For SSmonth again. This story was tons of fun. Enjoy!

Prompt: Turbulence.

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto.

i think i hate you

by DeepPoeticGirl

Sasuke hated his case. He hated the jury too.

But most of all, he hated his stupid fucking client.

Fortunately, there was a perk that came with having Naruto as his best friend—a rather noteworthy thing to acknowledge in itself, as to be honest there weren't many of them in the first place—as amongst the twenty-something years the two had known each other, Sasuke had long mastered the art of ignoring someone when it was needed (which, with Naruto, was often).

He'd become what he would say an expert at the art of blocking out the most endless tirades, having to feign attentiveness to completely irrelevant subjects while somehow also managing not to grow a damn headache.

Which was why it was so annoying that his skills of mastery seemed to prove to be no more useful now. Because this man, with white-dyed hair and the sleaziest grin, had been testing his patience to his very limit with how he was not able to shut the fuck up.

How many times had he had to tell his stupid client that he was not interested in whatever wild stories he felt were too pressing to keep from him? Stories he swore were absolutely essential for his case, but decidedly never turned out to be? And yet Suigetsu kept yammering, refusing to heed to his warnings as he blabbered on and on about the two women they were running against in this stupid case.

Rubbing at his temples, Sasuke closed his eyes for a brief moment, wanting to groan as this degenerate of a man beside him proceeded to lament heavily about the loss currently taking place. Apparently the eldest of the opposing women, Karin, had been the most amazing fuck of his life; he'd never quite met anyone who could keep up with his kinkiness to this degree, but of course with his shit luck, she had to turn out to be the craziest bitch the moment she found him in bed with her little sister.

"Man, I swear to you on my life, I didn't know it was her sister!" he'd said, slapping a hand to his chest for emphasis. "It was too damn dark in that room to tell them apart. I was sleepy and she was the one to pull me in on my way back from the bathroom. They look so similar, ya know? I didn't know I was fucking her."

A blatant lie, Sasuke decided, trying his best not to roll his eyes and pinch the bridge of his nose. In his opinion, luck had very little to do with it; Suigetsu was just a shit person, and he was getting every inch of what he deserved.

After all, who could blame the woman for utterly losing her cool and doing quite a number on his brand new red Ferrari after getting the news that he'd gotten her little sister pregnant? It was bad enough that she'd caught them fucking in the apartment they shared together, but for Suigetsu to have the nerve to take off the condom unbeknownst to Ami's knowledge, too? Ami had insisted that the asshole had tricked her into believing he'd had protection on the whole time. Karin had believed it; apparently, Suigetsu was constantly trying to pull tricks to get out of 'bagging it' when he was with her, too.

Sasuke thought the whole goddamn case was a complete waste of breath.

He'd never even wanted to have anything to do with it when he'd first heard about it in the first place, in fact. There was no point in anyone taking on Suigetsu's ridiculous case with all the evidence and witnesses racked up against him, as he kept telling Kisame, Suigetsu's newly hired personal bodyguard. Three times he'd refused in the span of two days, and three times Suigetsu raised the price on his offer.

Sasuke had only relented when his father paid him a visit on the end of that second day, features severe and disappointed as they had ever been while he reminded Sasuke of the honor and reputation he had to uphold as an Uchiha. Suigetsu came from an influential family, as it turned out, and refusing to take on his case could mean a severe blow to their company if word spread among their prestigious community.

"You don't have to win the case, Sasuke," his father had growled. "God knows it's a lost one. You just have to put up a believable fight—enough to keep those damned Hozukis satisfied. Do you understand me?"

And so here he was. Keeping his mouth shut as his dumbass of a client yammered on, praying to whatever deity was out there that the case would end this week. Maybe even by the fourth day, if he was lucky enough—with so much evidence filed against them, any decent lawyer shouldn't have any trouble finding victory by then.

God, did he wish he was home right now. Sinking into his comfortable couch, reaching for a book… or perhaps even, playing video games with Naruto.

I just want this to be over as soon as possible, he grumbled to himself, crossing his arms over his chest.

And that was when he first saw her.

Wearing a black pencil skirt and a black high collared shirt, she was practically pushing the limits of regulations by choosing to complete the outfit with that crimson red suit jacket and those equally red heels. She looked more stylish than professional, more provocative than authoritarian—and to make matters worse, her clothing wasn't even the most inappropriate.

Pink hair? he thought, mouth parting as his eyes widened just so in alarm. Disbelieving, Sasuke stared at her bright pink locks cut jaggedly at her shoulders, tempted to rub his eyes as though to check if he was dreaming. Are you—pink fucking hair at a court of law?

Sasuke couldn't figure out how this girl could have possibly gotten away with it. As far as he knew, such bright pops of color were most definitely against court wear guidelines. Who was she? A goddamn newbie? Who the hell didn't check the dress code for their job? This wasn't a damn modeling show.

Clearly, whoever she was, she wasn't taking her job seriously at all.

Biting his tongue to hold back a groan, Sasuke ran a hand over his face and grimaced. Great, he had a goddamn newbie as his opposition. Just fucking great. This was just what he needed. Suigetsu was going to get away with being a world class asshole, this case would now undoubtedly take over a week because this girl wouldn't know what she's doing, and on top of that, he wouldn't even get a challenge.

This will truly be a week right out of my nightmares, Sasuke thought, closing his eyes as he tipped his head back in his chair and pinched the bridge of his nose. If father is so pressed to take on a case like this again once this is over, he can take care of it all by himself.

"Hi!" someone said chirpily, nearly startling him out of his seat.

Jesus fucking—

Head jerking towards the stranger, Sasuke quickly blinked when he met the sight of the bright-haired woman, heart pounding at the intrusion. His brows rose monumentally as he realized she was grinning and politely extending her hand at him. And… staring at him with the greenest pair of eyes he'd ever seen.

(so pretty. so bright. so friendly and warm, warm, warm.)

Rendered speechless for a long moment, Sasuke remained frozen in his chair, dumbstruck and just a little dazed.

The woman inched her hand closer to urge him on, eyes crinkling ever brighter. Snapping out of his trance, Sasuke shook it reluctantly, never blinking away from her scintillating gaze.

The woman smiled wider. "Mr. Uchiha I presume? I'm Sakura Haruno," she said, cocking her head to the side as she squeezed his hand firmly. Her eyes twinkled mischievously. "I'll be disputing against you today."

And just like that, in the space of a single heartbeat, his momentary enrapture vanished, petered out, leaving nothing but a sharp annoyance and a sullen mood in its place.

Scowling, Sasuke clicked his tongue and looked away, rolling his eyes all too obviously. "Whatever."

But just as he tried to take back his hand, intent on dismissing her and feigning a need to reorganize his case files, Sakura's grip tightened on him like a vice, squeezing and squeezing so much that he couldn't help but wince. A curse slipped out of his mouth, his black eyes flickering up to her once more. Her mouth was tugged up into a small smirk, her (pretty, pretty) green eyes burning with a determination that gave a sort of feral look about her.

Sasuke's heart stuttered in his chest.

(he wouldn't know until much later, but in that moment he grew truly, completely, and irrevocably smitten by her.)

.

.

"You know, for one of the infamous Uchihas, I have to say that I expected a lot more out of you," Sakura said later that day, as the trial was in the midst of a recess and she found him eating his lunch on the courthouse steps.

Sasuke's eyes narrowed in return, his mood souring at the sight of her. He didn't even know why he was so grouchy—he wanted her the case to be over with as quickly as possible and for Suigetsu to get what he deserved, right? The fact Sakura was winning should be making him happy right now.

But somehow, for some reason, the reality that this pink-haired four-year-lawyer was beating him simply pissed him off.

(probably because, for someone who hated being wrong, sasuke had completely misjudged her and was thus promptly ridiculed moments later by her astounding lawyering skills. she had, as the teenagers so often say, "owned" him in every way today.)

Sasuke glowered at her smiling face and munched sulkily on his egg salad sandwich. "Didn't expect you to be the type to gloat," he muttered, shifting away from her. "I have nothing to say to you, so you can leave now."

Sakura laughed, yet strangely sounded neither haughty or petty. "I'm not gloating, you grouch. I'm just saying I'm a little disappointed that you're not holding up to par to what everyone says about your lawyer family. Aren't you guys supposed to be the best in the country?"

Sasuke's jaw cinched, gaze darkening even more. Who the fuck was this girl to even slander his family? She wasn't even properly following the court regulations for someone who had been in this line of work for four years—longer if you counter all their years of law school—so who was she to criticize their reputation? She probably had none.

"You're not exactly an exemplar lawyer yourself in case you haven't noticed," he snapped, finishing the last few bites of his sandwich before brusquely opening today's newspaper. Maybe now she'd go away if he literally blocked her from his view.

Making a sound of either disbelief or amusement (or perhaps even both) Sakura took a few steps closer to lower his rude blockade and shake her head at him. "Didn't say that I was, but at least I wasn't totally predictable," she said, offering him a wink and a sort of overtly pleased smile before she started walking away.

Predic—I'm fucking predictable? Sasuke thought, neck and tips of his ears burning as he fumed. Bullshit. I haven't been predictable for one goddamn second of my life. This case is just a complete joke.

Moving more out of spite and instinct than anything else, Sasuke rose up to his feet, threw the paper on the ground, catching her wrist after two long angry strides. Startled, Sakura jumped at his touch, jerking back to look at him—but before she could so much as demand what he was doing, Sasuke caught his hand to her shoulder, tugged her closer to himself—

And swept down to kiss her soundly, relishing in the way she stiffened against him.

The thought that perhaps chasing and (pretty much) sexually assaulting this woman to make his point was not the smartest thing he could have done fleetingly crossed his mind, but Sasuke brushed it off; caught up in the moment, the softness of her skin, her lips. She tasted like mint and lemon cake, smelling faintly of apples and wild gooseberries.

He pulled away too soon to give their bodies distance and appreciate the way her cheeks reddened terribly in response. Sakura's eyes were large, mouth parting even wider as her gaze met his, as though shocked or most likely even embarrassed.

A smirk pulled at his lips before he could help it, and Sasuke wiped his mouth. "How's that for predictable?"

Flushing an even deeper color, Sakura's hand curled up at her side before quickly flying across his vision.

.

.

"What happened to your face?" Itachi asked as Sasuke got home later that evening, tired and sullen to his bones. Itachi was in the kitchen occupied with dinner it seemed, an apron tied around his waist as he worked at cleaning what looked like a fresh-caught mackerel. Had he and father gone fishing this morning?

Sasuke shook his head and pinched the bridge of his nose, waving him away irritably. He didn't want to talk about it; today had been a hell of a day in itself, and he just wanted to collapse on the couch, eat shitty food while watching an even shittier show, and then give in to the sweet, sweet promise of his bed.

And what was his brother doing here anyway? It wasn't like him to drop by so unannounced, especially when he knew how much Sasuke hated surprise visits.

"Forget about it. What are you even doing here?"

"Making dinner. Isn't that obvious?" Itachi said with a teasing smile, putting his chef's knife away as he wiped his hands and turned his way.

When Sasuke merely frowned at him, Itachi's smile faded, a sigh slipping heavily from his lips. He crossed his arms over his chest and regarded him with patience, clearly concerned.

"Sasuke. You don't pick fights anymore. I haven't seen you get in any brawls since you were seventeen. So why, pray tell, do you have what looks like a black eye on your face?"

Sasuke rolled his eyes and strolled to his refrigerator, grabbing the first cold compress he saw from the freezer. He fetched a cloth from one of the nearby drawers, wrapped it around the cold compress, and winced as he pressed it up to his slightly swollen, evident bruise under his left eye.

"I told you, just forget about it. You don't have to worry about me—in case you haven't noticed, I can take care of myself. Like I have been doing since I moved out of the house over ten years ago."

Itachi frowned deeper, brows furrowing. "It's my job to worry about you as your older brother, Sasuke," he said. "Now please, tell me what happened."

Sasuke mulled his lips and heaved out an unbelievably irritated sigh. Itachi really could not give up when he had any suspicions about his wellbeing, could he? He was almost worse than mother.

"I pissed someone off by doing something stupid because they pissed me off beforehand. Hence, the black eye," Sasuke said, passing by his brother to slip into the living room. "It was my own damn fault."

Collapsing heavily into his couch, Sasuke reached for the remote—only for Itachi to quickly take it away. His head snapped up to glare daggers at him.

Not to his surprise, Itachi remained unaffected. "We're not done yet," he said, tossing the remote away. "Who did you piss off? And when? I thought the Hozuki trial started today?"

Rolling his eyes, Sasuke muttered, "I see father had no shame broadcasting I was on this stupid case…"

"I dropped by your office for lunch and saw it on your schedule," Itachi returned casually, waving him off. "But that's not important. Stop avoiding my questions and answer them already. You are making me worry."

"It happened at the courthouse because I infuriated my opposition, all right?" Sasuke spat out, glaring at his big brother. "She called me predictable and I proved her I wasn't by doing the first thing that came to mind—and then she punched me square in the eye."

Taking the cold compress away, he pointed at the injury for emphasis, still glowering. When Itachi's jaw slackened, he resumed soothing his heavy bruise (the one on his face, anyway; his ego would take a while longer to recover) and snatched for the remote again—successfully, this time.

"That girl is a fucking lunatic," he muttered, crossing his only free arm over his chest.

Taking a seat beside him, Itachi folded a leg over his knee, staring at him ever attentively. "I thought you said it was your fault?"

Sasuke snorted. "It is, but it doesn't change the fact she's crazy," he groused. He took a short pause, before he added, "Her hair is dyed pink but she's still allowed in court, can you fucking believe that? There's no way she doesn't have some kind of connection with the jury—because otherwise I don't know how she wouldn't get thrown out on her ass the moment she stepped out into a court. It's unprofessional."

Strangely, Itachi seemed amused at this. "Personal charm, maybe? Or maybe, you know, she's just really good at her job."

Shaking his head, Sasuke merely started scrolling through his choice of TV channels, at last having finally grown tired of this ridiculous subject. Everything about this was so stupid. Why was he even letting himself get so worked up anyway? Maybe it was just because of how his brain worked—always searching for ways to understand why people lived and thought and acted the way that they did. And this woman was the perfect enigma to his frustrated mind.

At his side, Itachi reached over to ruffle his hair, treating him immaturely as he had always done ever since they were children. Annoyed, Sasuke scowled and pushed his hand away from him, demanding him to stop already. He was thirty, for god's sake—he had long gone past the age of being babied.

Itachi chuckled and merely shrugged, pulling his feet up on the coffee table. "Maybe I should attend the next day of the trial to see who this mysterious woman is. She seems quite intriguing," he said.

Utterly not of the mind to get into this again, Sasuke replied, noncommittal, "Sure, why not. Don't see why you'd want to, but do what you want."

The way Itachi's eyes twinkled in return bemused him, but Sasuke chose to ignore despite and turn his attention to the TV screen.

Sometimes he was better off not knowing what was in Itachi's head.

.

.

("Weren't you making dinner?"

"Ah! The mackerel! The rice!")
.

.

He didn't understand the grin on Itachi's lips when the second day of trial reached its end that following morning; Sakura had been vicious, and so had he—so much even the jury had to step in and order them to settle down a few times… so what was there to grin about?

He understood even less when Itachi mused aloud, "Looks like you've finally met your match, huh, little brother?"

It wasn't like she had a hard case to win anyway.

.

.

"Looks like your client wasn't too pleased about his verdict," a voice he'd heard more than enough of today said as he was shrugging off his suit jacket by the side of his car's opened back door.

It was the fourth day since the trial started, and now it was finally over; Suigetsu was sentenced to jail for six months on account of rape along with a two thousand dollars fine, and though Karin had to pay for half the damages she'd induced to his car, Sakura had more than won the case as he'd predicted.

Tensing, Sasuke's jaw went taunt, never daring to turn around knowing fully who it was. Jaw cinching instead, he merely shoved his jacket in the back of his car.

"I didn't expect otherwise," he said stiffly, moving to loosen his tie next before reaching for a pair of running shoes on the passenger floor. He really needed to work out to let out some steam. He bent over further in his car to reach for his gym bag, next. "The case was lost since the beginning—I never once thought Suigetsu was innocent, and the idiot should have known he never could have gotten away with it in the first place."

"So why'd you take on a lost case?" Sakura asked, sounding completely unimpressed. "The Uchihas too greedy these days they'll take anything for money?"

Sasuke finally turned to give her a glare. "Our family law company is respected across many high end families. The Hozukis are one of them, and refusing them would have brought great disgrace to our reputation."

"Right, so for money and for the sake of protecting your image, then," Sakura said, rolling her (pretty, pretty—still so pretty) eyes. She shook her head and crossed her arms. "You rich men are so predictable. As long as someone gives a decent enough pay check, you're willing to defend even the scums of the earth just to—"

A fire flaring even hotter in his chest, Sasuke slammed the door of his car and startled Sakura so much she lost her words, giving him ample time to trudge towards her with a dangerous stare. Her mouth parted lightly as he stood only steps away, hovering over her domineeringly before he hissed, "I refused the case three times before my father forced me to take it, so don't you dare try to define me as some money-hungry scoundrel. That asshole deserved all that he got and more."

Sakura's throat moved in a subtle swallow, one his eyes followed too easily, and then her head tipped back to look at him, a strangely tempting smile curling to her lips. God, it would be so easy to kiss her right now.

Wait, what?

"Well that we can agree on," Sakura said as she took the ends of his tie and played lightly with it. The sight had his heart stuttering.

Sasuke didn't know why it pissed him off even more, but it did. Nostrils flaring, he turned away and stalked back towards his car, digging into his pockets for his car keys.

"You know, you're pretty angry at me for someone who didn't even want to win the case in the first place."

"What gave you the first clue?" Sasuke growled, opening the front car door to slip into the driver's seat.

But before he could, Sakura slammed the door back shut, keeping her hand on it to ensure he would not open it again. His glare was savage when he looked back at her, snappish words hanging so thickly on the tip of his tongue.

Yet all Sakura did was smile—that same, strangely alluring smile. She was being seductive, he realized belatedly, his throat running drier than the desert.

His heart began to pound at the realization.

Pretty green eyes twinkling with such mirth, Sakura reached up to take the ends of his loosened tie again, gaze holding his boldly as she fiddled with the material of it. Her other hand slid up one of his arms, picking off a piece of lint, or hair, or perhaps even nothing for all he knew. She then traced the line of his jaw gently.

"You're quite the enigma, Sasuke Uchiha," she whispered softly, that smile growing wider to her lips as she caught his gaze again.

Speechless for a moment, Sasuke was barely conscious of the way his hands curved around her hips, gripping her firmly through her clothes.

"I hate you," he said, in the end, because it was the only thing he could think of.

Eyes gleaming with a bright, silent laughter, Sakura tugged him down roughly by his tie. She was just shy of smirking at him.

"Oh Sasuke," she said, sliding the hand at his arm up into his hair and tugging sharply. Her lips were so near to his, hovering just beneath. "I don't think you do."