"Are you sure you don't mind?" Yoko asked, putting on a warm coat. "You just picked up Nanami and Kira's shifts last week. I feel bad to ask you to pick up mine too."

Sakura paused while flipping through her clipboard. "Really, Yoko, it's fine," she said. "Have a good time, okay?"

Yoko thanked her again and then disappeared through the main doors, letting in a cold draft from outside.

Sakura turned back into the warm hallway, getting ready to make her rounds. In the two weeks Sasuke had been gone, she cocooned herself inside the hospital walls. She strangely relished the sharp, sterile odor of the rooms. It was like a haven where she felt useful and needed and, most of all, busy.

At one o' clock in the morning, Sakura took a seat in the staff lounge. She ruffled her fingers through stale pink locks and sucked in a dry yawn. She fell into a daze listening to the flickering sound of the fluorescent overhead lights.

She made a scalding cup of tea and drank it greedily. As she finished the last burning sip, she heard a series of footsteps running down the hallway. The pager on her hip buzzed, and Sakura shot out of her seat and met two nurses in the hall.

"Lady Sakura, quick!" a nurse called, wasting no time. "Two ninja in the lobby. One's severely injured."

They sprinted to the lobby, where two hospital workers hoisted a ninja onto a gurney. Sakura acted on impulse, with the years of training under Tsunade steadying her nerves and making her calm. In an instant, she firmly scanned the ninja and his wounds, already playing over in her mind the surgery he needed.

She barked out orders, and the men turned the gurney around and steered it toward the emergency operating room. As she caught sight of the ninja's face, she froze for a half-second. A spiky brown ponytail lay against the white sheets, and the name came to her even before she set eyes on the familiar face.

Shikamaru.

All along she had been aware of the ninja's partner, standing off at a distance, holding his side in apparent discomfort. A cursory glance had been enough for her to see that his wounds were not serious. Now she turned in full to see him, eyes gazing up blood-stained fingernails, to the labored shoulders, to the worn face.

Ashen.

The word flooded her mind. Sweat dampened his forehead, and exhaustion grayed his paper white skin. He must have run all night. There was charring around his lips. The smell of fire and smoke clung to his clothes.

Sakura held onto his gaze, wide-eyed but restrained as she instructed the nurses to move him into a room for treatment. Then she turned on her heel and raced to the operating room to focus on the only person that mattered.

.

.

.

Opposite her in the operating room, Dr. Sato sucked in shaky breaths. Sweat poured down his temples. His fingers, half-exposed with fading green chakra, trembled.

"I'm sorry, Lady Sakura," he said, as the chakra from his hands receded and disappeared. "It's all I've got."

"It's okay," she assured, eyes trained on the deep wound on Shikamaru's abdomen. The flesh around the opening was twisted and gnarled, as the weapon was yanked from the wound. It left a gaping hole with rippled edges. There was so much internal bleeding, it was a wonder that Shikamaru had made it to the hospital at all.

The weapon had been spiked and lodged so deeply into his abdomen that metal fragments were embedded into his organs. The surgery was intricate, as Sakura had to simultaneously monitor and stop the bleeding while also kneading her chakra through the wound, pulling out flecks of metal shrapnel.

With intense concentration, Sakura extracted the last piece, a fully intact spike about two inches long. She dropped it into the metal dish beside her with a clang. She breathed a sigh of relief now that the worst was over. As if coming out of a fog, she realized how drained she was. She pushed forward and infused chakra into his abdomen, repairing the damage and closing the wound. Her head grew heavier, and her legs weaker, as she continued.

"Lady Sakura," a nurse pleaded, "let us take it from here."

Sakura nodded and stepped away to make room at the operating table. "I'll see him in recovery afterward," she said.

She exited the operating room and trailed down the halls to find room 416. When she laid a hand on the doorknob, she entered the room clumsily with a bit too much force.

The bed was empty. But the rumpled sheets showed that Sasuke had at least been seen by a nurse. She was too tired to think about him leaving prematurely and if that bothered her or not.

It means he's fine, she thought. That's all that matters.

Later in the recovery room, she sat by Shikamaru and checked his vitals and charts. She set the clipboard down in her lap and stared at his sleeping face. A feeling sprung to mind that she struggled to put into words. There was so much in a face. So much depended on this man, on his eyes, and his smile. And she felt grateful and overwhelmed at her role in all of it.

"Temari," he groaned, still drugged with anesthesia.

Tears sprung to Sakura's eyes and rolled down her cheeks. She blinked furiously to try to stop them. When that didn't work, she swiped at her damp cheeks and took a slow, deep breath. It did nothing to soothe her constricted chest. Finally, Sakura stood up and left the room, somehow unable to look at Shikamaru without tears welling up again.

Sakura stopped short in the hallway.

Sasuke was sitting on the benches outside the recovery rooms, evidently waiting. He sprung to his feet at the sight of her, but said nothing.

Sakura looked back at Sasuke, eyes still glassy. At his silence, she wondered if her distressed appearance gave the wrong impression of Shikamaru's surgery. She tucked her hair behind her ear and tried to compose herself. "He's fine," she said, waving vaguely behind her. "Everything's fine."

Sasuke took a single step toward her. "Sakura," he said, and stopped.

"You should get some rest," Sakura replied, rushing the conversation to a close, but not quite understanding why. "I need to take care of some things."

Sasuke looked as if he wanted to say something. But in the end, only a nod.

She hastened away to her office and sat down with the terrible task of calling Temari. Even though she had good news, and Shikamaru was very lucky, she knew how upsetting it would be for Temari. The suddenness, the shock, the relief, it was a lot to take in. Not to mention the added frustration of Suna's distance. It would be thee anxious days before Temari could see him.

Sakura listened with equal emotion to Temari's cries of pain and relief.

"I don't know what to say," she said, voice breaking. "Thank you for taking care of him."

When she ended the call, Sakura sank into her chair in utter exhaustion. She folded her arms and laid her head on the table. Her eyelids throbbed with a headache. As soon as she closed her eyes, she fell soundly asleep. She woke up an hour later, blinking with confusion at the faint early morning light streaming through her blinds.

Sakura splashed her face with water and smoothed down her sleep-rumpled hair. She put on her coat and scarf, waved goodbye to the receptionist, and finally stepped outside at quarter until six o' clock, a full twenty-four hours since the beginning of her first shift.

The dark streets were just now lightening with the pale pink dawn. Sakura could see her breath come out in wispy white puffs.

"Sakura," he called.

She snapped her head to see Sasuke leaning against the building, a brown bag in hand. He pushed off and strode toward her purposefully.

"I'll walk you home," he asserted.

As he began walking in the direction of her apartment, she followed without thinking.

Then he pushed the brown bag into her hands. "Take this," he said, missing the look of displeasure that passed over her face.

Sakura opened the bag. She stared at its contents with frustration. "Dango," she said flatly.

Just as tired as Sakura, if not more so, Sasuke stared ahead, oblivious to the quickly escalating feelings burning in Sakura's gut.

"What am I supposed to do with this, Sasuke?" she spat, finally giving into the wealth of anger she had carried for two weeks.

Sasuke frowned, suspecting a trick question.

"You leave me at the festival without so much as a goodbye," she stood accusing, "and some cold dango is supposed to make it better?"

She shoved the bag right into Sasuke's chest, relishing the fleeting, offended expression of shock on his stupid face. Then to her surprise, he pushed the bag back into her arms. For the first time, she saw a full, transparent expression on his face, this time of anger and frustration.

Good, she thought.

"I went back to look for you," Sasuke snapped. "You weren't there."

"You couldn't spare a single minute to find me?"

"I had to leave—"

"It's not about the damn festival, Sasuke," she finally shouted.

He fell silent.

Sakura gestured to the space between them. "What is this?" she asked, with heavy breaths. "You and me."

He said nothing, and Sakura clenched her jaw. The perfect silence in the streets, hanging between them, made her even angrier.

She would not say it for him. After everything they had been through, damn it, she would not say it for him.

"All this time, and you can't give me an answer," she said, hating the edge of sadness to her voice, still audible beneath the fury. "I have waited for you to come home for so many years," screwing her eyes shut, "and I am tired of waiting."

She spun on her heel and stormed off, heart pounding. Every step felt like it took her a million miles away from him.

She heard his footsteps behind her, and she tried to cover up her pain with more anger. "I don't want to do this right now, Sasuke—"

His hand wrapped around her wrist and pulled it roughly, spinning her around to face him. She caught a glimpse of his face, the determined set of his jaw, the fiery eyes, before his lips crashed on hers. Warm and passionate, he let go of her wrist and snaked his arm around her waist, pulling her flush against him, so tight she could barely breathe.

Blood rushed to Sakura's face. Shocked as she was, she savored the heat and softness of his lips. She dropped the bag of dango in her distraction. She wrapped both arms around his neck, running hasty hands over his broad shoulders. She denied herself nothing and weaved her fingers through his raven locks. She tilted his head lower and stretched upward to meet his searing kiss.

They parted, short breaths mingling between them.

If Sasuke had expected this to satisfy her, it did not.

Her eyes were glassy with unshed tears and bright with fury. "When were you going to tell me?" she demanded, not losing any of her anger. Sasuke looked at her with a blank expression on his face, almost in shock, as if he couldn't understand the torrent of emotion exploding from her.

"Were you ever going to tell me?" she accused. "Or were you going to give up before you even tried?"

She stared at him in open rage, feeling her hands shake even as they remained fisted in his shirt.

"How is it that you can talk to Kakashi and not me? Had it ever occurred to you to ask what I want?"

She felt Sasuke's hand tighten on her waist in a bruising grip. She saw the sudden understanding in his eyes, as he realized what she must have overheard. He actually shook her in his frustration and, leaning in close, nearly hissed, "It's not going to be the same, Sakura." The struggle for words was written in every line on his face.

"The same as what?" she threw back breathlessly.

"The same as everyone else."

As her throat constricted painfully, a couple of tears made their way down her cheeks. She swept them away angrily. "I don't want the same!" she shouted. "How many times, how many ways, do I have to tell you—"

He caught her in another kiss, and she melted against his chest. Her arms wrapped around his shoulders again, fingers coiling around his raven locks. He groaned darkly against her lips. He kissed her deeply, and it was like she'd known this all along because in spite of everything he did, for good or bad, Sasuke was full of fire and passion. But she had fire of her own. She kissed him with abandon. A shiver ran up her spine when Sasuke's hand ghosted up her back, beneath her shirt, scalding on her bare skin.

When Sasuke finally pulled away, breathing heavy, he touched her face with calloused fingertips. He brushed away tears she didn't know were there.

"Stop crying," he admonished with warm exasperation. "You annoying woman."

Sakura let out a watery laugh, all of her anger and distress disappearing. She was suddenly exhausted, and she rested her head lightly against him. Sasuke wrapped his arm around her back. For a moment, he dropped his head down to hers and pulled her close.

His voice was a quiet rumble, barely audible even to Sakura as she stood in his embrace.

"I'll be gone a lot," he said.

"I don't care."

"I could be gone for months at a time."

"Then I'll go with you."

She looked up and met Sasuke's gaze. She stared endlessly at the complex emotions making his eyes bright and vivid. It made her breath hitch in her throat to see the affection there, and gratitude.

He rested his forehead against hers.

"Okay," he said.

She could not help the small smile blooming on her face, as she heard the agreement and acceptance in his voice. For once in her life, she didn't know what to say. Her heart was too full to say anything at all. She was glad Sasuke took her smile as an answer and leaned in to give her a chaste kiss.

Sasuke pulled away too soon. "Come on," he murmured, "you need to get some sleep."

The last thing Sakura wanted to do was break apart and feel the cold air envelop her. But they did, and Sakura looked away in embarrassment as she swiped at her damp cheeks and ran a hand through her hair. As she did so, she saw the brown bag lying on the ground, and she blushed a deep shade of red.

Sasuke snorted at her.

The previous intensity dissipated a little as she let out a jerky laugh. She snatched it up, sheepish. As they walked to her apartment, she bit into the sugary dessert. She hummed in pleasure, and Sasuke gave her a purposeful told-you-so look.

At the apartment, Sakura unlocked the door then fiddled with her keys. She looked up at him. "See you later, then?" she asked.

A soft expression. "Ah."

She stretched up to meet him in another eager kiss. He leaned forward, slowly closing the gap. Sakura closed her eyes in anticipation. Then behind her, she felt Sasuke's arm reach for the door and push it open. Her eyes flew open as he pulled away from her.

That smirk.

"Sasuke!" she laughed in disbelief.

As he walked off, he raised a hand in goodbye.

Sakura rolled her eyes at his retreating figure. When she closed the door behind her, she leaned into it with a tired smile playing on her lips. She went to bed blissful and spent.

.

.

.

The next day, Sasuke found her back at the hospital.

"You can't help yourself, can you," he scoffed.

She blushed at seeing him for the first time, not quite knowing how to act. "I guess not."

He asked if she wanted to go on a walk, and they left together. The stopped at a grassy hill that overlooked the Uchiha compound and sat on an old wooden bench. Sakura stared tensely at her hands folded in her lap, expecting him to take back what had happened the other day and say it was a mistake.

After a moment, Sasuke broke the silence. He angled his head stiffly away from her. "Now that you've had time to think it over," he said, with none of his usual smoothness, "have you changed your mind?"

She looked up, stunned. "No," she said. "Have you?"

He gave her a soft, sidelong look. "No."

When an affectionate smile spread on her face, Sasuke stood up and motioned for them to leave, though barely two minutes had passed.

In a way, that was their first date.

.

.

.

They didn't tell anyone.

It felt more natural that way. Sasuke was always such a private person. Whenever he was in the village, she grew accustomed to the sight of him in her office, lounging in her desk chair and waiting to walk her home. They usually cooked dinner at her apartment.

They didn't touch in public. Not so much as a hand-hold. As the months went by, she noticed Naruto's and Ino's eager stares when they saw them walking together in the village. Sakura would just smile innocently. And Sasuke, he had perfected his air of nonchalance long ago.

Even though she knew Naruto would be happy for them, she cherished this period of time. It was their little secret. She felt giddy and girlish when they would shut her front door, closing out their friends, the village, everyone. For a man of so little words, it was only right that Sasuke knew exactly how to wind his arm around her waist and press a scorching kiss against her lips. When he pulled back to look at her with an expression of love and gratitude, she didn't need any words. Something in his eyes said, it was always you.

Sometimes he returned from a mission in the middle of the night. He'd enter through her window, take off his shirt and shoes, and slip into bed with her. Cradling her back against his chest, he laid a heavy arm across her waist and drew her closer. She turned her head to utter a soft hello. With moonlight slanting into the room and falling across his face, it was quiet moments like these that made her appreciate what home felt like.

.

.

.

At the end of three months, Sakura lay in bed draped across his bare chest. She propped her chin up on her hands and said thoughtfully, "If we're going to do this, we have to tell Naruto, you know."

Sasuke grunted.

Her eyes crinkled as she inched up his chest, closer to his face. She playfully tucked his long bangs behind his ear—an act Sasuke decidedly did not like. He snapped open both eyes, his swirling Rinnegan exposed, but didn't say anything, only glared.

For as often as Sasuke teased her, she felt no qualms about placing a peck on the very corner of his mouth, another thing he didn't like. He made a face of absolute stone at her antics, and she snickered.

In three months, Sakura had discovered that she could get away with most anything as long as they were in bed together.

"How soon do you think we'll leave?" she asked. "Once Kakashi approves the request."

"Not until next week," Sasuke replied.

A slender pink eyebrow popped up. "Can the mission wait that long?"

He nodded. "I want you to see the orphanage open first."

Sakura pressed her face against his chest to hide her smile. In the end, Sasuke had decided to give the Uchiha compound to the village. He had no use for it anymore. But with some research on Sakura's part, they realized they could donate the property under specific stipulations. The village had to keep the original structures. And the property had to be set aside for the Konoha Orphanage, which had, until now, been located in a too-small building miles outside of the village. It was a worthy donation, and one that would bring his family pride.

"Why me?" she mumbled embarrassedly. "You're the one who should see it."

"You're the one who rebuilt it," he said.

Sakura raised her head.

"So you should see it."

That was something Sakura had never discussed with him. She sat up, folding her legs behind her. Her long pink hair fell over her shoulders, catching in the high collar of one of Sasuke's old shirts. "You knew this whole time," she concluded.

Sasuke snorted, again. "I can read lips at a bar, Sakura."

She let out a disbelieving laugh. "I can't believe you never mentioned it."

"You also overlooked the final bill," Sasuke criticized, looking arrogant against her bed pillows. "Half the renovation wasn't listed on there. Did you really think I wouldn't figure it out?"

Sakura felt her face grow hot. She swept a few stray hairs from her face, admitting, "I don't know what I was thinking. I just felt awkward about it."

Sasuke idly traced a little crescent-shaped scar on her knee. He regarded her for a serious moment and said, "Thank you."

She leaned down to kiss him. "You're welcome."

When her alarm sounded at seven o' clock, Sakura groaned and kicked her silken legs out of the blankets. Sasuke's shirt brushed half-way down her thighs as she reached into her dresser and pulled out a change of clothes. When she headed into the kitchen to eat breakfast and get ready for work, she heard Sasuke turn on the shower.

About fifteen minutes later, as Sakura finished her breakfast, someone pounded on her door.

Naruto, she thought with an eye roll.

She swung open the front door and chided, "You're going to wake up my neighbors, Naruto. What are you doing here so early?"

"Sakura!" he exclaimed. He shouldered his way in immediately. "I didn't think I'd catch you before work. Here, Kakashi told me to give this to you."

He pushed a scroll into her hands and then cut through her living room, plopping onto her couch with a gusty groan. "Ah, man," he sighed, closing his eyes, "this is heaven. I'm sorry, Sakura, but I just got back from a mission, and I don't think I can take another step. I just need to sit," speaking slower and softer, "or maybe take a nap."

Sakura held the scroll in anxious fingertips. She glanced at Naruto on the couch, who seemed perfectly pleased to have a moment of quiet, and hastily slid open the parchment. Her eyes widened when she saw Kakashi's seal of approval. Butterflies erupted in her stomach. She did her best to control what felt like an uncontrollable smile on her face.

"Sakura," the blond called from the couch. "I'm starved. Do you have any food?"

She placed the scroll on the counter and grabbed a piece of fruit. "You never change," Sakura laughed, and gave him an apple.

Sakura took a seat in the chair opposite Naruto. As he gobbled down the apple, she said, "Naruto, I need to tell you something."

He perked up immediately. "Is it about Sasuke?"

She faltered. "Well, yes. And no. Look, I need to tell you that—"

"What is the deal with you two?" he exploded, slapping his hands against his knees. "I mean, I've tried to be patient. I've tried to give you guys space. But there have been signs, okay," he insinuated. "And I know there were signs because Ino agreed. But then, it's like, nothing. Nothing's happened."

Naruto was so caught up in his rambling that he didn't hear the dresser door opening and closing from within Sakura's bedroom.

He continued, "I'm sorry, Sakura, but I can't take it anymore. I have to know. What's the deal with you and Sasuke? Are you dating or not?"

Sakura opened her mouth to respond, but at that exact moment, Sasuke strolled in from the hallway of her bedroom. His hair was still glossy and damp from the shower.

"Naruto," he greeted.

The blond's mouth fell open.

Sakura did her best not to giggle behind her hand. "Sasuke," she called, "Naruto came by with a scroll from Kakashi."

Sasuke glanced at the still opened scroll on the countertop. "Ah."

"Oh my god," Naruto cut in, still reeling. "You guys have been dating this whole time, haven't you," he said, enunciating every word with utter despair and betrayal. "How could you not tell me? How could you do this to me?"

Sasuke tied up the scroll. "Sakura and I are leaving for Lightning in a week. We're not sure when we'll be back," he said matter-of-factly.

At Naruto's shocked expression, Sakura added helpfully, "That's what the scroll from Kakashi was. I had to request permission and make sure the hospital would be covered without me. And apparently," smiling, "he said yes."

"Next week?" Naruto echoed. "I can't believe this. I can't believe you guys kept this a secret."

Sasuke walked to the front door and looked over his shoulder at Sakura. "See you tonight," he said, and left.

"—I mean, I'm kind of hurt, I'm not going to lie," Naruto continued, uninterrupted during the entire exchange. "But man, oh man, do I tell Ino first? Or do I tell Hinata? I mean, Hinata is my wife and all, but Ino would be really psyched—"

.

.

.

When it was time for her and Sasuke to leave for his mission, they walked together to the gates. It was springtime now, with the sakura trees nearly in full bloom.

The brisk morning air blew through Sasuke's bangs, baring his swirling left eye. Whenever she glimpsed the Rinnegan, she remembered that Sasuke was an important person, not just to her, but to the village. If anything developed with Kaguya or White Zetsu, the entire ninja world needed a person like Sasuke with his skills.

And she knew that one day, it might take them to places she hadn't imagined. At times it might even take them apart. But to love him was worth it. And no matter what came in the future, she was proud to love a man like Sasuke.

He had a peaceful expression in his eyes as he asked, "Ready?"

A quick upturn to her mouth, and—

"I'm ready."

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A/N. I hope you all gave out a sigh of contentment when you finally reached the end. :)

It was my personal goal to make Sasuke speak in this fanfic haha. He talks a lot more in the anime/manga than people give him credit for. So while I do believe there's an unspoken, unsaid element to their relationship – they're still married, for goodness' sake. They do have to talk to each other, and enjoy it. I imagine them fairly playful. You get a glimpse of that in Boruto when Sasuke leaves without a giving Sakura a goodbye kiss, and then smirks about it haha.

I'm marking the story as "complete" since we've reached the end of my original fic. However, I'm still planning to upload a bonus chapter for Sasuke. It might even be two chapters! I'm not sure when I'll be ready to upload, but just know that I am definitely working on it. Until then! :)