Hello! This story is a prequel to All Shapes and Sizes. It's about the way Sasuke and Sakura came together, and the ways they fell in love with each other. Please enjoy!

Haruno Sakura ended her twelve hour shift at Konoha's hospital at 7:00 p.m. Exhausted and desperate for food, the renowned 20-year-old medic-nin clocked out, told Shizune good night, and made her way outside of the emergency room and onto the streets of Konoha. She walked down the streets slowly, enjoying the feeling of being free from paperwork and patients. It took her 3 minutes to walk the familiar path towards Ichiraku Ramen where she was supposed to meet Naruto, Sai, and Kakashi for a team dinner.

"Sakura-chan!" Naruto called out as she approached. "It's about time!"

"You look terrible, Sakura," Sai told her bluntly as he stared at the dark circles under her eyes.

"Yeah, thanks, Sai" She mumbled as she took a seat by Naruto.

"You haven't been overworking yourself again, have you Sakura?" Kakashi asked, a look of concern in his eyes.

"No sensei, this is the only 12 hour shift I've been assigned this week," Sakura told him as Teuchi set a steaming bowl of ramen in front of her. "Thanks, Teuchi-sama."

Sakura began to eat quickly, too hungry to slowly savor the taste. There had only been time for Sakura to eat a quick snack during her previous shift as she had to work through lunch.

"Is Hinata back from her mission yet?" Sai asked Naruto as he slowly savored his own ramen.

"Not yet, which is actually a good thing. I haven't finished her surprise yet." Naruto swallowed the rest of the broth in his ramen bowl. "Another one, please!"

"What surprise do you have for her?" Sakura asked in between bites.

"I'm cleaning the entire house before she gets home!" Naruto almost shouted out of excitement. "Not just the normal stuff like dishes either. I'm scrubbing the floors, cleaning the carpets, dusting the shelves, everything! Hinata's gonna be so happy, dattebayo!"

Sakura smiled at her friend and let out a small chuckle. "I never thought I'd see you acting so domestic, Naruto."

Naruto blushed and rubbed the back of his head, a smile on his face. "Well, for Hinata I would do anything she asked and more."

Sai nodded solemnly. "I understand. I wouldn't dare tell Ino no. I think she would break off our engagement."

Sakura threw her head back in laughter before Kakashi and Naruto joined in. As Sai cocked his eyebrow in confusion and Naruto tried to explain that Hinata wasn't nearly as violent as Ino, Sakura smiled at the members of the team gathered around at their faithful haunt, eating the same ramen they always ate. She chose not to think about the chair at the end of the counter that had been empty for far too long.

After finishing their dinner, the team dispersed with Sai going to meet Ino, Kakashi going back to the Hokage's office, and Naruto walking Sakura home.

"You don't have to walk me home, Naruto," Sakura told him after waving goodbye to Kakashi. "I don't really need protection."

"I know that," Naruto replied cheerfully. "You're plenty strong, Sakura. No one would dare mess with you. It's just been a few weeks since we've really gotten to talk."

The two engaged in light-hearted chatter about various Konoha gossip: Choji and Karui still being gone on honeymoon, Shikamaru getting berated by Temari for coming home late, and Ino and Sai's wedding plans.

"The wedding is still three months away and Ino is already turning into a monster." Sakura complained to Naruto. Whether Ino was her best friend or not, Sakura did not need to put up with her attitude and demands. "You know everything has to be over the top and grandiose with Ino."

"She is a lot to handle," Naruto chuckled. "I wonder if Sasuke will be back in time for their wedding?"

Sakura's expression immediately dimmed, something Naruto did not miss. "I'm sure he's busy doing other things," Sakura said softly, looking up at the starlit sky. Sasuke was somewhere, possibly looking up at the very same stars she was, a thought that made Sakura both melancholy and joyful.

"Well, he can't stay away forever!" Naruto stated cheerfully. "Hell, I wouldn't be surprised if he came back within the month. After the exploding humans stuff that happened last month, I don't think he'd stay away for long. He's going to want to check in on Konoha." Naruto looked sideways at Sakura. "And I'm sure he'll want to see you specifically, Sakura-chan!"

Sakura blushed and stammered "I-I'm sure he'll want to see all of Team 7, Naruto! Shannaroo!"

Naruto laughed at his embarrassed teammate as they approached Sakura's front door. "I still owe him a good punch in the gut for missing my wedding. I'll get him the next time we spar."

Sakura shook her head at him. "If you two injure each other like idiots, I will not heal you."

"Aw, c'mon, Sakura! You have to heal us, you can't let us walk around with broken arms or something! Dattebayo!" Naruto began waving his arms around, making Sakura's laughter double.

"We'll see what happens," Sakura told him. "This is all just speculation, anyways. Let's wait to worry until Sasuke actually comes back."

"It'll happen sooner than you think, Sakura," Naruto told her, giving her a thumbs up. "I'll see you tomorrow for training, right? We've got to go early so I can be home in time to meet Hinata."

Sakura nodded and smiled. "Goodnight, Naruto!" Opening her door and stepping into the darkness of her apartment, the kunoichi let out a small sigh before flipping on the lights. She removed her shoes and placed her keys on the table in the entryway before immediately walking to her small kitchen to fill up a small watering can. Walking to her desk, she began watering the small pot of flowers that sat there.

"Taidama," She whispered lovingly to the small flowers. After working herself to the bone and being kidnapped over half a year ago, Sakura had taken up gardening as a means of relaxing and reminding herself that her happiness was important. It turned out that Sakura could make just about anything grow, and the little flowers she planted became her family.

After watering her last lavender plant, the very tired medic-nin went to her bathroom to shower before throwing on a pair of raggedy pajamas and collapsing onto her bed. She turned on her side to look out her large window, where she could see the stars forming constellations outside. The moon was incredibly bright that night, especially amid the lights of Konoha. Her thoughts quickly turned to Sasuke, the man who had held her heart since they were children.

"Ah, Sasuke-kun," She whispered. "Where are you now?"

In her head, Sakura pictured Sasuke laying in a field of wildflowers under the open sky. Fireflies flew around him, illuminating his sculpted face and making his beauty ethereal.

"I hope he's at peace," She thought to herself as her eyelids drooped. "But I hope he comes back soon. There's so many new things to show him. I wonder if he'd like to see all the new training grounds…"

It wasn't long before Sakura fell asleep, her thoughts still on Sasuke and his happiness.

Uchiha Sasuke threw another log on the small fire that was blazing in front of him and twisted the skewered fish he'd caught earlier around so they could cook evenly. Across from him, Uzumaki Hinata was writing a report on a scroll in neat, graceful writing. After running into each other the day before in a small town at the edge of the Land of Fire, the two agreed to travel back to Konoha together. Most of their time had been spent in companionable silence, save for a few small exchanges here and there about their journey. Seeing Hinata had made the reality of Sasuke's return to Konoha all the clearer to him. He was really going to be back.

"Sasuke-kun?" He looked up to see Hinata packing away her scroll and pulling out an onigiri. "Would you like one?"

"Hn," he nodded, reaching for the rice ball. He set it to the side before taking the fish off the fire and handing one to Hinata on the skewer.

"Thank you," she smiled before devouring the food in front of her. Sasuke ate a bit more slowly, though not nearly as gracefully. When he finished, he looked up to see Hinata staring at him expectantly.

"May I ask you a question, Sasuke?" She prompted as she began stirring the fire.

"Hn," he acquiesced after hesitating for a moment. Coming from someone as kind and thoughtful as Hinata, it surely wouldn't be something irritating.

"Why are you traveling back to Konoha?" Hinata asked. "It's been almost three years."

Sasuke paused for a moment. If he didn't know Hinata had pure intentions, he would have told her to mind her own business. But knowing that she was really genuinely curious, he remained honest. "I received a letter from Naruto reminding me of the past. It got me thinking about Konoha, and I decided that it was time to return."

Hinata nodded thoughtfully. "Naruto will be glad to see you. As will Sakura."

Sasuke nodded carefully. "How has Team 7 been?"

Hinata smiled. "Naruto is training to be Hokage, as always but when he's not doing that he's usually helping out at the academy or at home with me. Kakashi-sensei is doing very well as the Hokage. Sai is now engaged to Ino. Sakura is always busy working at the hospital, though recently we've made her reduce her hours."

"Why's that?" Sasuke found himself asking.

"She was on the verge of over-working herself again," Hinata explained carefully. "Constantly taking 12 hour shifts at the hospital, going on missions, fundraising for the children's hospital, and working herself to the bone. She lost weight and the dark circles under her eyes looked almost permanent for a while." Hinata looked at Sasuke, who's eyebrow had creased subconsciously with worry. "She's doing well now, though. She's put weight back on and her eyes have regained their usual brightness."

Sasuke nodded and thought for a few moments before asking "Has she seemed happy?"

Hinata paused before answering. "Sakura is a happy person in general. She likes to look on the positive side of things, and she sees the world with a lot of possibilities. That being said, there are times lately where you can tell that her mind has drifted off to other places. I think she may feel a bit lonely at times, seeing how everyone has pretty much paired off. She does her best to hide it though, and is always there for anyone who needs it. She's such a warm person."

Sasuke nodded again before standing. "I'll take the first watch."

Hinata gave him a small smile and nodded before laying out her bed roll and crawling inside it. She drifted off to sleep quickly, dreaming of seeing her husband the next day.

Sasuke climbed to a branch halfway up a nearby tree and leaned back against the bark. He mulled over the conversation he'd had with Hinata, who had become more confident then he remembered. Hinata was right about Sakura: she was a warm person. Full of light and cheerfulness, her name well-suited her. She was as fair as a cherry blossom and as strong as the tree it grew on. The thought of her over-working herself unsettled Sasuke. It's true that Sakura was a hard-worker, but she always knew when to take care of herself. It was as if she were working through some sort of pain. Maybe Hinata was right. Maybe Sakura was lonely. Sasuke did not know how much he could help her. He did not know whether Sakura still loved him or wanted to be friends with him. If she did want to be around him, Sasuke did not know what he could do to make her feel better.

The Uchiha man sighed and looked through the leaves up to the stars in the sky. He knew that they did not look this bright in Konoha, his home. He wondered if Sakura would like to see the stars now that they were older. He then wondered how much Sakura had changed in the last three years. It had been a long while since he last saw her or any of Team 7. He knew Naruto and Kakashi were probably the same as ever, but surely Sakura hadn't changed too much.

Sasuke's thoughts of home carried him through the night until he woke Hinata to switch guard duty. He fell asleep with thoughts of stars and the same bright green eyes that had followed him from his childhood, knowing that he would be home soon.