Final Boss Battle

After weeks of slogging through snow and wind, they finally arrived at the ruins of an ancient temple. The pillars were battered and covered in vines, but were somehow still standing. The smell of mildew filled the air as they ventured into the darkness. Sasuke ignited his palm, the glow illuminating their faces as they walked.

Sakura caught Kisame glancing at her. She didn't say anything. He had caught her staring at him at least a few times, too.

"Ugh. Finally. I can't wait to kick this demon's ass," Naruto sighed with relief as they climbed up the stairs. Sakura grabbed the back of his shirt to stop him from stepping in a huge hole in the stone.

"Thanks. But yeah, like I was saying, things can finally get back to normal," he went on. And Sakura and Kisame's eyes met. Just for a second in the dark. His eyes glowing a little- just enough to be a little unsettling. They looked away again.

"Sakura, we can finally get you back to the palace," Naruto then said, nudging Sakura with his elbow. She offered him a smile in response.

The portal in the heart of the temple ruins needed to be activated by magic. Sakura took a moment casting protective wards over their party, just in case. And then Neji poured energy into the symbols carved into the floor and ceiling. Each rune began to glow gold. Slowly, a hum filled the chamber, growing louder and louder with each symbol that lit up.

Sakura started when she felt something touch her arm. It was Kisame's hand. The black snake contract tight around his wrist.

"You alright, Doc?" he murmured. Voice almost drowned out by the growing drone of the magical resonance rumbling through the floor.

"Yeah. Of course," she whispered in return. Fingers brushing past his as she felt the magic lift them off the ground. Away. Up. Sounds and smells fading away as they fell through the space between planes.

As they tumbled out of the rift torn into the sky, Sakura glimpsed strange sights. Worlds swallowed by flame. A plane where the stars hung in the air, suspended like strange lanterns in the darkness. And then her left side erupted in pain as she collided with the ground. All around her came her companions' grunts as they landed just as gracelessly.

"Ah, shit. My wrist! Sakura!"

Pushing herself up on her elbow, Sakura glared in no particular direction. "Suck it up. I can't waste all my spell slots at once," she groaned.

There was a pause. And then a snap.

"Nevermind, Sasuke fixed it," Naruto called back.

They slowly got to their feet, fixing their hair. Dusting the dirt from their clothes as they regrouped.

They slogged through swamps, batting away little monsters. Too low level to do any real damage. Which, Kakashi commented, was odd.

"I was expecting a little more trouble," he remarked, rubbing his chin. He barely glanced over when Sakura used sacred flame to zap a low-level monster. It sizzled away without much fuss.

"Yeah. And aren't there like, a bajillion different levels in the Abyss? How do we know when we get to the right one?" griped Tenten, batting away an overgrown larva with one of her swords as they continued through the muck.

They looked to Naruto for a response. Naruto, who was busy wrestling with a vine that had tangled around his ankle, had no idea they had even spoken to him. Sasuke reached over to incinerate it in a quick flash of fire.

Sakura barely noticed this exchange too. Because her eyes found Kisame's tall figure in the gloom. The blade of his sword wet with blood as he stared ahead. His footfalls certain, even on the mushy terrain.

"We'll figure it out," she said as she headed into the mist. Grabbing Sasuke's cloak as she moved, pulling him along with her. Sasuke glanced over his shoulder, jerking his chin to motion for the rest of the party to follow as they plowed on ahead.

They fell through five different levels of the abyss. Sometimes it was just one step in the fog and suddenly they were engulfed in searing heat. Another time, they plummeted into a chasm, impossibly deep, that twisted and battered them from all sides with rough stone before spitting them out in a completely new location.

Sakura and Neji took a long time setting up protective wards around their camps at night. At least, it felt like night. Time flowed strangely in this plane. It was difficult to tell what was what anymore. They simply moved on when they guessed that an appropriate amount of time had passed. Or when their legs and feet stopped aching as much.

The energy on this plane unnerved Sakura. It made the hairs on her arms and the back of her neck stand up all the time. And no amount of warding or buffing could make it go away.

"You're just, like, super-good, Sakura. Maybe all this evil juju is messing with you," Naruto guessed one night as they gathered around the fire Sasuke had conjured.

"You know things are strange when Naruto makes sense," remarked Sasuke.

Naruto gave himself a proud pat on the chest. Before he realized what Sasuke had actually said. He glared at the ranger, who paid him no mind.

"The abyss is filled with evil energy. That could be true," Asuma agreed, looking all around. Especially at the twisted shapes jutting out of the cliff face just behind them. They looked like faces frozen mid-scream. Naruto shuddered each time he made the mistake of looking at one.

Sakura covered her right hand with her left, touching the holy symbol wrapped around her wrist. It didn't hum as strongly as it usually did. Maybe it really was the interference from the energy of the plane. Her eyes drifted downwards. There was a stone lodged in the mud. She nudged it aside with the point of her boot. Hundreds of black spiders spilled out from the space underneath. She jolted. Sasuke did too. And before anyone could scream, he aimed a handful of fire at the creatures and burnt them to a crisp.

"Thanks," she sighed.

"You... really don't like spiders, huh," Tenten remarked.

Sakura made a face, which was answer enough.

On what felt like the fifth day, everything suddenly changed. Up became down. The ground became the sky. Sakura found herself hanging upside down, feet still planted firmly on the ground, if it could be called that anymore. Naruto jumped. He detached from the boggy soil, tumbling downwards.

"I hate this place," declared Neji, his voice almost as sour as his face as he got to his feet. His clothes were soaked with dirty bog water.

That night, they managed to find refuge in the ruins of what looked like an abandoned palace of some sort. The runes on the crumbling walls pulsated faintly as Kisame walked past. Reacting to his presence. Sakura noticed it before he did. She scooped up a handful of mud and smeared it over the letters before anyone else could see.

"Ow!" she yelped as the mud ate through her gloves, biting into her skin.

When she tried to channel holy magic to heal the burns, nothing happened.

"What the..." Sakura muttered, forehead wrinkling as she tried again.

Kisame grabbed her by the arm, pulling her around the corner. His hand glowed an eerie shade of light blue as he pressed it to her palm. The pain vanished, as did the angry red marks.

He found her eyes. Before he could warn her not to say anything, Sakura simply smiled. She pressed her pointer finger to her lips. Despite his wary look, Kisame couldn't help but smile a little at that.

"This how you get all the babes to fall for you? Pull them into the dark and show off your spooky powers?" she teased. That made Kisame chuckle.

"Nah. That's only for you," he said, thoughtlessly. Only realizing a second too late what had just come out of his mouth.

She lowered her hand, slowly. Eyes glued to his. Forehead wrinkling as she tried to decide whether she had heard him wrong.

They both jolted when they heard a loud crack.

"Dude! That's a load-bearing pillar! Don't break that!" they heard Tenten scold.

"Bullshit. You're making that up," Naruto laughed. There was another loud crack. And then a terrific smash as part of the ceiling crashed to the floor.

"Okay! Sorry! I'll stop!" Naruto yelped.

Sakura licked her lips, which were suddenly really dry. And then she took a step in the direction of all the noise.

"Wait, Doc-" Kisame hissed. He grabbed her shoulder.

Sakura's eyes found him again. Big and luminous in the darkness of the ruins.

His face was panicked. Pupils dilated. Teeth clenched together.

Sakura took a deep breath in and then out. She offered him a smile as she put her hand over his.

"Not here. Later," she promised. And she waited for his hand to relax before she slipped out of their hiding place to join the rest of the party.

And while Sakura was a lot of things, a liar wasn't one of them. Once everyone had settled in for the night, she found him hidden away in a room that once held an enormous bath. The walls were made of an intricate mosaic pattern, which was impossible to understand now. Vines and dead leaves were the only things left to cover the cracked, dirty tiles. Some sinister-looking mushrooms glowed dark purple in the corners of the room. As she took a step toward them, she heard Kisame's voice.

"Those are poisonous as hell. Don't," he warned her.

She glanced over her shoulder as magic hummed past her ears. She could see the shimmer of a silencing spell form over the entrance.

"Your magic is stronger here," she noted.

"Home sweet home," Kisame replied. He sat in the empty pool, arms resting on the sides, one leg crossed over the other.

Sakura only noticed then that his shadow inside the tub looked different. Long wings extended from under his arms. And maybe what looked like a tail flickered over the mosaic. When she blinked, they didn't disappear.

"Careful, Doc, you'll make me blush," Kisame warned.

Rolling her eyes, Sakura sat on the edge of the pool, wrinkling her nose when she touched a bit of moss. She rubbed it away with a noise of disgust. She scooted a little closer to Kisame to avoid the patch of wet plants and dirt.

"So, what was that earlier, big guy?" she demanded.

Kisame dropped the cocky smile. The shadow of his invisible wings folded inward as he turned his head away. Rolling her eyes, Sakura stretched her leg out to nudge his thigh with the toe of her boot. He ignored her.

Sakura scoffed. "Seriously?"

His lips pressed together in a thin line.

She nudged him again. "Hey, do I have to kick your ass into talking?"

Slowly, the corner of his mouth lifted.

"Always going on about the ass, Doc. You like it that much, huh?" he retorted, finally turning back towards her.

Sakura puckered her mouth a little as she thought. Tilting her head to one side, she responded, "...I mean... I don't hate it."

He grinned at her, sharp teeth glinting in the torchlight. "Well, enjoy it while you can," he joked. And with that, his smile disappeared again.

Sakura realized then what he was really talking about.

"...Oh."

She peered into the tub and found it less dirty than she expected. She slid into the bath too, her knees pulled up to her chest. And then she fussed with her cloak, pulling it under her thighs.

"We never talked about that, I guess," she said.

"Yeah. Why didn't we?" wondered Kisame.

Sakura picked at a loose thread on her tunic as she thought. "Well, I guess, because I just assumed it would be done once you got home... whatever this is, I mean." She pointed a vague finger in the space between them. Kisame nodded.

"Yeah, that was the plan. But- uh... I'm having a hard time imagining being away from you," he admitted. And then he winced as the snake tattoo wrapped around his forearm shifted. It constricted a little tighter. Digging into his skin. As if daring him to break the terms of their agreement.

Sakura said nothing, just stared at the living contract until it stopped moving. She reached out to trace her thumb over it. The tongue flickered out just once.

"... You picked a real shitty time to say something like that, you know," she finally uttered. But when she met his eyes, she was smiling. "Better than me not saying anything at all, I guess."

"Aw, man, Doc. I really like you," he laughed a little.

And they sat there. The silencing spell still glittering around them. Rendered pointless. Because there was nothing left to say anyway.

After what felt like days of travel, they finally spotted a set of dark spires in the distance. The air wavered, a little too heavy on their shoulders as they looked around. Ribbon-like figures weaved around the towers.

"That looks Demon King-y as hell," Naruto whispered as he pointed.

"Super demon-y," agreed Tenten.

Their banter filled the rest of the party's grim silence as they hurried ahead through the gnarled forest of dead trees. The phoenix amulet wrapped around Sakura's wrist felt cold against her skin now. And a shiver ran up her spine as she glanced over and saw the look on Kisame's face. He had raised his hood to cover his face, grumbling about the cold. Although that probably wasn't the real reason.

As they neared the castle, the started to encounter more and more demons. They came in all shapes and sizes. Some with fangs dripping with acid. Others with sharp talons. They squawked, roared, shrieked, and made an array of awful noises as Naruto slew them. Sakura stole a nervous look at Kisame, who had stopped cracking jokes and responding to Naruto's puns a while ago. And Naruto was in no mood to notice this change as he plowed on ahead.

Oddly enough, Sasuke, who generally didn't pay much attention to anyone, was the one to pull Kisame to the side.

"Hey, you don't look so good," the ranger said. Kisame rubbed his jaw.

"Maybe you should have Sakura take a look at you," Sasuke suggested. And then he cleared his throat. "Just... you're part of the team. Take care of yourself," he added.

Kisame's eyes met Sakura's. Sasuke's sincerity hit him like a punch in the gut. She could read it so clearly in his face. And before anyone else could, a giant worm accosted their party. Sakura had never before been so thankful for such a disgusting, slimy creature.

When they finally reached the path that led to the enormous fortress, Sakura felt her stomach tying in knots.

They stormed into the Demon King's castle. Naruto smashed through the door, his eyes a little wild as adrenaline coursed through his veins. The blood of all the guards he had slain flecked his armor.

A scrawny demon sat on the throne. Some sort of burning circle of blue flame hovered above its horns. He didn't even manage to get through his monologue before Sasuke unleashed an arrow that hit him straight in the gut. With a horrible shriek, the demon opened its jaw. Black smoke poured out of its gullet, wrapping around its form. Before it could solidify, Kisame reached out and crushed its skull in one hand. Blood and bone exploded in his palm. The blue flames raced up his arm, over his shoulder, climbing up to the top of his head.

"...Kisame... dude... gross," Naruto was the first to speak.

The floor of the throne room trembled.

"... oh no," sighed Sakura. Before anyone could ask her what she meant, Kisame erupted in blue flames.

"HOLY SHIT!" Tenten shouted. She reached into her belt for her knives. Naruto grabbed the back of her tunic, hauling her away from Kisame.

"What're you going to do? STAB THE FIRE?" Naruto howled as she struggled in his grip.

"We gotta help him!" Tenten insisted.

"... yeah, I'm with Naruto on this," Sakura commented as she took a few steps back. She eyed Kisame one more time before she took a few more steps away. And then she squinted a little. Because Kisame's flaming form turned to look at her. She saw his mouth open. The inside was completely black, which was horrifying. But she thought she saw him mouth the word 'boom'.

Sakura barely had time to cast a shield before the entire palace exploded.

And then they were soaring through the sky, encased in a shimmering gold layer. Chunks of stone bounced harmlessly off the barrier. They watched the castle crumble, smoke and ashes raining down on the shield, which managed to hold. But it still didn't stop it from hurting like hell when they landed some ways away on the ground. The shield shattered from the impact, sending them sprawling.

Kakashi struggled to his feet first. He offered a hand to Neji, pulling him to his feet. A little ways away, Naruto pulled Sasuke up, both of them groaning in pain. Sakura could feel her ears ringing as she sat up. Her head was still a little fuzzy when Tenten and Asuma walked over to check on her. As they tried to help her up, Sakura winced. She had definitely sprained her ankle. There was no point in trying to put weight on it, and the shield had burned her last spell slot. That was also the reason why she couldn't help Kakashi with the scrapes on his hands and arms from where he had skidded to a stop.

Once everyone was accounted for, they turned to watch the castle still collapsing in the distance. The blue flames smoldered at the base of the ruins, sending smoke spilling into the air until it covered the sky like a thick cover of rain clouds.

"Anyone know what just happened?" asked Naruto.

"Nuh-uh," said Tenten. Sasuke just shook his head.

Sakura stared at the smoke. She didn't even realize that someone was gripping her shoulder until she glanced over and saw the hand.

"Wait! Look at that," Asuma remarked. Everyone followed his finger, squinting. Slowly, a black speck began moving in the ashes. It grew bigger and bigger. It was a humanoid figure. And Sakura swallowed as she saw wings spread from its shoulders.

"Fuck. That looks Demon King-y," Tenten whispered.

Naruto gave a grim nod as he reached for his greataxe. But when he patted his back, he couldn't find it. He had lost it somewhere in the chaos of the explosion. He swore as he rummaged in his equipment for something else he could use.

Sasuke nocked one of his last arrows. He took a few steps forward, putting himself between the group and the approaching creature.

"Naruto, hurry up," Sasuke spat.

"I'm TRYING!" Naruto retorted.

The figure grew closer and closer. And as it broke through the smoke, its black eyes glittered with malice. Sharp teeth glimmered, reflecting the blue flames that encased its clawed hands. It seemed to catch sight of them in the distance because it suddenly gave a flap of its huge, leathery wings. It took flight, landing with a terrible crash just a few feet from them. As it moved, Sakura glimpsed a burn mark in the shape of a falcon across its palm.

"Humans. You've journeyed a long way," it rumbled. And despite the way the voice boomed and gargled, there was something familiar it about it.

"... no fucking way," Sasuke hissed, lowering his bow and arrow.

Naruto stopped pawing through his pack. He straightened, his tail twitching to one side.

"Dude... is that you?" Naruto asked.

He stared at the demon, unflinching. It took a long moment. And then the demon let out a long sigh. The wings retracted. The horns receded back into his skull. And slowly, Kisame's face replaced the monster's terrible visage. He looked a little singed, but that was about it.

"Are you the demon king?" demanded Naruto.

Kisame snapped. The same blue circle of flames they had seen before flickered to life just above his head. But then its shape began to change. It grew taller, the tongues of flames stretching until they burned in the shape of a crown.

"That little shit I killed used to be one of my cronies. He managed to stage a small coup and take over. His spell transported me to your plane with memory loss. I guess he thought that since he couldn't kill me, he'd just toss me somewhere far away," explained Kisame.

"... gotta admit. I was thinking that was a pretty shitty demon king," Tenten leaned over to murmur to Neji. He thought for a moment before he nodded.

"I didn't break out of his spell and recover my memory until I'd traveled with you for a bit. And I figured the fastest way to get home was if I stuck with you," Kisame went on. Despite the blue flames flickering over his head, he seemed like the regular Kisame they had spent months traveling with. If anything, that only seemed to infuriate Naruto more.

"You could've told us!" the shifter shouted.

At this, Kisame smirked. "So you could kill me, little hero?"

Naruto's hackles rose at that.

"I wouldn't have! I would've found a way to help you. Because that's what friends do!" he snapped.

Guilt flickered across Kisame's face. "You would've helped me?" he repeated. And with that, the crown of flames dimmed.

""How could you do this to us? I trusted you, Kisame!" Naruto exclaimed, voice thick with emotions. His hands were fisted at his sides.

"...Sorry."

"And how could you do this to Sakura?" Naruto went on.

All eyes flitted to Sakura when he mentioned her. And expressions of pity and sadness were already on their faces as they found her. Poor, kind-hearted Sakura. How shattered she would be to learn that her lover was lying to her.

Sakura examined her belt, sighing when she realized that one of the decorative straps had broken.

"Oh, that? I already knew," she told them in a flat voice.

"What?" yelped Naruto.

Sakura looked up, directly at Kisame. "How long's it been? About 5-6 months?" she asked.

"About," he agreed.

"Sakura, what the hell?" Naruto demanded.

"I mean, he didn't tell me. I figured it out. The resistance to my healing, speaking Infernal, oh and how he can wield time magic as a fighter. None of that seemed weird to you?" asked Sakura.

Neji leaned in toward Sasuke to whisper," Did you know he could do any of that?"

Sasuke shook his head in response.

"Also, the height," Kisame supplied.

"Yeah. You know that tieflings are just... weird-colored humans, right? They're not supposed to be large-"

A smug look crossed Kisame's face. "Thank you."

"-in stature," Sakura finished, like she hadn't heard that comment at all. "And the reason for all this chaos on the surface is because someone wasn't doing the real job of a demon king. This kind of solves all of our problems."

"So what? You're on his side now? You're gonna just live down here with the demons?" sputtered Naruto.

Sakura made a face. "No! What would I even do here?"

And at the same time, Kisame retorted, "Of course not. She'd take over the entire kingdom in a fortnight."

Sakura took that in. Blinking, she looked over at him with a half-smile, touched. "Really? A fortnight?"

His mouth pulled into a smile, too. Before Kisame could say something else, Sasuke spoke up.

"So you're saying all this started happening after Kisame lost the throne?"

Kisame rubbed his nose. "Yep," he confirmed.

"How do I know he's not lying again?" Naruto demanded, hands still making fists at his sides.

"He's not," answered Sakura in a flat voice. Naruto glanced back at her. And when he looked back at Kisame, he continued to squint angrily.

"Okay. Maybe he's not lying. But I still don't like it," Naruto amended.

Tenten frowned, too, tilting her head to one side. She gripped one of her knives, stealing a look back at Sakura. "So... uh..." She looked back at Kisame. "...Do we have to kill him? Because that would suck."

Kisame suddenly looked tired. He cast a look around the smoldering clearing. He flexed his claws. Slowly, they transformed back into hands. He spotted the handle of Naruto's greataxe sticking out of a pile of rubble.

"Yeah, I'm with Tenten on this. I really don't wanna kill the big guy. He's pretty cool," Sasuke spoke up.

Naruto frowned, folding his arms across his chest. "I like him too. But our mission is to slay the demon king and restore peace to our lands. Like all the plagues and the monster attacks. And you know... death and stuff," he listed.

"But... it's Kisame. Dude chopped an ogre in half to save you," Tenten reminded him.

"I know."

"And he also dove into a leech-filled swamp to save your ass," Sasuke recalled.

"He also helped you sneak past Sakura that time you ate too many of those weird berries," Neji added.

"He did what now?" Sakura asked.

Naruto pretended not to hear her as he quickly redirected the conversation. "Alright, alright, yeah. We all love the big blue dude. But... don't we have to kill the demon king and save the world?" He looked genuinely distressed as he grappled with the morality of it all.

"If Kisame's back on the throne, all the chaos should stop," Sakura pointed out, still sitting on the ground. She grimaced as she shifted her swollen ankle. Pain shot up her leg.

"There's no guarantee of that," groused Kakashi.

"...I think I'm your guarantee," Sakura slowly said, like she couldn't even believe what she was saying. She shook her head a little.

Naruto made a noise of disgust as he scoffed, "Sakura. Please. He's a big, mean demon king. Evil and chaos is his thing, isn't it?"

"No. She's right."

All heads turned toward Kisame. He sat on the charred stump of a tree. Head of Naruto's greataxe resting on the ground. He leaned his hands on the handle, casually rocking back and forth as he took in the conversation.

"What? It's the truth," he then added as skeptical faces answered him.

"You're the king of an entire army of demons and you'll just... listen to her?" Asuma demanded.

This time, Kisame looked offended. "What do you mean? She's hot. She's smart. And if anyone tries to stab me in the back, she'll smash their skull in with a hammer or something," Kisame listed, counting off on his fingers. With each point, Sasuke and Naruto nodded a little or shrugged.

"Plus, mayhem on your plane isn't really my thing. My job is to rule things here. There should be chaos... to a point."

Naruto blinked several times. It took him a while to find the words. He asked, "So... uh... can you, like, stop all the bad stuff, please?"

Kisame looked startled. And then he chuckled. "Oh. Of course. Almost forgot."

He mimed covering his ears. Slowly, the members of the party copied him, raising their hands to clap over their ears. Only when everyone had done so did Kisame get to his feet. He sucked down a deep breath. And when he opened his mouth, a terrible roar thundered across the smoldering plane. There was a pause. And then a cacophony of shrieks answered him.

Demons of every shape and size began to appear. Some swooped down from the skies. Others emerged from cracks in the ground. A few materialized from the shadows that crept across the dirt. Some sniffed disdainfully in their direction. But, like the others, they then approached Kisame, kneeling at his feet.

A guttural noise slipped out of Kisame's mouth. One of the demons responded, its reedy voice rising and falling. Kisame snarled something that made it recoil with a little yelp. He uttered several more words. A chorus of snarls and grunts rose in response. The gathered demons bowed several times before they began to disappear with urgency in their movements. The first demon who had spoken lingered to say something else. Kisame responded by grabbing its misshapen head in one hand and squeezing until the demon let out a pitiful, shrill noise.

"Kisame," Sakura's quiet voice drew his gaze.

With a scoff, Kisame released the creature. Keening, the demon took flight. Its leathery wings taking it away as fast as possible.

"They'll handle it. Things should start settling down soon," Kisame then said as he turned to face them. Neji's gaze flickered up to the burning blue crown that hovered over Kisame's head.

"You could've killed us," Neji observed.

Kisame's lower lip poked out as he considered that. "Nah. Didn't feel like it. You guys are pretty cool," he answered. And then he offered his hand. Neji eyed it for a moment before he shook it.

Kisame then turned to the rest of the group. "Let's get you home," he declared.

"What? Just like that?" Naruto blurted out. His scowl was still in place.

Kisame's eyes darted around. "I mean... yeah. You found the demon king. There's gonna be peace. And now I'll send you guys home."

Naruto huffed. And then he gestured toward Sakura. "But, like, this is goodbye? She's your..." Naruto trailed off as Sakura shot a poisonous look in his direction. He hastily amended his wording. "I mean, you're her... paramour, I guess?"

"Excellent use of vocabulary, Naruto," commented Neji.

Naruto flashed him a quick smile. As he did so, he completely missed the wink Kisame sent in Sakura's direction.

"Aw, I'm sure the Doc's sick of me by now. Now, let's get all you home."

And before anyone could protest, light surrounded them. Ripping them from the surface of the plane and sending them catapulting back home.

In the blink of an eye, the seasons were changing again.

It had been several months since they had reported back to the Emperor. Riches and glory had been showered upon them for defeating the terrible demon king. They had kept the story as vague as possible. And no one really seemed that interested anyway- as long as things were back to normal.

The mysterious sicknesses and the monster attacks had stopped almost overnight. And as soon as the celebrations had ended, Sakura had returned to the emperor's palace to resume her position as the Imperial Physician. Sasuke had taken up a position in the palace, too, as one of the emperor's hunters. It was a cushy job that didn't really require all that much work- perfect for Sasuke, who, after all the adventuring, was "sick of having to do shit".

Naruto was still busy with his adventures all around the world. He wrote frequently. And so did Neji and Tenten, who went together with him on most of those journeys. Sakura had lost touch with Kakashi, which she had kind of expected. She knew he would pop up when he wanted to be found.

Asuma had decided to stay in the capital for the time being. He performed at the local taverns to earn his keep, enchanting the patrons with tales of all their adventures. He sang about the underwater ruins and the mysterious statue of a goddess who lay beneath the waters. He weaved tales of victory and of peril. And on the nights when Sakura sat to listen, she couldn't help but smile. Maybe he embellished some details here and there, but it was close enough to make her remember all those days of travel with her friends.

At night, Sakura curled up on her side, her pillow cool against her cheek. Her eyes sliding shut. Remembering how she would scowl and complain about a heavy arm thrown over her. The weight of the silence in her room lay heavy over her as she drifted off to sleep each night.

One night. As the full moon rose in the sky. Sakura felt a ripple of energy that made goosebumps rise up and down her arms. Her eyes snapped open. The falcon emblem on the nightstand thrummed in response to the energy that flooded the room.

An eerie purple light flooded the floor under her bed. And then there was a thump, followed by a soft curse.

"Your bed's too low, Doc," Kisame grumbled.

The edge of the mattress dipped as he climbed up. He curled his huge body around her, smelling faintly of sulphur.

"Not that busy today?" she asked.

His breath ruffled her hair as he sighed. "I should be alright for a few hours," replied Kisame. His arm wrapped around her, pulling her against him.

"Hey, Doc."

"Hm?"

"...You still like my ass?"

She laughed at him.

"Yeah, Kisame. It's a good ass."

There was a pause. And then he let out a sigh of relief. "Good," he declared.