Author's Note: Second part of the double update. I thought about adding more for the longest time because this chapter is so short, but I don't think it truly needs it. This chapter will conclude Act I and begin the middle arc, so I'm nervous to post it. Endless thanks to Girl-chama and SomebodyLost for betaing, I never would have had the courage to post it without your wisdom and support.

- o -

Spaces Between Stars

Chapter 7: The Great Gig in the Sky

[Canon-Saku, AU-verse]

- o -

Unfortunately for Sakura, her new resolution to listen to Naruto and Sasuke meant she had to actually listen to them. Even when the 'help' they suggested was training. With Itachi.

"No," he snapped, squeezing his eyes shut briefly. "If you don't pace yourself correctly on the inhale, you'll never control the intensity of exhalation. You should fill the bottom of the lungs with air first, because it has a much greater—"

"Capacity than the top, I know, I am a medic-nin," Sakura repeated for what felt like the hundredth time.

Itachi was unimpressed. "I respect that, but if you continue to rely on it as an excuse to avoid mastering your normal jutsu, we will get nowhere, and you will remain defenseless."

She was tempted to object to his questionable—and presumptuous—use of the word 'normal', but refrained. Barely. She grit her teeth.

"Just show me again," she demanded. "Please," she added, a gesture of goodwill.

He sighed, but demonstrated: upright spine, eyes forward, feet slightly apart. Quick hand seals, followed by a deep breath rolling upward through the lungs to smoothly eject fire into the air.

Sakura tried again. Upright spine, eyes forward, feet slightly apart. Slower hand seals, still clumsy with unfamiliarity, followed by a deep breath rolling upward through the lungs. The alien sensation of chakra pooling in her chest almost made her gasp and ruin her inhalation once again, but she was expecting it this time and didn't choke. Unlike her own techniques, ninjutsu was at least familiar to this body; it her was her brain that had no idea what to expect. The burning was far more intense than previously, which would have given her pause, but the pressure to exhale was overwhelming—

Sakura blew out an enormous fireball as Itachi ducked for cover. Far downwind the training field, Naruto and Sasuke froze mid-spar to stare at her, their eyebrows charred. A long path of charred grass connected them, smoke curling into the air.

Sakura coughed awkwardly, throat raw. "Um. Sorry."

Itachi sat down in the remaining grass and shook his head, looking forlorn as a sculptor after someone took a sledgehammer to his life's work. "That's worse. You're unpredictable. That's worse than lacking ability. You could injure a teammate, injure yourself, jeopardize a mission objective, provide an enemy with a weakness to exploit—"

Sakura growled in frustration, interrupting the rant. "Itachi, I'm not here to go on missions! I just want to go home. Can't we just focus on the Torikae—on the thing that will actually fix everything?"

He nodded tiredly. "You're assuming too much, but yes, I agree that's what we should do. That's why you need to relearn ninjutsu, or your medical techniques at the very least."

Sakura stared expectantly. When no elaboration was forthcoming, she consciously had to try to lower her blood pressure. "So, are you just going to leave me to flounder in the dark and guess at the connection between ninjutsu and the Torikae, or are you going to say something actually useful?"

He was deep in consideration for a moment before meeting her eyes. Then he looked away.

This time, instead of getting angry, Sakura plopped herself down next to him. She felt him stiffen in surprise, but he didn't stir. They sat like that for a moment, not speaking, watching the treetops rustle with squirrels in the distance.

Then Sakura reached over and sucker punched him in the gut.

There was very little chakra in it, but Sakura's knowledge of anatomy gave her exceptional accuracy. Itachi choked, doubling over, the wind knocked clean from his lungs. She sat listening to his gasps, neither angry nor vindicated.

"You know why you didn't see that coming?" she asked, knowing he wouldn't be able to answer until he got his breath back. She paused politely all the same. "It's because you don't know anything about me. Of course you can't predict me. I'm a stranger."

He continued to struggle for air, but she was patient. His lungs would refill soon enough. She continued: "It's also understandable that you hate me. You love her, and you lost her. And instead you've got me, an unpredictable stranger occupying her body, confusing everything. You love her, and all of you know it, but no one will acknowledge it because of politics. If nothing else, I was right about one thing—this village is full of cowards."

She could hear his breathing beginning to stabilize and knew she needed to wrap this up. "But I get it. I get why you don't trust me or talk to me, given all that. But I hope that punch reminded you that not trusting me won't protect you. We are on the same side whether we trust each other or not—apparently this team is the only one who even wants her back for the right reasons—and we'll just have to get to know each other until we trust one another. And the only way to do that is to talk. I already promised Naruto and Sasuke I would do my best to open up, and now I'll promise you, too."

He coughed a final time before sitting up. His eyes were tinged red from the force of his hacks, but they met hers with new resolve. His expression was a mix of caution and clarity, as though he was really only seeing her for the first time now. "I am deeply sorry for striking you before. There is no excuse for that, and I've never been more ashamed of anything in my life."

Sakura bit back her surprise. "Uh, I guess my chosen method of making my point is not totally unrelated to that," she hedged, considering. "I am still pretty livid, and I don't forgive you yet."

"I didn't ask you to."

"Well, I guess you don't have to forgive me for punching you, then."

They sat for another long moment, lapsing into silence. But it was no longer an uncomfortable kind. The sounds of Naruto and Sasuke sparring in the distance were almost soothing. A shared familiarity. Eventually, Itachi spoke up again.

"There's a secret vault outside Konoha."

Sakura turned to look at him, brow furrowed. "What?"

"A Haruno vault. Sakura doesn't think anyone knows about it but us. The location is vague, but it's mentioned in the family record books she keeps hidden in her armory. I'd hoped if you learned enough ninjutsu to defend yourself, our team could leave Konoha and search for it."

Sakura had to take her time to absorb all that. "What do you think is inside?"

Itachi exhaled. "I have no idea. Information about the Torikae, I hope—especially its effects on humans, and its relationship to celestial events. Anything might help. Even if you mastered the Torikae tomorrow, I can't imagine reversing it will be as easy as we wish."

She frowned at that, having quashed the same fear for some time. They had no choice but to try. "Um, wouldn't leaving Konoha just to help me get my mind sorted be going directly against the Board?"

He nodded. "It would."

"Oh," Sakura said, blowing out a breath. "I guess I have to take back what I said about you being a coward, then. You really must love her."

The fatigue etched in the lines under his eyes was deep. "Please don't tell anyone. It can only cause grief."

Sakura was beginning to feel genuinely sorry for him. For all of them, really. This Konoha may not have suffered from foreign wars, but its internal battles seemed to leave scars on its citizens that were just as profound in their own way.

"I won't tell."

- o -

Naruto and Sasuke nearly knocked Sakura over in their eagerness to get into her house. Itachi didn't gasp, attempt to intervene, or otherwise treat her like she was made of glass. Sakura raised her brows in approval at him before turning accusing eyes on the other two.

"You're just going to leave them there like that?" she asked, glancing pointedly at the shinobi sandals that had been haphazardly thrown in the general direction of the shoe rack.

Both looked suitably abashed. "Always with the least welcome similarities," Sasuke muttered, not without a trace of bitterness. But he did put his shoes away neatly.

Before she could reply, he'd dashed straight for the kitchen. The sound of the refrigerator door opening, then immediately closing, puzzled her.

A head of black hair peeked around the wall and into the foyer. "Uh, I guess I should ask...can we still eat your food?"

Sakura shrugged. "It's, like, not my food?"

Naruto hesitated en route to the kitchen himself. "Yeah, but everything in this house is kinda under your care for the time being. So...can we eat it?"

She resisted the urge to roll her eyes. "Just do whatever you normally do."

Two victorious expressions flashed before they disappeared in a hurry. Interest piqued, Sakura padded after them into the kitchen, Itachi following behind her.

To her surprise, the fridge was stocked full of—well, everything. "Is all this for one person?" she asked, watching in awe as Naruto and Sasuke tore through multiple containers of leftovers.

Naruto laughed. "Nah. Sakura loves to cook so she always makes enough for the rest of us, too."

Sakura's eyes were round. "She can cook?"

"Oh yeah," Sasuke said, stuffing his face without bothering to warm it up. "She's the best. Learned from her dad." He swallowed. "Can't you?"

"Of course," Sakura replied, cheeks pink. She caught Itachi's amused look, as though he somehow knew she was lying. "Well, enough food. We're here for business," she bristled, brushing past them and moving through the dining room toward the stairs.

Taking advantage of a moment to herself, Sakura explored the second floor: multiple bedrooms; one bathroom with a fancy claw foot tub, another a traditional ofuro; a small library with a balcony looking out onto the roofs of the rest of the complex. The view would have been lovely if the buildings weren't so damaged from weather and neglect.

Sakura stumbled across the weapons' room last. Her eyes widened with envy. Could other Sakura really use all these exotic tools effectively?

Could this body? Could she?

The door creaked open behind her before she could pursue the thought further. The three boys filed in, looking fed and happy. Itachi wasted no time weaving through the stacks of weapons to reach the bed against the wall. He dropped to his knees and groped beneath it, pulling out a box and laying the items inside carefully on the bed.

Feeling a little bit like an intruder but overcome by curiosity, Sakura made her way over to check out her counterpart's stuff while Itachi was inexplicably studying the empty bottom of the box. She browsed the photo album on top first. The faces of her parents were uncannily identical; grandparents too. Other Sakura had countless other relatives that simply didn't exist in her world, however. There were several younger siblings, aunts and uncles, and what looked to be a hilarious number of cousins. The Haruno clearly had well-established family rituals—the pictures were often taken at special ceremonies, everyone in formal dress, enviable banquet table peeking out from the backdrop. What the occasions were for, she couldn't possibly imagine. She gently put the album aside.

A very old but well-kept kunai caught her eye next—especially the Uchiha symbol engraved on the front of its wooden box. She lifted it carefully, mindful of its sharpness. After attempting katon earlier, she was able to recognize the warm sensation coursing through her as the response of fire-natured chakra in her system.

"Does Sakura have a natural affinity for fire? Or did she learn it?" she asked.

Itachi replied, but didn't take his focus off the empty box. "Her natural affinity is earth, but she's become even more proficient with fire over time. She can use every basic elemental release except lightning."

"Wow," Sakura said, unable to hide her admiration. Of herself. What gives?

"One of her greatest strengths is how good a student she is," Naruto explained. "She's flexible and can pick up on many things as long as she has solid instruction."

"Never could learn genjutsu from our taichou, though," Sasuke noted, needling Itachi, who frowned.

Interesting. Sakura considered herself to be a particularly competent student, having been top of her class during her Academy years, and later earning a coveted spot as Tsunade's apprentice. Kakashi had been so preoccupied trying to corral Sasuke and Naruto when they were young that she couldn't help but wonder what she might have learned if she'd had undivided attention. Would she also know multiple elemental releases? Kakashi had long ago mentioned she was a genjutsu type, but never pursued it. How odd that other Sakura, who seemed as skilled a student as herself, couldn't learn genjutsu from someone as proficient as Itachi.

"She clearly had no trouble picking up a little fuuinjutsu, either," Itachi noted dryly, giving up on the box. "I can't do anything with this. Naruto, can you manage?"

"Yes, taichou," the blond responded immediately, setting to work. Sakura let out an impressed breath when a seal appeared from nowhere beneath his hands. A few moments later, the ostensibly empty bottom gave way to a hidden chamber. Naruto grinned at Sakura. "I taught her that one."

Itachi lifted out three bulky tomes, ancient covers worn and faded. All four huddled together as he paged through them. They were definitely records. The handwritten script was so old and stylized it was difficult to understand.

"Have you read all of them?" Sakura asked the group in general, struggling to make heads or tails of anything.

"I've read parts," Itachi responded slowly, trying to find a specific section. "Most of them seem to be in partial code. Not even Sakura can read them fully."

"Oh," she replied, disappointed. "But you think maybe the vault...?"

"Holds a key to the code? We can only hope," he said grimly.

Naruto's blond brow furrowed. "If we can't read it, how are we supposed to know where the vault is?"

"Here," Itachi announced, finally stopping. "There are directions of a sort. But they're not simple."

A beautifully inked map of the shinobi world sprawled across two pages. Sakura was relieved to note that it was reasonably familiar despite its age and existence in another world. That certainly simplified things.

"Is this still accurate?" she checked.

"Just about," Naruto replied. "A few minor countries have been created since then, but the five great shinobi nations are about the same size and position today."

She nodded. "My world looks similar. But Fire country is separated from Earth to the northwest and Wind to the southwest by River Country...and these two lands housing Amegakure and Kusagakure," she offered, gesturing to the unlabeled spaces between the three nations.

"That seems to be the case here as well," Sasuke pointed out, "except the Hidden Villages of Rain and Grass didn't exist yet. The unnamed land they're part of looks similar in size to what it is today, at least."

Sakura frowned. "Not only are those two villages not marked, there's no indication of where the Haruno vault might be hidden." She looked up at Itachi. "What makes you think this is even a map there?"

Itachi pointed to the tiny script in the map's corner—two haiku using modern-enough kanji. She had to squint to make out the first:

Between wind and fire

Connecting earth and water

Rain falls unnoticed

Right beneath it was a second:

The howl of a wolf

Lightning opens the earth's heart

Companions part ways

Naruto, Sasuke, and Sakura stared for a good long minute before Sasuke voiced their collective frustration:

"The fuck does that mean?"

Itachi hummed. "We're far from sure, but Sakura and I speculate the first haiku represents the location, and the second how to get inside it."

Naruto drew his brows together. "I don't understand."

"'Between wind and fire, connecting earth and water'...it could mean geography. Assuming River Country instead of Water Country proper, Amegakure would literally be in the middle of them all. The word 'unnoticed' suggests something hidden there."

"Would Amegakure have even existed? It's not listed on the map," Sasuke pressed.

"No. But the land itself would still have been exceptionally rainy. Instead of going by the boundaries of specific countries, if you only consider the unique elemental features they're defined by—many bodies of water in River, the heat of Fire, the windstorms common to Wind, and so on—a location somewhere near Ame makes the most sense with the poem."

Sakura was intrigued. "It seems like a leap, but I suppose it's a possible interpretation...did you ever try to go there to look?"

Itachi nodded. Naruto and Sasuke's jaws fell open. "What!? Without us?"

Itachi looked a little guilty. "Sakura and I were returning from a guard mission nearby once and took advantage of our proximity. It was purely opportunistic. The country surrounding Ame is not a huge space but it was still too big to effectively search, and we only dared take an extra day or two. We found nothing."

Naruto and Sasuke were a bit injured. "I guess you two were up to all kinds of things behind our backs," Sasuke muttered.

Before Itachi could mumble any awkward denials, Sakura deigned to rescue him. "Okay, so maybe there's something around Ame, but that doesn't explain the second haiku. What the hell does a wolf have to do with anything?"

But Naruto's eyes were bright with excitement. "The moon! Wolves howl at the moon, the Haruno symbol is the moon—maybe you have to do something under moonlight, or on a full moon—to 'open the earth's heart'—like an underground chamber— "

Sasuke caught onto Naruto's zeal. "That makes sense. The moon is a common symbol for autumn—would you have to wait until then?"

Sakura shook her head. "But the lightning mentioned in the next line—that's a symbol for summer, which is a contradiction. It might not refer to a specific season at all."

Itachi stared down at the words in thought. "We never had a good theory for the second haiku. We hoped its meaning would be become clearer after we found the vault."

Sakura privately wondered if the ominous final line didn't scare them away from trying too hard—'companions part ways'.

Well. Sakura had no companions to lose and everything to gain. Her jaw set with determination, eyes gleaming. "Let's do it."

Three heads whipped up to stare at her. "What?"

"Let's go," she said, standing and brushing the dust off her hands. "Why wait?"

Naruto held up two hands, shaking his head. "We can't. The Board is banning travel west of Konoha next week, remember?"

Sasuke scoffed. "As if we could leave without an assigned mission objective in the first place."

Sakura was appalled. "What is this, a prison? You guys can't even take vacations?"

"We are professional ninja village, Sakura, we can't just disappear," Naruto replied in his teacher-voice. "There are protocols. We have to put in for a leave of absence, provide enough notification to find replacements for our regular duties—"

"—which I understand you're not even performing anyway due to this whole mess with me," Sakura returned coolly. "If travel is banned next week, let's just leave now. That way you're not technically breaking any laws, just protocol. Right?"

Naruto and Sasuke looked to Itachi for support, but were aghast to find him deep in thought instead of flatly objecting.

"The biggest concern isn't going against the Board," he began, nearly giving Naruto and Sasuke a collective heart attack. "It's safety. Our team can't currently function the way it usually does. Your own medical jutsu is severely handicapped, your ability to use your body's ordinary ninjutsu is inconsistent at best, and you can't use your bloodline limit at all. How would you fight?"

Sakura bit her lip. "I still have taijutsu, which I normally enhance with precise chakra control. But I can use it just fine without chakra. My medical knowledge gives me an added advantage in hand-to-hand combat, so I don't have to rely on brute strength. If I could get my hands on some tools—senbon, chakra scalpels, ingredients for poison—I could supplement my offense with those for now."

Itachi looked at her seriously. "You'd still be tremendously vulnerable compared to what you're used to, and would have to rely primarily on the rest of us to ensure your safety. Are you really comfortable with that?"

Sakura didn't need as much time to consider as one may have thought. "It's either that, or wait kami-knows-how-long while I train. And I imagine you'll all be back on active duty as soon as the village can demand it, so leaving later will be even harder. You guys are supposed to be legendary, right? Couldn't you just treat this like a three-man escort mission?"

The three shinobi glanced at each other, coming to a silent agreement. Naruto spoke up.

"You are slightly more important than any ordinary escort mission," he began, the understatement obvious. As to which Sakura the 'you' referred to, she was less sure; it was becoming impossible to separate herself from her other self. "Only because of that did we hesitate. We're not even facing enemies, so yeah, you're right, we should be more than enough for a mission like this, barring some unexpected catastrophe. If you trust us that much."

Sakura nodded, chest swelling with hope. "I do. But are you lot really okay with defying the Board?"

Determination set in each face. Sasuke spoke up. "If it comes down to which we care about more—the Board's opinion or getting our teammate back—that's not a choice at all." Naruto grunted his agreement, getting pumped.

Suddenly, devious smiles creeped onto faces all around. One even tugged at Itachi's lips.

They packed in a hurry.

- o -

Itachi did one last check of their supplies under the cover of darkness. They'd met in a clearing just outside of Konoha's west gate, dressed in black cloaks instead of their usual uniforms. Sakura was armed to the teeth with multiple poisons, medicines, and all the medic-friendly weapons she could carry, but she was still apprehensive. She checked her pouch for her stash of extra ingredients and equipment for the third time.

Sasuke caught her looking and chuckled. "We'll protect you. Relax."

Sakura let out a strained smile, trying to keep her ego in check. "Haven't been protected since I was a genin. Can't say I'm a fan."

Itachi was all business. "Naruto, you double-checked the Code Black preparations?"

He snorted. "Triple-checked, taichou. We're good to go."

"Sasuke, we've got enough rations for two weeks?"

"Two and a half, if we're careful."

Itachi turned to Sakura. "Sakura, you're carrying—"

"—Enough poison to kill a dozen elephants? You bet."

He nodded tersely. "V formation. This is not an ANBU mission and Sakura is not used to our usual code names, so use your civilian ones. Keep pace at twenty-five miles an hour—we're not in a hurry. Any sign of danger, the cue is 'fire'. All other stops, 'ice'. Standard crisis codes. We'll go for four hours before breaking for water. Any questions?"

"No, taichou," Naruto and Sasuke chorused, Sakura piping in a beat later. This team's style was much more militaristic than she was used to.

The energy was practically crackling off Naruto and Sasuke's skin. Itachi gave them a wary glance. "Twenty-five," he reiterated. "Not a race."

"Yes, taichou." They crouched in sprinter's stance, so Sakura got down and did the same.

"Go," Itachi said. And they were off.

Sakura was delighted to discover that her body was in peak condition. Back home she'd been stuck inside the hospital for so long while barred from missions, she would have had to practice a long while before being able to keep up with this pace—even though she had a feeling they'd slowed down more than usual.

The wind in the treetops whipped through her hair in the best way. She felt power rippling through her legs and regained a measure of confidence with each step. This level of fitness was comparable to her own during the height of the war. Taijutsu would come easily. What did she even need chakra for?

Sakura grinned.

Her enthusiasm was short-lived. They had only run for an hour and a half, just beginning to clear the third band of forest surrounding Konoha when Itachi called, "Ice."

The team jerked to a halt immediately, dropping to the ground. Sakura felt her adrenaline plummet disappointingly. "What's up?" she asked, secretly impressed with herself for barely breathing hard.

"Smoke," he said, Sharingan active. "In the town ahead. Sasuke, where are we precisely?"

Sasuke cross-referenced the compass with their map. He squinted up at the stars, using his Sharingan to see beyond the tree branches. "Just over 11 degrees north latitude, roughly forty miles due west."

Itachi paused. "Could be Remu."

Naruto snorted. "Impossible. It must be an ordinary fire. It was just a random group of missing-nin doing the raids, there's no way Konoha intel could be off by a week for a group like that."

Itachi was not convinced. "Mistakes happen. We should check."

Naruto shook his head vehemently. "We're under no obligation to do so. We're not the hired protection team, and we're out here unauthorized. If we're spotted, it won't matter who our fathers are. It's one thing to accept punishment after accomplishing our objective, but to risk everything for nothing is just—"

"Insane," Sasuke finished. "Our priority is Sakura. I agree with Naruto. It's unlikely it's anything more than a town fire anyway."

"That's still an emergency. Remu is a civilian village," Itachi argued. "I believe we have an ethical responsibility. And it's possible for us to investigate without being identified. We brought masks for this exact kind of situation."

Naruto looked like he wanted to argue further, but a glance from Itachi shut him up. "However," the captain continued, turning to Sakura, "this decision affects Sakura the most. The final choice is hers."

All eyes turned toward her. Sakura knew the other two wouldn't like it, but she agreed with Itachi. As a medic-nin, she could think of nothing more irresponsible than walking away when others were in danger for purely selfish reasons. "We need to check," she said.

"It's done," Itachi declared, all traces of protest evaporating from Naruto and Sasuke's faces. He tossed masks to each—a hawk for Sasuke, a crow for himself, a wolf for Sakura. She noted with amusement that Naruto's was a fox, wondering if he, presumably with no Kyuubi inside him, even had any idea of the cosmic coincidence. At least they made it easy for her to remember who was who.

"Do not approach or engage anyone. We'll scout first. Stay together."

"Yes, taichou," all three chorused, finally as one.

"Go."

It didn't take long before they picked up on screams in the air. The ambient temperature was increasing as well, and Sakura suddenly felt stifled by her cloak. The roar of flames came into full view as they slowed just on the outskirts of town, several buildings already engulfed. Smoke belched into the air, making it even harder to see through the masks. Sakura could barely hear Itachi call "ice" over the terrified shouting in the streets.

They huddled. "Does anyone sense hostile chakra?" Itachi asked.

"I can't tell," Sasuke complained. "There are too many signatures nearby, and they're all chaotic from panic."

"Same," Naruto seconded, frustration evident in his voice.

"We'll take a calculated risk then," Itachi concluded. "Rescue who you can, children first. Stay within sight of at least one teammate. If you can't see a teammate, you can't proceed. Do not engage with shinobi under any circumstances. Be mindful of respiratory damage, it will sneak up on you regardless of the masks. Reconvene here in fifteen for a breathing check. Questions?"

Three heads shook.

"Go."

They went. Sakura aimed for a building with wide windows across the street from the one Naruto was gunning for and adjacent to Itachi's. Her eyes watered through the mask, and she had to constantly blink tears away. But it was hardly her first time diving headfirst into a fire.

She ignored the bodies on the floor, aiming for the sound of children crying upstairs. The fire had burned a huge hole through the front of the house, making for good visibility. She charged up the stairs, flames licking at her heels. She managed to snatch up a toddler and an infant under each arm before the roof collapsed. They made it into the street with only a moment to spare.

Sakura abandoned them in the street with barely a murmur of comfort. The screaming around her was overwhelming, and there was no time to coddle anyone whose life wasn't immediately threatened. She hoped she'd have time to examine them afterward, if the town was still standing.

Sakura went through another four houses in ten minutes, systematic and careful. She'd lost sight of everyone but Itachi by the time she charged into a store that had lost most of its eastern wall and was tilting dangerously. It took her a precious moment to realize the screaming was coming from elsewhere. Just as she was about to leave, a thud made her pause.

She turned slowly, knowing something was wrong. The wide back of a man greeted her. He was not running or screaming, but calmly plucking items from the back shelves and putting them in a sack. Sakura was hit with the realization that this was a weapons shop, and this man was one of the missing-nin here to steal from it. Her poisoned senbon automatically slipped from her sleeves into her palms.

Before she could yell for help, he sensed her and whirled.

Although the sweat was running down Sakura's body in thick streams, her blood froze. He wore a paper mask to protect himself from smoke, but had it pulled down under his chin for the moment. Perhaps that was why it took her a heartbeat longer to recognize him than it should have—

She had never seen Kakashi's face without his mask before.

His lips pulled back over his teeth in a smile, grey stubble creating an unfamiliar shadow on his jaw. Two identical black eyes glinted at her through the red haze.

"Shinobi, huh? How'd you guess we were coming so early?"

The unfamiliar tenor of his voice sent her reeling. It was sandpaper and scorn. Even when he reached back over his shoulder to slide a tantou from its sheath, she found herself paralyzed.

He pointed the blade toward her carelessly, securing his smoke mask on his face with the other hand. "I don't know what village you're from, but if you're not aggressive, we've got no issue. I'll see myself out."

Before he could take a step, however, a shout came from outside.

A body crashed through the roof. Itachi flipped to his feet, his own tantou already drawn. With one hand motion, a murder of crows was released into the night air, black feathers stained orange in the glow. Naruto and Sasuke were by their side in a heartbeat, singed with soot but crouched in ready stances.

Sakura looked on in amazement as Itachi tensed, about to disobey his own orders. Adrenaline heightened her senses, slowing time down just enough for her body to react on its own. Somehow, she knew what Itachi would do before he even moved.

Before the word, "Stop," had fully left her lips, she'd beaten him to Kakashi, catching the base of his blade in mid air as safely as possible with both hands. Blood ran down her wrists, but she couldn't feel it through the relief coursing through her body. Her pink hair swirled about her face from when she'd pulled her mask free mid-stride, so Kakashi would know her. So he would understand and accept her gift. So he would run.

But this wasn't her sensei.

Sakura felt nothing when a tantou slipped through her back. She stared down at herself in disbelief, clinically noting the glint of steel protruding from her ribs. She heard herself gasp when he yanked it out, flesh releasing the sword with a squelch of protest. There was no pain, or fear. But warmth cascaded down her front and back, soaking her clothes. She stumbled forward, vaguely aware of an inhuman voice roaring in her ears, but did not collapse. She turned her head to look at the man who'd killed her.

The cold indifference in his eyes burned her more fiercely than the inferno around them. Sakura could not recognize him through it.

She fell then, not quite aware of arms catching her, or of two deadly dark blurs chasing Kakashi into the night. She wasted long, precious seconds struggling to release a Yin seal that simply wasn't there. Of its own accord, one of Sakura's ruined hands ripped open her thigh pouch, feeling for the right shaped baggie. With the help of another pair of hands, she positioned it over herself and tore it open, letting the blood clotting powder run freely but ineffectually into her wound.

"Missed—my heart—" she gurgled, blood-filled lung collapsing, unseeing eyes glued to the ceiling. Her other hand was pulling healing chakra from her forehead, drop by drop, letting it merge with the blood coating her fingers so she could press it to her dying chest.

"Don't talk," someone may have murmured, helping her maintain pressure on the wound, "codeblackcodeblackcodeblack…"

Sakura saw crow feathers and stars. Rotating galaxies of blinding light, spinning at inconceivable speeds across the empty void above her.

"On—purpose—" she wheezed, consciousness fading.

"Shut up, Sakura, you're fucking dying—"

Then there was a flash of light, and everything went still.

- o -

A/N: I'm sorry. I do have a plan. Forgive meeeeeee~