple of pages in the book that Sasuke is holding. Without looking down, Sakura gives the newly-opened page a light tap. She continues her explanation.

"Sometimes, when an individual is experiencing high levels of stress, the harmony of the mind is disrupted," she explains neutrally. "The mental representation of this is a poorly organized room, or damaged storage units. If the stress is prolonged or especially severe, then we can observe damage to the landscape itself." She shrugs a little. "Cracks in the room, fissures on the walls… things like that."

"What happens when the landscape is damaged?" Sasuke asks lowly. He's reading the page that Sakura has directed him to. Sakura glances up at him, surprised that he is even saying anything.

"Well, uh," she says, a little nervously. She pulls the answers easily from her memory. "The body reacts to the damage. Usually, the person ends up being diagnosed with some sort of anxiety or mood disorder. If it's very heavily damaged, it's also possible that the person eventually loses touch with reality."

Sasuke's expression gives nothing away. Eventually he looks up, and captures her gaze with his own. Sakura's breath catches in her throat predictably, shamefully.

"What does my mind look like?" he questions guardedly.

Sakura wonders how she should reply Sasuke. She considers whether she should describe the deep, dangerous cracks she has observed, splitting the very horizons of his mind, or the churning viscous blackness that threatens to surge out from those crevices. She bites her lip, thinking about the terrifying tomoes that had loomed and spun and shifted restlessly in the crimson backdrop of Sasuke's mind, the utter chaos that she had glimpsed upon her short entry into his psyche.

Sakura understands, at last, what Ino had meant when she said that Sasuke was not in a good place.

The silence stretches between them a split second too long. Sasuke frowns at her now, and Sakura knows he is expecting an answer.

"The chests of your mind are open. Some of them have been overturned," she says finally. "Your thoughts are scattered; they're not where they're supposed to be." She pauses, and after a moment of hesitation, she finds the courage and tact to continue. "There are cracks in your psyche, and your mind is struggling to pull itself together."

Sasuke is silent. Then: "The dreams?"

Sakura leans forward slightly and points to a particular section. "Recurring nightmares are a manifestation of the mind's efforts to repair itself," she recites for him. Her voice is calm and professional. "In general, dreams can thought of as a link to the unconscious mind. Your nightmares should go away when your mind re-establishes order."

"You can do that," Sasuke says then. It is a statement, worded as a demand, but Sakura hears the faint request and defeat that laces his voice. She looks at him wonderingly. Her eyes soften, and she feels a little unsure. Perhaps she was wrong about Sasuke not being ready for this. Having finally peered into Sasuke's mind, she can hardly believe how well he has held himself together, for as long as he did.

How difficult it is to live with all that rage and regret pent up inside, Sakura thinks. There is a brief whisper of sadness, then she has to quickly remind herself to remain detached. You're a medic, Sakura. You're a professional.

To distract herself, she rises and moves to her table to retrieve a sheet of blank paper. Sasuke follows, seating himself noiselessly in the chair across her desk.

"This is what I have in mind," Sakura says carefully. She begins to write, making sure that Sasuke is able to read. "We'll take a holistic approach. I'll see you three times a week for chakra sessions." She gestures at the words she has written down and circled for emphasis. "These sessions will focus on stabilising and strengthening your landscape of your mind.

"Medication-wise, we'll stick to your current dosage levels for now." Sakura frowns minutely as she continues writing, an action that does not go unnoticed by Sasuke. "I want to get you off the drugs as soon as possible, so we can review that every two weeks."

"Also…" Sakura's voice trails off. She pauses, looking down thoughtfully at the sheet of paper she has been writing on. Giving the paper a couple of slow, deliberative taps with the back of her pen, she seems to come to a decision. She draws in a deep breath, and Sasuke can't help but notice that she looks a little anxious. "I'd like you to spend a minimum of 5 hours a day outdoors, Sasuke-kun," she says finally. "I also want you to have meals or train with other people, at least twice a week."

He raises one brow at her last sentence. "That's part of my treatment?" he drawls, a little suspiciously.

To Sasuke's slight surprise, Sakura gives a firm nod. "Yes, actually," she says bluntly. There is a flash of mild impatience in her eyes. "You might not agree, but social support and interaction with other human beings is generally good for you."

Sasuke blinks. He's not used to this Sakura, with her acerbic wit and soft touches. She's unfamiliar, and frankly, a little puzzling. With a grunt, Sasuke looks away and straightens stiffly in his chair.

"You and Naruto would have made sure of that anyway," he mutters instead, abruptly.

Sakura freezes for a moment, and then he sees the beginnings of a small, real smile spread across her face. She turns away from him, hiding the smile from his view. "Maybe," she concedes.

"When are you starting?" Sasuke says her then. He's still holding onto the book she's passed him earlier. He looks a little disgruntled, and quite unimpressed by the entire ordeal. But he's being vaguely cooperative, nonetheless. Sakura is surprised that things have gone so well, to be honest.

Sakura shrugs and gives a little stretch. "We can start today, if you want," she says, watching his reaction carefully. "My next appointment isn't till noon."

Sasuke's response is to set the book in his hands down on her table. He crosses the room, back to the examination table, and seats himself silently. Then he looks directly at Sakura, quiet and tense and waiting.

Sakura's heart, traitorous and undependable, begins to beat faster.

You're a medic, Sakura. You're a professional.

She steels herself, grounds herself by smoothing the edges of the paper she has been writing on. "I'll be with you in a minute, Sasuke-kun," she says lightly, and feels the beginnings of deceit fill her mouth.

It takes Sakura more than a minute to prepare the ink. It takes approximately four minutes, in fact, and by the time she crosses the room to her former teammate, he is watching her with curious, guarded eyes.

"Your left arm, please," Sakura says softly. She sets the ink down on the examination table, a short distance away from Sasuke's side.

Sasuke hesitates, but when she cocks a brow at him, he raises his arm and holds it out grudgingly. Sakura takes his arm in her hands, pulling it towards her with a surprisingly firm grip. Then she turns it over so that the inside of his wrist is exposed.

"What are you doing?" Sasuke asks lowly. He watches as she dips a brush into the dark wet ink, giving it a slow, careful swirl.

Sakura doesn't look at him when she answers. Instead, she leans forward slightly. Pink wisps that have escaped from her ponytail flutter into her face. "This will strengthen the chakra link between us," she tells him, her lips barely moving. "It makes it easier for me to enter your mind."

She is starting to feel a little sick. Bitterness, cold and poisonous, fills her mouth. Vehemently, Sakura forces herself to concentrate.

You're a medic, Sakura. You're a professional.

Sasuke doesn't think that he likes the sound of Sakura's words. He doesn't say anything, however. He watches intently as Sakura touches the brush to his skin. With a few, skilled flicks of her wrist, she writes several characters down the expanse of his inner arm. Then she raises her own left arm, proceeding to scrawl those same characters on her skin. Her lips are pressed together in concentration, and there is a little wrinkle in her brow as she works.

When Sakura is done, she sets the paintbrush and ink aside. Then she is stepping close – much closer than before – towards Sasuke. Her ink-stained arm lies awkwardly by her side. Her eyes flicker anxiously, before they settle resolutely on a spot on Sasuke's chin.

"Think of a good memory," Sakura tells him in a soft but clear voice. "This may feel uncomfortable."

He has barely called up a pleasant recollection of their genin days when Sakura moves into action. Her fingers shift unexpectedly, rapidly forming a number of finger seals. Then Sakura is pressing one hand against her temple, and touching her other hand against Sasuke's forehead.

White-hot pain explodes in Sasuke's head.

Sasuke lets out a grunt of discomfort in spite of himself. His eyes clench shut at once. Distantly, he recalls Sakura's words. He tries to push the pain away; he struggles, gripping on to the lazy, wispy memory of his genin team that he has conjured.

But the pain is all-consuming. This is not the invasive probe of Sakura's chakra during his earlier psyche evaluation. This is a sharp violent flare of agony, goring into his head. He can feel things tearing up inside, pulled apart and forced together in a way that can only be described as wrong. The first wave of nausea hits him, and against his will, Sasuke curls forward slightly. His forehead presses more firmly against Sakura – the burning only intensifies – and his mouth falls open in a strangled pant.

From a great measureless distance away, he thinks he can hear Sakura gasping.

The pain stretches on for one long, incredible moment. It makes Sasuke's head spin. It makes him think of Tsukuyomi and Itachi and everything that is wrong. His stomach churls.

He is just about to jerk back and recoil when Sakura floods his system with cool chakra.

The hiss that escapes Sasuke is involuntary. Sakura's chakra, soothing and steady and uncannily familiar, seeps into him. It is still invasive, but it wraps his mind up in a welcome haze and pushes back the pain. Sasuke continues to feel parts of his mind shifting and being rearranged – it is a most unpleasant sensation – but at last, the throbbing is receding.

Sorry.

Sakura's ghostly apology echoes softly in his mind. She sounds terribly regretful. It startles him – he's not used to hearing unexpected voices in his head, not yet anyway. It causes him to grip the edge of the examination table tightly. Sasuke grits his teeth and remains silent. He won't let Sakura see how this is bothering him.

Sakura seems to sense his discomfort anyway. After another few difficult minutes, he feels the lightening of pressure and the withdrawal of anxiety that signal the receding of her chakra. Gradually, carefully, Sakura pulls her fingers away from his forehead. The silence that envelops his mind as she retreats is a welcome relief.

Sasuke blinks slowly, and the world comes back into focus.

His breathing is a little faster than he would like, and his fingers are still clutching tightly at the edge of the table he is sitting on. He swallows, squinting at the light that is attacking his eyes. There are little prickles of phantom pain echoing in his head.

Sasuke looks down then, and realizes that Sakura is much closer than he has expected.

Sometime during the session, his legs have parted slightly. Sakura is standing between his thighs now, looking a little dazed. Her hand – the one that should have been covered with ink characters but is now curiously unstained – curls helplessly in his shirt. Perspiration beads on her brow, and her face is ashen.

Sakura raises her head then. For a moment, they are both silent, staring impassively at each other. This close, Sasuke can pick out the flecks of gold in her eyes.

Their proximity finally registers. Sakura's eyes widen, and then she's releasing his shirt and stumbling back hastily. Sasuke watches her with hooded eyes. She's trembling slightly, and he cannot explain the pounding of blood in his ears.

"Are you…" Sakura begins, desperate to break the silence. Her pupils are dilated, and she seems to be struggling for breath. "Are you okay?"

He is a little lightheaded, and his heart is probably beating a little too quickly to be entirely normal. Now that the session is over, however, Sasuke does a quick scan of himself and thinks that he feels surprisingly well. The pain that had nearly crippled him just minutes ago is now completely absent; it almost feels like he's imagined the entire thing.

He tells Sakura that he feels fine, and she lets out a short quivering chuckle. "That's great," Sakura says. Her fingers come up to play with the bangs tucked behind her ear – a nervous habit from her girlhood that has carried over to the present. "No pain or dizziness?"

Sasuke shakes his head. His heart is calming now, and he feels absolutely normal. In fact, he thinks that he may even feel a little more relaxed than usual. It is actually somewhat disturbing, considering the violence of the pain he has just experienced. But Sasuke trusts Sakura on this – she is the medic, after all, and he has little other choice. He reasons that the pain must simply be an unfortunate side-effect.

The rest of his time in Sakura's office passes quickly enough. Sakura looks better once she's seated herself in her chair, although she still looks disturbingly pale. The chakra session had obviously drained a fair bit of her chakra. She says nothing, however, as she updates his prescriptions and schedules him in for the rest of the week. Sasuke will see her on Saturday for another chakra session (after lunch with Team 7, she reminds him) and again on Monday.

"That's it," Sakura says at last, as she puts her doctor's log away. She offers him a small smile, before continuing, "If you experience any sudden pain, hallucinations or unusual mood changes, you need to contact me straightaway."

Sasuke inclines his head in acknowledgement.

Sakura doesn't seem completely satisfied though, because she leans forward and eyes him doubtfully. "I'm serious, Sasuke-kun," she says softly. There is a different kind of intensity in her eyes and a strange tightness in her voice. Sasuke gazes back at her carefully, feeling oddly unsettled. "If something feels wrong, I need you to contact me at once. You can't just will it to go away this time."

Sasuke sighs quietly. Annoying, he thinks, but he acquiesces with a stiff nod anyway.

His action brings a faint smile to Sakura's lips. She leans back in her chair and drums her fingers on her desk nervously. "That's all I have for you today," she tells him distractedly. "See you on Saturday."

Sasuke looks at the petal-haired woman before him, pallid and unusually withdrawn. With a short nod, he rises to his feet. "Thanks," he says briefly, almost as an afterthought.

Sakura's smile stretches tightly over her lips. "You're welcome," she says. Her voice is weary. "Bye, Sasuke-kun."

Silently, Sasuke makes his way over to the door leading out of her office. Sakura remains in her chair, watching him from across the room. He lets himself out and the door shuts quietly behind him.

Sakura closes her eyes then. Reaching out with her senses, she traces the powerful, steady burn of Sasuke's chakra as he moves noiselessly down the hospital corridor. The moment Sasuke's chakra fades away and she is sure that he is nowhere near her office, Sakura pulls herself up to her feet.

Quickly, she crosses the room, reaching out blindly. She half-stumbles, half-runs. It is only when she has made her way into the private washroom attached to her office that she finally dares to collapse to her knees.

Sakura trembles, gasping. She can't hold back any longer.

Grasping the toilet bowl with shaking fingers, Sakura bends forward and begins to throw up.

A/N: HI GUYS. Massive thanks to everyone who's reviewed, favorited, or followed this. To be honest, it's been years since I've written anything, so the level of feedback I've received on this is kind of overwhelming. Thank you guys! It really makes my day every time someone tells me they've enjoyed reading this. I'm going to be away for most of December (yay holidays!), but I'll do my best to put in an update as soon as possible. Take care, everyone! :)