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neraawritesxx · 7 years

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Enigma

naruto couples event - day 2

prompt: favorite non-canon pairing // role swap pairing: kakashi x sakura genre: romance // humor word count: 4,340

summary: “She can’t be all that great,” Kakashi declared in an assured tone. “I mean…look at her, she has pink hair.”

author’s note: I have a strange obsession with age-swap AU’s with this pairing. All I can imagine is Kakashi being a cheeky brat throughout his teenage years. Here’s to my favorite copy-nin trying to awkwardly handle his feelings.

-o-

When Kakashi was twelve, he passed her off as insignificant.

-o-

Obito whistled; a low, appreciative sound that quickly morphed into a chuckle as the ground shook beneath their feet.

"…Guys, I think I'm in love," The dark-haired twelve-year-old declared.

Rin hummed in agreement, seemingly unphased by her long-time crush's sudden proclamation of affection for another woman. After being on his team for the last five months, this was far from the strangest thing she heard come out of the Uchiha's mouth.

"She's so strong," Rin whispered in awe, short chocolate locks bouncing as her head pivoted back and forth, eyes following the spar occurring across the field.

Obito nodded his head, concurring. His Cheshire grin grew tenfold as he watched the limp body of their teacher fly across the training field, crashing into a tree trunk with a sickening crunch.

"Oh man…," Obito said, voice filled with unrepressed mirth. "She's kicking his ass!"

With every echoing twang of kunai meeting kunai, Rin's wonderment grew just as much as Obito's amusement.

"Do you think your cousin would introduce us?" She inquired, looking at the onyx-haired male out of the corner of her eye.

Obito turned towards her, tossing the thought around while his hand ran through his hair, lips drawn down in a tight-lipped frown. He was silent for a moment before he gave her a brief shake of his head.

"No," He commented, shifting black eyes back towards the scuffle going on a few yards away. "We have a better chance of getting sensei to quit eating ramen than we have of getting that ice prick to introduce us."

Rin deflated, shoulders slumping at the denial of her request.

The subject of their conversation stomped her foot with a loud, piercing battle cry and the ground opened up into a large, jagged fissure. Rin observed as the crater grew in size, attempting to swallow their teacher and his clones whole. The brunette grimaced when a piece of flying debris managed to catch their sensei in the shoulder.

Rin, ever the optimistic, then offered, "Maybe if she doesn't send him to the hospital, Naruto-sensei will introduce us?"

"I don't see what the big deal is," The third member of their party cut in with a bored tone.

Obito and Rin half turned, gazes drawn towards Kakashi, who sat a few feet away at the base of a tree. He seemed nonplused by the commotion going on around them, body lax and hunched over, sharpening his tanto with slow, precise strokes.

Obito bristled at Kakashi's nonchalance. "You're telling me that you wouldn't want to meet the Godaime's famed pupil personally?" The tone of his question was incredulous, borderline hysteric. "A woman said to be able to reduce a mountain to rubble with a flick of her wrist?!"

Kakashi remained unperturbed by the Uchiha's questions, finishing his task without so much as a glance in his teammates' direction.

Obito, never the one to be ignored, immediately went on the defensive, but before the young Uchiha could voice his continued complaints, Kakashi finally lifted his head.

The silver-haired genin flicked his gaze towards the fight, then shifted his dark eyes back to look at Obito, brow arched.

"She can't be all that great," Kakashi declared in an assured tone. "I mean…look at her…she has pink hair."

-o-

Over the next few years, Kakashi tried to understand her.

-o-

Naruto may not have been the most competent sensei, but he really wasn't that bad.

Sure, he was unhygienic most of the time, and his eating habits left something to be desired, but what he lacked in intelligence, he made up for in strength, dedication, and heart.

Their blond teacher shined bright like the sun. Obito was a lot like Naruto in that aspect; always joking, always smiling.

His sensei's lack of proper etiquette never stopped him from training his students to the best of his ability. Though Naruto's methods may have been questionable – because really, how could that bell test be useful – he still brought out the best in his students.

When Obito struggled with using his Sharingan, Naruto convinced his old teammate, Obito's cousin – or was it second cousin? Distant relative? Kakashi really couldn't keep up with the Uchiha family tree anymore – to help the young man with his family's kekkei genkai.

When Rin mentioned in passing that she was interested in studying medical ninjutsu, Naruto made sure to introduce her to certain hospital staff, who gladly took her under their wings.

When it became apparent that Kakashi was developing skills which were beyond what Naruto could teach him, their knuckleheaded teacher called up his father – the prematurely retired Fourth Hokage – to assess his ability. By the end of the day, both father and son promised to sponsor Kakashi for ANBU after he passed the jounin exams.

Since their graduation from the academy, for three long, long years, Naruto Uzumaki gave his all to his pupils. Kakashi had come to respect him immensely, despite his boisterous personality.

What Kakashi could never wrap his head around, however, was that anytime that woman was nearby – the one with the bubblegum pink hair and those vibrant jade eyes – his sensei turned into a blubbering, love-sick fool.

It wasn't just his teacher, though. She held this power over everyone.

Even Obito and Rin were both smitten with her.

The entire village knew her on a first name basis. Sakura Haruno was bright and lively and filled with so much happiness that she drew people in like a moth to a flame.

Yet, he seemed unaffected. Or at least he thought he was.

She was an enigma to him.

-o-

When Kakashi was fifteen, she kicked his ass.

-o-

"You don't like me very much, do you?"

Kakashi looked down from his perch on the tree branch. Sakura stood beneath his dangling legs, face upturned in his direction, a smile on her lips that made the corners of her eyes crinkle.

He must have been daydreaming because he didn't sense her approach. Kakashi could hear Naruto rattling off critiques while Obito and Rin sparred a few yards away.

"I don't know you," Kakashi returned coolly. "You very well can't dislike someone if you don't know them."

Sakura's stance shifted, petite hands coming to rest on her hips as her face contorted into an expression of mock hurt.

"Now that hardly seems fair, Kakashi-kun. I've trained with you on and off for the last three years. I've even been to some of your team dinners!"

The way his name rolled off her tongue made Kakashi uncomfortable, an odd twinge settling into the pit of his stomach.

He didn't like it. Not one bit.

"Just because you've been around doesn't change the fact that I still don't know a thing about you," He called down to her.

She pursed her lips in response, continuing to look up at him while seemingly pondering over some unvocalized thoughts. Kakashi immediately tensed under her scrutiny, fingers awkwardly picking at the bark of the tree branch he was perched upon. His palms became uncomfortably warm in his gloves, and he had to fight down the urge to run his hands over his thighs to quell the feeling.

Whatever it was that she was mulling over suddenly passed. Sakura cocked her head to the side, puffing at her bangs as they fell into her eyes with the movement. She was looking at him strangely, like a predator sizing up her prey. There was an odd glint in those viridian hues, and his stomach flip-flopped when her lips quirked into a small smirk.

"Fair enough," She stated in a tone that seemed a little too sweet. "How about a little spar to break the ice then?"

He furrowed his brow in confusion at her challenge, slipping from the tree branch to land gracefully in front of her.

"You want…to spar…with me?" Kakashi parroted, slowly.

With a curt bob of her head, Sakura confirmed that he had, in fact, heard her correctly. "That is unless you're too scared to step into the ring with me?"

"Oh! Kakashi's about to get his ass kicked!" Obito shouted from across the clearing, the others having halted their practice in lieu of the rising tension they sensed coming from their silver-haired teammate.

Kakashi frowned in the Uchiha's direction, the scowl pulling the material of his mask harshly against his cheeks. He looked back towards the woman in front of him, charcoal eyes taking in every detail, starting with her vibrant colored head and ending at her perfectly manicured toes.

There was no way this girl - who happened only to be a few inches taller than himself - could take him down. Something ugly reared its head, in the back of his mind, begging him to rise to the taunt. The thought of this woman challenging him, attacking his pride, didn't sit well with Kakashi. He didn't train as hard as he did; didn't dig himself out of the darkness of his late father's reputation, to be bested by some girl with pink hair.

It didn't matter that Sakura had the strength of one hundred men or that she could go toe to toe with his teacher. Kakashi himself had proven to be a difficult opponent for even Naruto at times; he could easily outsmart her.

"I won't go easy on you," The silver-haired male warned.

Her answer to his statement was a broad, feral grin.

Kakashi was sore from the spar for the following week.

That was the first time a girl had ever beaten him.

-o-

When Kakashi was eighteen, she saved his life.

-o-

He awoke to ringing in his ears and pristine, white lights blinding him.

Kakashi saw double, then triple, before he screwed his eyes shut in an attempt to gather his bearings. The world continued to spin even behind his eyelids, and he had to bite back the bile that began to rise in his throat. For a while, all he could do was lay there, prone, and force himself to breathe. He tried to remember where he was and what he was doing previously, but nothing came to mind.

After shifting uncomfortably on the lumpy mattress for a few minutes, Kakashi realized where he was.

A hospital.

Then it came back to him.

His first ANBU mission.

It was an assassination assignment; a local gangster was causing problems in a small village about two kilometers outside of Konoha. He completed his task quickly and efficiently, but he was spotted during his escape. A fight ensued, and the last thing he remembered was being thrown off balance by an explosion right before a large piece of the ceiling came crashing down on him.

He released a gurgled groan, opening his eyes once more. The harsh lighting caused him to grimace, but he didn't shy away from it. Struggling, he tried to sit up, but only managed an inch or so before the exertion became too much and he fell back with a small huff.

"Woah there, don't try and move so quickly," A soft voice called out to him.

Sluggishly, Kakashi turned his head to the left, taking in the sight of Naruto unceremoniously sprawled in a plastic hospital chair next to the bed. The blond's head was cocked at an angle that couldn't have been comfortable, but he seemed unbothered, his teacher’s soft snores filling the silence of the room.

Something soothing and warm ran across the back of his neck, and Kakashi tensed. He tried to turn his head in the opposite direction, but his neck was stiff, and his eyes began to feel unbearably heavy.

"Rest Kakshi-kun," The voice murmured. "We've got you. You're safe."

The darkness was a welcomed relief.

When he awoke again, Kakashi was unsure of how much time had passed, but it was now Obito and Rin who were with him in the hospital room.

"Oh, thank god!" Rin cried out, reaching to grasp his hand tightly between her own. "Finally, you're awake!"

"You look like shit man," Obito joked placing his hand on Rin's shoulder. The inky-haired male might have looked chipper, but Kakashi noted his stiffness, the awkward posture that had Obito standing ramrod straight. Leave it to an Uchiha to hide their real feelings behind insults. Kakashi must have looked horrible to make Obito apprehensive.

He grunted, licking his chapped lips while trying to sit up. The movement came more natural to him this time around, but he was still sore. Rin quickly scrambled to his side, offering her assistance. She helped him lean forward, taking a majority of his weight while Obito organized the pillows behind him so that he would be adequately supported while upright.

"How long have I been out?" Kakashi croaked his inquiry. He coughed after the use of his voice, then tried – and failed – to clear his throat.

Rin reached for the pitcher of water that was on the bedside table, pouring him a glass before she pressed it into his hand. Kakashi drank it greedily; the cold, crisp liquid was a welcomed relief. When he was finished, she plucked the cup from his grasp, refilled it, and then handed it back to him.

"You've been out for almost a week," Obito stated, answering his earlier question. "When you didn't return as scheduled, Hokage-sama sent out a two-man squad to retrieve you."

Kakashi mulled over this information for a moment before he asked, "Who found me?"

"Naruto-sensei and Sakura-chan," Rin chimed in. "You're extremely fortunate Kakashi, by the time they found you, you had already lost so much blood…" Her voice trailed off quietly, but the implication wasn't lost on anyone in the room.

"They raced to get you back here," Obito cut in, voice surprisingly subdued. "Neither of them left your side since they brought you back. Sakura-chan was the one who healed you. She stayed to observe your recovery over the last couple of days. Naruto-sensei finally dragged her out of the hospital this morning, telling her she needed to get some proper rest."

There was suddenly an odd feeling in Kakashi's chest, an awkward pang that caused him to squirm under the thin sheets of the hospital bed. He suddenly felt far too hot.

Later that day, after Rin and Obito had said their goodbyes, Kakashi realized that the uneasy feeling from earlier had nothing to do with his injuries.

-o-

When Kakashi was nineteen, he found out she liked dogs.

-o-

Naruto may not have been their teacher anymore, but that didn't stop the three of them from seeking out his advice when it came to sharpening their skills. Their ex-sensei wanted to work with them on tracking, more explicitly, tracking each other in case any emergency situations.

With Kakashi off in ANBU, Obito slowly getting sucked into his clan politics, and Rin delving into her work at the hospital, they barely had time to train with each other on a regular basis. Getting together again was a nice reprieve from the daily stresses that came with being a ninja.

They had just finished running a through a drill with Kakashi's ninken when she broke through the tree line. Immediately, all of the dogs were on guard, but at Naruto's cheerful greeting towards his best friend, they simultaneously relaxed.

"Naruto, your father is looking for you," The rosette stated during her approach. "I think he and Shishou have a mission for you."

"Ne, Sakura-chan, can't you ever bring me news that's not work related?" The blonde questioned with a whine.

Sakura chuckled but chose not to answer his pouted inquiry. Instead, she turned to regard the three younger ninjas with a smile on her face, "Hi guys! Training hard?"

"Hi, Sakura-chan!" Obito greeted, excitedly.

Rin rolled her eyes skyward, nudging her boyfriend none too gently with her elbow. "Down boy," The brunette reprimanded. "I swear you still act like you're a genin." She turned back towards the older woman with a grin. "How are you, Sakura-sama?"

The pinkette rubbed the back of her neck sheepishly at the honorific. "Rin-chan, we're not at the hospital. You don't have to address me so formally."

A small flush of embarrassment colored Rin's cheeks. "Sorry. Force of habit."

Sakura dismissed the apology wave of her hand. "Don't worry about it, were friends, after all, right?"

"Yo, Sakura-chan," Kakashi called, drawing the attention of everyone in the clearing. "If the knucklehead is leaving, do you want to take his place in the drill?"

A sudden stillness descended on the training grounds, four pairs of eyes shifting to regard him with varying levels of surprise. Though they had been on more agreeable terms since Sakura had beaten him in that spar four years prior, Kakashi still chose to interact with the older woman when only when strictly necessary.

It was a habit that he seemed to be breaking out of ever since her involvement in his stint at the hospital.

Before anyone could question the sudden change in Kakashi's demeanor, Pakkun broke free from the gaggle of canines, trotting over until he stood in front of Sakura, sniffing the air around her curiously. Whatever scent he discovered, it seemed to make him happy because suddenly, the pug's tail started wagging furiously.

"Boss!" The dog called in his usual gruff voice. "She smells just like my strawberry shampoo!"

-o-

Half a year later, they went on a mission together.

-o-

It was a simple B-Rank escort mission. A Konoha diplomat named Yuko needed to be escorted to the Fire Daimyo’s estate. There was an upcoming council meeting in the village and politicians were beginning voice their concerns to the Daimyo in hopes of gaining favor when it came to passing new regulations within Konoha. Naruto had been out on a solo mission at the time, and the only other person Tsunade trusted with this assignment was Sakura. Without a team of her own, the Hokage had selected Kakashi and Obito to go with her.

Rin, having become a prominent part of the staff in the hospital, couldn't be granted leave. It was terrible enough Tsunade had assigned Sakura to this mission; she could not afford to send two med-nins.

Everything had been going smoothly for the first half of their mission. The client was a middle-aged man who immediately took a liking to all three of them. Yuko was charming, trading lighthearted stories and cracking jokes with the trio to pass the time. Obito seemed oblivious, but Kakashi watched the older male's body language. There was something about him that didn't sit right with him, and Kakashi knew better than to ignore his instincts.

Yuko was overly touchy. Given a chance, some part of him was touching Sakura. Be it a hand on her shoulder while pointing out something in the forest, or their arms brushing as they walked along through the trees. It didn't matter how prominent the caress, he felt the need to touch her nonetheless. To be close to her at all points in time.

That in and of itself was an annoyance, but when Yuko's eyes started to stray from her face and began to linger on other parts of her body, Kakashi's jaw clenched. His frustration mounted further and further as he silently plotted ways to place himself bodily between their client and his team captain.

It was during this string of dark thoughts that they were attacked.

Obito immediately sprang into action, Sharingan pinwheels spinning as his evaded two incoming enemies. Sakura grabbed Yuko, hoisted him over her shoulder, and jumped back from the fray, securing a position in front of him to fend off any assassination attempts.

They may have been outnumbered, but their opponents were under-skilled, and the overall conflict only lasted a couple of minutes.

As the last of their enemies dropped to the forest floor, Kakashi immediately beelined for Sakura, who was trying to calmly placate a frightened Yuko as he clung to her in a fearful frenzy.

Kakashi stepped over a few of their downed adversaries on his way towards them, his desire to throttle the older male overriding his senses.

He didn't see the attack coming. One minute he was looking at Sakura's face twist into muted horror, the next, he was face down in the dirt with a body on top of him. There was a series of grunts, a shuffle of movement, followed by a massive thud.

Then silence.

"Are you alright?" Sakura asked softly, her voice pitched in an uneasy tone. The weight on top of him eased off, allowing Kakashi to sit up, charcoal eyes to taking in the scene around him. Obito was sitting on his hunches, checking the vitals of a ninja that Kakashi swore he had killed earlier. Next to him, Sakura was on her knees, breath coming out in ragged pants. Her face looked pained, brow furrowed and lips curled back in a silent snarl.

"Sakura-san!" Yuko exclaimed. "You're injured!"

"Now, Yuko-sama," She stated, airily. "There's no need to panic. Kakashi-kun, are you alright?"

At the repeat of her question, Kakashi nodded dumbly, scrambling to stand.

Her relief was palpable, a small smile curling on her blood-stained lips. "That's good…that's good," She hummed softly.

Kakashi dropped to his knees behind her, the tendons in his neck standing in attention at the sight of three kunai embedded in her back.

Those were meant for him.

"I need you to yank them out," Sakura gritted out, hands already glowing green. "The angle is too awkward for me to reach. Make sure you do it quickly. If you do it slowly, you risk the chance of making the wounds worse than they already are."

Kakashi swallowed and then suddenly, his world slowed down. He blinked once, but couldn't bring himself to move.

Seeing his teammate hesitate, Obito stepped closer to Sakura, placing a hand on her shoulder and giving it a comforting squeeze. "I'll do it Sakura-chan."

The rosette nodded slowly. "On my count…one…two…three…"

The sound of her crying out in pain and the sight of her blood haunted Kakashi for the rest of the mission.

-o-

When he was twenty, they shared their first kiss…sort of.

-o-

The bar was dark and muggy, the air thick with the pungent scent of sweat mixed with alcohol.

Even in the dim lighting of the room and the throng of bodies, Kakashi could easily spot her.

Nestled between her two old teammates, head tossed back in a fit of laughter with a slight blush dusting her cheeks, Sakura Haruno was the epitome of beauty. She was the brightest person in the room, and his feet carried him towards her without a second thought.

Sasuke spotted Kakashi first, regarding him with mild curiosity. Sakura and Naruto noticed him at the same time, both turning on their stools to grace him with twin, cheeky grins.

"Kakashi-kun! What brings you here?" Sakura questioned.

Kakashi took a step towards her, awkwardly invading her personal space. Sakura blinked up at him in surprise but said nothing as she stared at him from under her lashes.

There was a long, drawn-out silence as he shifted his weight from one foot to the other. An uncomfortable knot sat at the base of his throat, and his mask suddenly became stifling. For a moment he felt like he couldn't breathe.

"Kakashi? Are you okay?" Naruto asked from his perch, eyeing his former student warily.

Kakashi never took his eyes off of Sakura and after another moment of uneasy silence, he blurted out, "Go out to dinner me."

The reactions from her former teammates were immediate.

Naruto's jaw dropped in shock before he tried to collect himself, sputtering, "W-w-what did you just say?"

Sasuke showed no outward signs of his surprise, but his eyes narrowed marginally as he glared at the side of Kakashi's head.

"Are you even old enough to be in here?" The Uchiha questioned.

Sakura remained mute as she gazed up at Kakashi. She blinked once, then twice, before the corner of her mouth twitched like she was fighting back a smile.

"You do realize that I'm fourteen years older than you, right?" She inquired, tilting her head curiously to the side.

Not one to be deterred, Kakashi merely repeated, "Go to dinner with me. That is unless you're too scared to step into the ring with me?"

Hearing the same taunt she used on him all those years prior thrown back at her caused Sakura to release a bark of laughter.

Slowly, she pushed herself up from her seat and stood before him. In the back of his mind, Kakashi was pleased to note that he was taller than her and she finally – finally – had to look up at him for once.

Sakura seemed to know precisely what his train of thought was and tilted her chin up defiantly, viridian eyes sparkling with mirth.

"Well, I can say that this is the most unusual way that I've been asked on a date," She started, her tone laced with amusement. "But, if you want me to consider it seriously, meet me on your team's training grounds tomorrow morning. If you can finally beat me in a fight, then I'll go to dinner with you."

Before he could even think to respond, she leaned forward onto the tips of her toes and pressed a quick, chaste kiss to his masked cheek. "See you in the morning, Kakashi-kun!"

In the next moment, she was gone in a flurry of pink hair, lost among the crowd of patrons at the bar.

Kakashi didn't have time to bask in his giddiness. A large, calloused hand clamped down on his shoulder, and he was ungently dragged down into the seat that Sakura had just vacated.

"Kakashi," Naruto's tone was all business.

"We need to talk," finished the Uchiha.

It was a long night.

-o-

The following morning, Kakashi was beaten by a girl for the second time in his life.

Sakura went on a date with him anyway.

#narutocouple2018 #narutocoupleevent #narutocoupleweek #kakasaku #sakura haruno #kakashi hatake #kakashi x sakura #naruto shippuden #age swap #alternate universe #sakura sensei #non cannon #my OTP #enigma #nera writes #day 2

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dimancheetoile · 7 years

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Naruto Couples Week Day Two: Role swap (except I got lazy and didn’t draw Sakura, because only drawing on top of this screenshot took four hours)

Naruto Couples Week Day Four: In another world

Read on AO3 - show me the leaves (autumn gold)

The Haruno is a Samurai clan verse

Konoha is... not what Sakura expected. From a village that sends its men into the bed of strangers just to get intel, she had thought to find another Sanrōgakure. What awaits her is kilometres of forest, shadows brought by the woods going on for days and a peaceful calm she only remembers from the contracts she took as a samurai.

The village proper smells like macha and sweets, vibrates with children laughing and shinobi enjoying a few days of leave. It fills her with emotions she did not anticipate, and she finds herself stumbling as they get to the doors. She lets Shikamaru handle the guards, who look at her funny but without an ounce of aggressivity. How anyone can be so accepting of the unknown baffles her.

Shikamaru gestures her to follow and she complies, a weird urge to scratch her short hair itching her fingers. She's in her samurai armour, massive ceramic plates building a fortress around her body, and she feels strongly out of place compared to the simple uniform of the shinobi force. There is a part of her that want to scream “this is not acceptable protection, you idiots!”

People are staring. She knows it, like hands crawling on her back, and she has to force herself not to shiver. It wouldn't do to show weakness in a village she just entered, where she's a stranger and a possible threat. It doesn't stop her from feeling like an intruder in her own skin.

"Come on, the Hokage wants to see us. Just- brace yourself, okay?"

Sakura doesn't have time to ask why before his hand grabs her wrist and she's pulled through slime, breathless, a nauseating feeling taking over her throat. She's falling before she can realize what happened and only Shikamaru's grip allows her to stay upright.

She looks around and the sunny street is now a large office with open windows facing the village below. The urge to throw up is back in full force.

"What the hell?!"

"Sorry," Shikamaru says with an embarassed shrug.

Her senses tingle and she hears the brush of clothes against skin. It's enough for her to take back her hand and settle in a standard guard position. There is a woman facing her, smiling softly in the shadow of her Kage hat.

"Welcome to Konoha, Haruno-sama. I am Hyūga Hinata, Nanadaime Hokage."

It's enought for Sakura. She breaks her stance and bows low, her short hair brushing her forehead in an annoying manner.

"It is an honor, Hokage-sama."

"Shikamaru-kun has informed me of the circumstances of your alliance. You'll excuse my cautiouness, but I am obliged to ask you to surrender yourself."

Sakura stops herself from tensing, knowing that woman has no other choice. It still makes her queasy to imagine being defenseless in the hands of those people when the only one she trusts is standing besides her, motionless.

"I won't resist."

"That is a relief. Falcon-kun, Boar-kun, please escort Haruno-sama to T&I. Shikamaru-kun, I believe you have a report for me."

He doesn't look at her as the two masked guards take her away, and Sakura is having a hard time not regretting her decision. She was too quick to trust, it seems.

The guards barely restrain her because she's complying, and they take her to this T&I the same way Shikamaru transported her to the Hokage's office. The nausea is still there, but this time she doesn't know if it's because of the teleportation, or the betrayal poisoning her heart.

Sakura doesn't have to wonder what T&I stands for very long. It's written in broad strokes and bold kanji on the wall of the first room they enter. She can only hope they'll settle for the I and forego the T entirely. If they so much as approach her with the intent to hurt, she'll show them what a samurai can do and she'll never set foot in a village again. The rōnin lifestyle is getting more appealing by the minute.

The masked guards disappear and leave her in an empty room, with blank walls staring at her, and only a table and two chairs to keep her company. She snorts, unimpressed. She won't be intimidated by solitude; she's spent more hours training alone, naked in the snow, than they can possibly imagine.

At last, someone enters and Sakura is faced with a carbon copy of her companion of the last few days. The ponytail and tanned skin would be a dead giveaway, if the slouch wasn't enough.

“Haruno-sama, we have a couple of questions for you.”

“I imagine.”

“Please sit down.”

She complies and watches as the stranger does the same.

“State your name, rank and loyalties.”

“Haruno Sakura, samurai. As for my loyalties... well, they have shifted a lot recently.”

The Nara raises an eyebrow. “Were they, at any point, for Nara Shikamaru?”

“Is he your relative?”

“My cousin, yes.”

“My loyalties haven't laid with him. My assistance, yes. But not my loyalties.”

Shikamaru's cousin nods, before writing down a few things.

“Why did you come back to Konoha with him?”

“I promised information against protection. He assured me I would have that. I admit to some... disappointment.”

“This is a hidden village, what did you expect?”

“Well, certainly not a bunch of back-stabbing lying pieces of shit trying to extort intel out of me.”

Sakura only receives a blink in response. It doesn't matter. She's feeling particularly petty.

“Listen, if you're not offering asylum, I'm leaving. You have no reason for detaining me and no right to do so. I'll gladly take out anyone who stands in the way of me getting out of here. So you tell me; am I welcome in Konoha?”

Still no answer and no Shikamaru in sight. Sakura shrugs. Maybe Suna will be more receptive to the wealth of information she can give. In any case, she's done with the Leaf.

“In that case...”

Sakura gets up, headbutts the Nara when they make to grab her hand, and kicks the door on her way out. Her katana, laying on the desk of one of the Interrogators, finds its way back into her hand. She swinging it in a precise motion, barely a breath from opening this approaching man's torso, when a cloud of smoke blinds her.

A body she's intimately familiar with presses against her back and slender fingers wrap around her blade, bleeding steadily where the steel eats into the flesh.

“I will cut through your hand if you try to interfere.”

“I don't doubt that,” the raspy voice says in her ear.

“I'm giving you two seconds.”

The body disappears. The fingers don't. Shikamaru is now facing her, his usually bored eyes now firmly intent on her, his whole body tensing under the pressure she's applying to her blade.

“I apologize for letting them take you without interfering. I had to explain everything to the Hokage first.”

“I don't care.”

He closes his eyes, his expression pained as she slices into the meet of his fingers. “Konoha is offering you asylum, and if you want it, citizenship.”

She stops, a hair away from severing his fingers. He opens his eyes to look at her, an ocean of feelings in the darkness of his iris.

“I'm sorry for not being there for you, Sakura. It won't happen again.”

She hopes so.

#shikasaku #narutocoupleweek #narutocouple2018 #shikamaru nara #sakura haruno #my writing

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