Pink and Red

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Summary: Itachi has gone blind. Though, he is grateful that he has a chance to turn over a new leaf. And even more grateful that he has found a caring friend. Will a certain Haruno Sakura be able to let him see the world through different eyes? ItaSaku.

Author-person: My first Naruto fan fiction. I've just turned into a fan of this pairing recently, and I'm glad that I decided to write a story for them.

This was originally meant to be a one-shot, but it turned into a multi-chap. Damn my craving for ItaSaku… -grumbles-

-sniff- But my inner fan girl is devastated, though… with Itachi's death and all.

This is somewhat AU, I think… and there's OOC-ness.

Hope you guys like it!

Disclaimer: I own Naruto. Pfft. And the Teletubbies will soon take over the world… -looks outside the window- Hey, Is that a rocket launcher on Po's shoulder?

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Chapter One: Thank You

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"Uchiha-san?"

Uchiha Itachi opened his eyes slowly upon hearing a soft voice call out his name, or rather, his family name.

The smell of medication quickly invaded his nostrils as he gained his senses… a hospital? He blinked a few times, trying to adjust his faulty vision, but to no avail. It was terribly blurred, and he could make out nothing… save for an odd shade of pink and red at the other end of the room. A dreaded feeling began to sink down deep inside his stomach, making him want to puke his guts out.

He was blind.

Itachi exhaled sharply, resulting to a stabbing pain at his side.

Ah. I guess I broke a rib then… He winced as he tried to sit up.

Propping his elbow to one side, he hoisted himself from the mattress, away from the comforts of his cushiony pillow. When he finally found himself in a comfortable position, he raised his head to face the owner of the female voice.

"I can't see…" He croaked irritably.

Itachi's hand shot up to his throat as he heard his unusually hoarse voice.

Bandages?

Images began flashing in his head. A pair of Sharingan eyes, a bloody pulp on the forest terrain, the Kyuubi in its complete form, three figures staring down on him before he lost consciousness… Sasuke grinning at him, stooping down and poking his older brother's forehead.

"Welcome back."

He smiled to himself upon remembering the younger Uchiha's words.

….

Haruno Sakura furrowed her pink brows and looked at the man as he sat up on his hospital bed. Clearly, he was confused about his whereabouts. Either that, or he was panicking because he had lost his vision.

She watched him warily and swallowed a lump that had formed in her throat. She was not so sure about this person. He had done some unspeakable crimes in the past… But it was her Shishou that had asked her, scratch that, ordered her to take care of the injured ex-missing-nin until he fully recovers from the injuries he had sustained during the skirmish against Uchiha Madara.

The medic had no choice, then. She had to comply…

…or face the wrath of a menopausal Godaime.

Ah, free will… it must be nice…

Sakura sighed inwardly.

Then, she saw Itachi smile, much to the pink-haired medic's surprise, but he quickly reverted to his stoic appearance when he turned his head to her direction.

"Uchiha-san, please lie down." She said, frowning when her voice came out squeaky.

Said Uchiha tilted his head ever so slightly. "I'm in Konoha, am I not?" He said in a rather polite tone.

Sakura blinked. "Yes."

"Then you know of my situation, correct?"

"Yes."

Of course she knew of the situation. Who wouldn't? The whole village practically had a heart attack when they heard the news from Tsunade a few days ago.

Uchiha Itachi massacred his whole clan for the safety of Konoha…

The kunoichi couldn't believe it at first (more like, refused to), at least until the words came out of Sasuke's mouth. Her teammate was a little hesitant to share his knowledge about the matter… but after much prodding and/or poking from a persistent dobe, Sasuke finally gave in and told the whole truth.

"I see," Itachi sighed wearily.

Given the fact that he had not been locked in a holding cell and that he was even permitted to live despite his previous felonies, he concluded that the Godaime must've granted him pardon for his actions. Thank Kami for that. Not that he wasn't ready for punishment or for a possible execution. But it was because he was given a chance to lead a second life. Albeit a much better one than the former.

"Medic-san, if you came nearer, maybe I can refrain from straining my voice." He said, plucking on his white shirt almost absent-mindedly. "Please understand that my throat is causing me pain."

Sakura stiffened. "Gomen."

The Uchiha nodded and felt for his forehead. "My hitai-te?'

"Hokage-sama has taken it. She says that it's to be replaced."

"Ah."

Itachi sensed the obvious nervousness in the girl's voice. Of course that wasn't at all surprising. He'd encountered quite a lot of men who have reacted worse than she did at the mere sight of the Sharingan-user.

An amusing memory of a shinobi from Oto came to mind.

They were battling on water when the nin did something rather… disgusting in front of them.

Kisame-san refused using any water jutsu while in that lake.

Itachi grinned inwardly.

There was a ringing silence in the room, and Sakura did not like it one bit. Then again, she was used to the quiet. Being around Sasuke did that much to increase the medic's tolerance for it. She had to admit though, she had anticipated Itachi to be less talkative than his little brother. But he had been able to engage in a conversation with her, however awkward it may have been. Perhaps he was only being polite? If so, Sakura had to resist the urge to blush scarlet for his being courteous with her.

The Uchiha tilted his head. "You do not trust me, do you?"

"No." Came an immediate response. Sakura clamped a hand over her mouth and mentally punched herself.

She expected a crude remark or maybe him reducing her to a pile of ashes…

…but Itachi only chuckled.

Uchihas don't chuckle. They either grunt, scoff or respond by using the infamous 'hn'. Heck, Tom and Jerry gave out more sounds than the Uchiha. Had Itachi's sanity disappeared along with his vision? Or did Sakura inject too much medication earlier? The latter was entirely possible. But Shizune was there to oversee the healing process as well, and with the dark-haired medic's trained eye, she could've easily spotted any errors made… So there must be another reason.

It was then that Sakura concluded, the world was going to end pretty soon.

Kami, I don't want to die single.

"I don't blame you if you're hesitant to trust me," Itachi said suddenly as he laced his fingers over his lap. "I've done some cruel things in the past."

He bowed his head slightly, guilt evident in his dark, sightless eyes.

Sakura suddenly felt guilt weigh in her heart too. Why oh why couldn't she keep her big mouth shut?

"Yes, but you only did those things to protect Konoha and your brother, right? The whole village have forgiven you… and so has Sasuke-kun." The female said gently, daring to put a compassionate hand on the man's shoulder.

Itachi's eyes widened at the gesture.

"True. But that doesn't change the fact that I've stained my hands with the blood of my Clan. And being forgiven doesn't necessarily mean that I've regained the full trust of those around me."

"Take you, for example, " He gestured to the pink and red blur. "You have openly admitted that you don't trust me… and yet, you've forgiven me, have you not?'

Sakura bit her lip and gave some thought into it. "Yes."

Itachi leaned against the pillows and heaved another sigh. "I hope you understand now, medic-san."

She gazed at him with her emerald eyes as she let the words sink in. "Sasuke-kun," She muttered, letting her hand fall to her side.

The former missing-nin raised his brow.

"He was the same as you. He betrayed Konoha as well… and when he returned, the people didn't trust him much either," She held her clipboard to her chest, as she gazed sadly at the older Uchiha. "But they've begun to believe in him again over time. What makes you think they can't do the same to you?"

Her voice was soft and shy, but Itachi felt a moving power behind it. It never occurred to him that someone he didn't know personally would make a move to actually show kindness to him. Or was it just pity? Fear? Itachi didn't know. Perhaps the Hokage had ordered her to make him feel… at home. Why else would a pink headed stranger act so nice to him, knowing full well that he had the heart to kill his own flesh and blood?

Sakura watched the man. He seemed befuddled and hesitant to believe her words. Maybe it was that missing-nin instinct to not trust anyone…

"The citizens of Konoha don't bear deep grudges, Uchiha-san. Well, most of them, anyway." Sakura chuckled and gave him a smile… not that he could see it.

Itachi nodded slowly.

"Medic-san, where is my brother?" He inquired, squinting his eyes in the hopes of trying to recognize the female.

Sakura blinked. "He's at Hokage Tower at the moment. Submitting reports…"

"Ah." He resumed his task of fiddling with the blankets.

The pink-haired shinobi continued to look at him. Her curious emerald eyes focused on his weary expression and the subtle heaving of his chest. Sakura felt oddly comfortable around him now. She actually yearned to hear his quiet voice and to see him smile again. It was rare to see an Uchiha smile like Itachi did earlier. Almost as rare as Naruto agreeing to enter a library, or Sai attempting to do a kind gesture without unintentionally insulting someone.

And it was strange, really. She had been utterly terrified of this man before… and now, she felt quite fascinated with him.

Perhaps it wouldn't hurt to actually… befriend him?

"Uchiha-san?"

He blinked. "Yes?"

"I'd prefer it if you called me by my name. It's Haruno Sakura." She said smiling.

Haruno Sakura.

Itachi blinked again. "You are one of Sasuke's teammates, am I right?"

He remembered? "Yes, I am." She chuckled.

"If I recall correctly, you have a very… capacious forehead." He said innocently with absolutely no attempt of openly insulting her.

Sakura's eyes widened and a vein throbbed at the side of her head.

Shannaro!

"Uchiha-SAN. Do you find anything wrong with… 'capacious' foreheads?" The kunoichi said through clenched teeth.

Itachi sensed the malevolent aura emanating from the girl. His shoulders tensed slightly as he felt her chakra slowly building up. Had he offended her in some way? Her forehead being strangely big was a fact, and there wasn't anything wrong about saying something about it, right? His blind eyes started darting to the possible exits. The windows were to his right, judging from the light. But jumping out of a window would prove to be difficult considering his injuries. The door? He would have a hard time trying to get up from his bed since Sakura was near, not to mention finding the knob.

Perhaps he shouldn't have let her come closer after all.

"No. I don't see anything wrong with your forehead, Haruno-san. It is said that people who are gifted with such a trait are highly intellectual." He said truthfully.

"I am complimenting you, if you haven't noticed."

Oh.

"I-I see." Sakura flushed. A compliment? From the Uchiha Itachi? She was honored!

"Thank you."

Itachi suddenly released the breath that he hadn't realized he was holding.

The pink and red blur suddenly moved and walked towards the other side of the room. Probably towards the door. Sure enough, Itachi heard the doorknob being turned and the sounds from outside his room came rushing in. Busy murmurs, clacking shoes and boisterous laughter filled his ears for a brief moment.

And suddenly… suddenly… Itachi felt how good it was to be finally home...

Until he heard a woman scream and some doctors yelling, "It's coming out! Hurry, goddamnit!"

His eye twitched.

Sakura looked over her shoulder. "Uchiha-san, I'll come by later to check up on you. In the mean time, please get some rest." And she turned to leave. quite happy that she seemed to be in good terms with her patient.

"Haruno-san,"

"Yes?"

"Thank you."

Sakura's eyes widened for a brief moment, and then she smiled.

"You're welcome."

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Author-person: How was it? -ducks to dodge a volley of shuriken and kunai-

Please review!