Bound

Saturday

She sat near the pile of pillows on the bed, her shoulder pressed against the mahogany headboard as she stared blankly out of the large window letting all that light in. The light hurt. The light, she figured, was what was messing with her brain functions. It was probably the light that was causing short bursts of brain activity before her thoughts became sporadic and jumbled again. Her hand flew to her mouth, chipping away at the polish and her nails. She stopped, looking down at her fingers. A few of her nails were torn off, leaving behind jagged edges and remnants of her blood still in her cuticles. Her hand was wrapped. Why? Her fingers went to her mouth again. Someone would usually be scolding her about how unsanitary that is. She was about to rack her mind for who, but her thoughts seemed to have exploded, leaving with a sharp pain that had her closing her eyes tightly. She blinked them open again. The heaviness of her eyes made it hard to open them fully, and also sensitive to light. The light hurt. She tried to remember what made her eyes like this but that thought was gone faster than it came. The sharp pain came again. She gnawed away at another piece of her nail. She was tired, but she continued to sit there as she has been. That's all she knew how to do at the moment, and she felt security in that. She wasn't going to let go of it.

A throbbing pain came back to her, but it wasn't coming from her head. She isolated it to her nose. Her nose hurt badly. Her ribs were sore too. Her body wasn't making the pain go away, like it usually would. Why was that? Her thoughts disappeared again. Her face felt taut and dry…She remembered someone came around to clean off the makeup. It was Naruto. Where was he now?

She had a headache that threatened to split her head in two. It pulsed at the base of her skull. She's never had a headache this powerful. Her hand flew back to her mouth. Was her headache hindering her brain activity? No, her headaches have never been that severe. She closed her eyes and tried to focus as her thoughts jumped around.

Where was Naruto right now? Wasn't he with Kakashi? She missed Kakashi. She missed his company. Something happened last night. There was an incident. She couldn't remember what happened, but she was at the hotel now. It took them an hour to get there, but the hotel was only ten minutes away…Why did her head hurt? Her body wasn't helping her right now. She willed it to numb the pain but nothing worked. 3:00 AM. That was the last time she remembers seeing. But it was dark then. That can't be the time now because it's bright out. Hence the painful light shining directly on her. She heard the faint signs of morning. It was morning. Where was Kakashi? How long had she been sitting here? She couldn't think about any one thought for long. Her brain would give out before making a connection. Then the process would start over, marked by more pain. She felt pain now. Why couldn't she think? She was always a great thinker. Kakashi said so. Where was Kakashi? What happened last night? There was an incident. It's morning. It wasn't then. Naruto was here. He's nowhere to be found now. Her brain and her nose seemed to be broken. Her ribs hurt. She looked at her hand. Her nails were a mess and her hand was wrapped. Her body wasn't responding to her. 3:00 AM.

What happened?

There was more pain. She tried to gather her information again.

Naruto was nowhere to be found. She needed Kakashi. Her brain and her nose were broken. Her body wasn't responding to her. There was an incident. It was morning. 3:00 AM.

Again. She willed herself, before her thoughts scrambled.

Naruto was nowhere to be found. She needed Kakashi. Her brain and nose were broken. There was an incident. 3:00 AM.

She gritted her teeth as the pulsing at the base of her skull intensified. Again.

Naruto was nowhere to be found. She needed Kakashi. There was an incident. 3:00 AM.

Once more.

She needed Kakashi. There was an incident. 3:00 AM.

She exhaled shakily as she lost herself again; white circles flashed behind her eyes and a faint beeping sound was heard in her ears while her headache returned to its steady pulse. She heard the door to the bedroom open, and despite the pain, her head swiveled around to meet whoever came through. She wanted answers. However impaired she was at the moment, she wasn't stupid. Her scrambled mind kept returning her to one thought.

"I need Kakashi. There was an incident at 3:00 AM." She spat out fast before she lost it. Naruto's eyes met her determined ones. He came forward and pulled her legs onto the bed.

"You need to lie down, Sakura." She shook her head as her weak body tried in vain to restrain against his much stronger hands.

"There was an incident at 3:00 AM. I need Kakashi." She said again. He smoothed her hair back.

"No, you have a severe concussion, Sakura. You need to lie down." That's why her brain wasn't working. What else was broken? She closed her eyes and searched her thoughts. "My nose is broken." She opened her eyes and waited for him to confirm it. He nodded. "It's morning." He nodded once again before quickly moving to close the curtains. "My body isn't responding to me." He sighed, sitting back down on the bed.

"Well, Sasuke did seal off your chakra. Any efforts of you trying to heal yourself would be futile." He shook his head. "Right when it mattered the most, the bastard." She frowned, bits and pieces from the other night tried to resurface. But not last night. She tried to remember 3:00 AM.

"There was an incident at 3:00 AM." Naruto didn't confirm or deny this, but instead looked away from her. "Naruto, I need to know." She pleaded. She needed all the information she could get to figure out why she was like this. She placed a hand on his arm. "Please." He turned back to her helpless eyes.

"Yeah. There was an incident at 3:00 AM."

Friday

"Misses Miyazaki," The receptionist greeted with familiarity as she approached the desk. "How may I help you this morning?" Mei folded her hands behind her back.

"I'm visiting."

"Guest name?"

"Tan." She typed something on the computer and frowned.

"Well, you're not on the list." She leaned forward on the counter and smiled sweetly.

"Can you just call up? She's expecting me." The woman looked at her unsurely for a moment before pushing buttons into a machine.

"Hello?" Mei blinked at the hastiness of her voice as it came through the receiver.

"Misses Tan?" She confirmed.

"Yes, this is her." Sakura replied impatiently.

"You have a visitor—"

"Who?"

"Misses Miyazaki." She said finally.

"Oh, send her up!" And then line was disconnected.

"Floor 13, room 44A." Mei nodded her thanks. Hiro pressed the button for the elevator and waited for it to come down before ushering her in. They rode in silence until the 13th 'ping' sounded, indicating their stop. Hiro stepped out first and quickly looked around before nodding back at Mei. She stepped out of the elevator and started examining room numbers as Hiro followed a few steps behind.

"There it is." Hiro rapped on the door twice and stepped aside.

"Mei!" The door opened swiftly as Mei's eyebrows raised. "Good morning!"

Was she sure…?

Sakura stepped out of the shower and pulled a towel off of the rack before securing it around herself. She stepped in front of the full length mirror and leaned forward.

"I thought for sure the shower would take care of these…" She whispered to herself, pulling on the skin beneath her eyes. They were dark of course, what with her not sleeping and all. Oh, and the crying must've made it worst as well…She sighed and walked out of the bathroom. Kneeling in front of her open suitcases, she searched for some clean underwear and a top. The comfort of cotton panties weren't allowed on this trip, a normalcy missed dearly as she dropped the towel and stepped into a lace pair. She pulled a fitted t-shirt over her damp hair.

Her limbs felt like lead and made every movement taxing. With her chakra points sealed off, all of her chakra was stationary in its channels with nowhere to go. Even her stored chakra, transformed into an array of flowers for the mission, was static. She felt like a dam waiting to burst. Was this even healthy? Sasuke was going to kill her on accident…or purpose…What was his intentions anyway? All he had to do was stop her fist, which he did with ease, and tell her how much force she put into it, and that she might've killed him. What was he trying to do, teach her a lesson? She wasn't 12. And if she didn't know what stationary chakra could do in one's body, then Sasuke damn sure didn't know. When you seal someone's chakra, you either plan to permanently impair them or kill them. The thought of being permanently impaired had her shuddering. She was 23! She had a life to live! Not to mention a storm was coming. And the thought that she wouldn't be able to fight…She banished the thought from her mind. Sasuke may have sealed her chakra, but he didn't do it out of anger. He was rarely blinded by it. So of course he would know what he was doing and the repercussions. She exhaled. Thinking about it hurt, especially when she didn't know what could result from it. All she really knew right now was that he used his eyes against her and left. And she didn't like that one bit.

If only her medical prowess included more information on the Sharingan. While she might have the same strength as her Shishou, Sakura's medical knowledge pales in comparison. It still exceeds her by many years. She would kill to have the kind of information she had, more specifically, information on unsealing your chakra channels done by the Sharingan's infamous eye technique. There's only one Sharingan user left and Sakura is almost positive the Hokage has learned all that she could from Sasuke without removing his eyes entirely. It would be much easier for Sakura to just ask the Sharingan user himself instead of wishing for all of that knowledge, but then she knew there was no way he would willingly undo the deed he'd personally done, and even so, he was probably halfway to Konoha by now. She showed her bottom lip no mercy.

Crying was useless. There was nothing she could do about his leaving because she pushed him there. And then there was going to be the earful that Sakura would hear upon her return, but a month should soften the blow right? Unless Sasuke pulling himself from the mission would provoke Tsunade to eject Sakura, Naruto, and Kakashi too…If it took her less than a day to come to that conclusion, Sasuke must've thought about the repercussion his leave would cause the second he shut that door. She closed her eyes, smoothing her hair up into a bun.

To think he would actually leave—The phone on the bedside nightstand started to ring. She was inwardly thankful for the interruption. She crawled on the bed and quickly grabbed the receiver.

"Hello?" She blurted out.

"Misses Tan?" The receptionist from the front desk asked. Sakura drummed her fingers across her thigh.

"Yes, this is her." The exasperation not hidden in her voice.

"You have a visitor—"

"Who?" She interrupted quickly. Who could be visiting her? Naruto and Kakashi? Maybe they got word before her about their ejection from the mission. According to Sasuke, she seems to be the last person on the leader scale, especially when it comes to information. But how would—

"Misses Miyazaki." The woman finished with an exasperated sigh of her own.

"Oh, send her up!" Sakura tried not to sound too relieved as she put the receiver back on its hook. She placed a hand over her bangs and huffed. Mei's appearance could just be a delay in the inevitable visit from her teammates. And still, why was Mei so early? Sakura glanced at the clock. It read 10:00 AM, a few hours short of the afternoon. She set the receiver down. What was she supposed to tell Mei?

You can tell the targets whatever you want.

The story she built with Sasuke didn't prepare for a breakup. It made their relationship strong. And while Sakura spent all night crying like she was thrown three years in the past, she could've been thinking of a way to prove that she could continue this mission without Sasuke. And now she only had a minute—

She heard a knock on her door. Damn those elevators. She thought as she moved out of the bedroom and to the door.

"Mei!" Sakura exclaimed. "Good morning!" She smiled with all the cheeriness she could muster, holding the door open for the skeptical woman to enter. She closed the door behind her. Mei looked Sakura up and down. "Would you like some wine?" Mei's eyebrows raised.

"You're having wine?" Sakura waved her away.

"Kami, no. Alcohol doesn't favor me much." She moved to the counter in the kitchen and leaned against it. "I'm sorry I'm so underdressed, you said afternoon, so—" She paused and looked up.

"Are you alright?" Mei asked unsurely as Sakura moved quickly to the door and opened it.

"Would you like some wine?" She asked Hiro.

"I think it's a bit early for wine, Haruka." Mei said with a laugh. Sakura shrugged.

"Everyone has something to drink to, right?" Sakura left the door open and gestured Hiro in before moving to the coffeemaker in their mini kitchen and pouring herself a mug of its contents. She brought the mug to her lips and sighed as the soothing drink made its way down her throat. She paused, forgetting herself. She placed her mug down and reached into the mini fridge, pulling out a bottle. "So, wine?" She asked again, uncorking the top over the sink.

"Haruka…" She grabbed two glasses from the counter opposite the sink and filled them with the red wine. She walked over to the living area and handed one to Mei, and then back to the door where Hiro stood. He shook his head.

"Oh come on," She pestered with a sweet smile. Turning to Mei, she gestured back to him with her thumb. "Does he drink?" She shook her head. Sakura turned back to Hiro. "You have to have something to drink to." She outstretched the hand with the glass in it. He looked at the drink unsurely before taking it from her hands. She smiled before going back to the counter. She propped herself atop it before grabbing her forgotten mug and held it up. "To happy endings and new beginnings." She said cheerily, almost sarcastically. Mei discarded her drink on the glass table beside her and quickly moved to Sakura's side.

"Haruka, what's wrong?" Sakura dangled her bare legs from atop the kitchen counter. She shrugged, taking another sip of her tea. Sakura needed Mei to give her a lead. Without it, without that push, she had nothing. There would be nothing left but a little time to pack her bags before she was shipped back to Konoha, Sasuke laughing in her face the whole time. The last thing she wanted to do was give him the satisfaction of saying he was right and showing him she was incompetent and unable to complete the simple Chunin-level task of gathering information. But she was damn good at her job and certainly good enough to force a confession. Wasn't she? She sighed.

"Happy endings, you know? My abrupt departure from Snow—not because of the people, of course. You know how delightful the people are." She said with a roll of her eyes. "Sai whisks me away and we're moving from town to town while he fixes and invests and fixes and invests—" She exaggerates with the movement of her hands. "Then we finally decide to get out of the Land of Water because the whole damn country is painful. My rape was broadcasted everywhere, and I mean everywhere. We get on the next ferry out of there and end up in Fire Country. We're laying low in Otafuku Gai for a few months when Sai hears about the famed Kansai lounge. 'It's so popular, it just needs a little push' he says. And you know what? I'm that push. But Sai doesn't want me anywhere near another man. He doesn't want me dancing. So we come here for our "new beginning." She said sarcastically with air quotes. "He sees the lounge and he's absolutely fascinated with it." Mei's eyes widened.

"Are you serious?" Sakura raised her eyebrows.

"Are you kidding? He wouldn't stop talking about the place." Mei blinked.

"The way Yuuki's been talking about it, it seemed like Sai had no plans to invest." Sakura shook her head.

"Sai may not show it, but he's extremely interested." Mei looked visibly relieved. "His money can go into this place, and he can do whatever he wants to try and bring more people in. But one fact remains." Mei closed her eyes at this.

"He can't do this without you." Sakura nodded slowly.

"And he thinks he can. 'I can fix this' he says. I want to help this place, too. But I can't dance, I can't get up on that stage but I'll be damned if I don't try. So we argue of course, like we've been doing for a while. I didn't want to come here. I didn't want to be around this environment in the first place because I knew I would want to do something I'm not supposed to ever do again. And that's dance." She said with a resigned sigh. "But Sai doesn't need me. He doesn't need me to dance. He doesn't need me to sacrifice my security. He doesn't need me on that stage shaking my ass at the mercy of every man in this Village just to return the Kansai to its former glory. He doesn't need me destroying myself again. But I was dancing long before Sai popped up into my life. I was doing fine before he came with his 'knight in shining armor' act." Sakura said with frustration. Then she sighed and placed a hand on her forehead. "So he leaves, like everyone else does. He leaves." Mei pressed a hand on her thigh.

"Oh, honey…" Sakura sipped the tea from her mug. Then she put it down with another sigh and shook her head.

"It's okay. I'm used to it." Mei's eyes softened. "I would expect this from Hatashi, But Sai? He never runs away."

"Hatashi—"

"Is a coward and is gone from my life. He runs at the littlest sign of distress and just disappears from everyone. He wasn't there when I needed him and he'll never be there." Sakura said coldly. "You think someone's going to be different and they're not. You think someone's going to be there forever and they're not. People like Sai…they never go for people like us." Mei's eyes widened. "Those are two different worlds trying to come together. They clash almost automatically. It's not sad, Mei, it's life. And I'm used to it. This time, the blow back just took a little while longer." She watched Mei with baited breath and waited. Mei blinked a bit, as if mulling over her thoughts. Maybe a confession? But just like that the look was gone, and instead it was replaced with one of sadness for Sakura. She contained her frustration and smiled. "Enough about me." She jumped down from the counter. "Why are you here so early?" Mei sighed.

"It's a surprise. In the light of recent events a pretty bad one if you ask me." She muttered. Sakura moved to the bedroom and pulled a pair of denim shorts from her suitcase.

"Eh, I need to get out of this hotel anyway." She called out as she slid into her flip-flops. Exiting the bedroom, she walked over to Mei and linked arms with her. "Let's go."

"Here, put these on." Mei had sunglasses shoved toward Sakura in one hand, and in the other a hand full of bills that she was slapping down on the counter.

"But people have seen me already," Sakura said, putting them on anyway. Mei dragged her away from the stand and back into the crowd.

"I know you've heard about the many copycats we have in this Village." Sakura nodded.

"Yeah, so I'm just another copycat." Mei shrugged, linking her arm back through Sakura's.

"Not really. Your eyes are a dead giveaway. People can copy the hair, but different colored contacts are just a luxury we don't have in this Village. And to import them by themselves would be a great deal of money. I guess getting the full Haruka Tan look is an extreme for some people, if not a bit expensive."

"I would've never have guessed I was so popular in this…Village…" Sakura trailed off as they passed the restaurant she and Sasuke visited the day before.

"A lot of girls here admire you. You're like a role model…" Sakura zoned out as she remembered that restaurant being in the bowls of Yugakure. They've already been walking for quite a while, not to mention stopping for breakfast. Killing time was probably a part of Mei's plan because they've managed to make it to the afternoon. She just wondered where the hell she was taking her.

"Just where are we going, anyway?" Sakura, speaking her thoughts out loud, interrupted Mei. She just smiled.

"You'll find out soon enough." She certainly hoped this surprise wouldn't have her walking back by herself. She definitely did not know her way. To think she'd remember by now…

They walked into what looked like the middle class housing district. They took a turn and Sakura became skeptical as Mei opened an old crickety gate that led to a walkway. She stopped.

"Where are we going?" Sakura asked once again. Mei smiled as she backed down the stone path.

"You sure don't seem to be fond of surprises." Mei called as she turned and walked up the steps. She dug in her jeans and pulled out a key. Did she live here? Sakura walked through the gate and closed it behind her, dusting rust off of her hands. If Mei lived there, that would say a lot about her and Yuuki's relationship. Sasuke was right. She scoffed. No surprise there. She wasn't on any kind of level with Yuuki to get any information about anything. She was practically lost and blind at this point. What she thought was his flirting could easily be his version of gentlemanliness. He told her himself he would do anything to get her as a dancer for his lounge. Be it harmless flirting or a few smooth words—everyone knows how resilient Sakura is to those—Yuuki was avidly following through with his vow. Sakura had no leads to the brutality toward Mei claimed by her father. To be precise, Sakura had no leads on anyone. No information, no background, nothing. Maybe if she had a lead, she could convince her Shishou to let her, Naruto, and Kakashi continue on with the mission despite tattletale Sasuke's abrupt departure. She secretly hoped this house would explain at least a little bit of why she was in Yugakure. Maybe Mei stayed in this house to get away from Yuuki when his anger got uncontrollable…

She hopped up the steps and through the door left open for her. She cautiously walked through the long hallway. Sakura hasn't been in this Village for long, but she could at least tell that Yuuki didn't seem like the type to get angry. He looked like no one ever told him no, based on his constant urging toward Sakura. But he was a bit of a push over, seeing how only a look from Sasuke got him to stop in his tracks. Or maybe it was just Sasuke. His look was—

"Haruka, I'd like you to meet my mother, Hatsumi." Sakura stopped upon entering the small living room and raised the sunglasses from her face. She took stock of Mei's mother. She looked to be her Shishou's age—well, if her Shishou's age was actually the age she was portraying, then sure, she'd put the both of them at a matched even. Her hair was a dark brown with streaks of gray that betrayed her face which still held a semblance of her youth. It fell a little past her shoulders in a razor cut. Sakura found Mei took after her mother rather than her father; her round cheeks and heart-shaped face coming straight from Hatsumi. Wrinkles formed under her mother's closed eyes as she smiled at Sakura. When they opened again, Sakura saw those striking light blue eyes.

"Hello, Haruka." Hatsumi's voice was deep and soothing, something that reminded her a lot of the motherly tone Kurenai held. "I've really been looking forward to meeting you." She smiled again. "From what I've heard, you take after me so much it'd be a shame not to." Sakura's eyebrows raised as she subtly scanned the rest of Hatsumi. Her cleavage spilled out of her light blue kimono top. Under further inspection, Sakura found her slender body couldn't possibly house breasts that large naturally—and the taut twins seemed to be a bit too perky for breasts of that size. Sakura's breasts weren't large at all so she couldn't be talking about cup size…I take after her? She blinked a few times before her eyes widened in realization. Forget about a little bit—if this didn't explain why she was in this Village she didn't know what would.

"My mother used to be a stripper." Mei confirmed sheepishly, standing above Hatsumi behind the floral printed couch.

"Ah."

Lead. Check.

"Let me ask you a question, Haruka."

"Anything, Hatsumi-san." Hatsumi set her mug down on the coffee table between them.

"Do you believe true love exists?" Sakura's eyebrows knitted together as various thoughts ran through her head. She and Neji were "together" for a little over six months, and she never told him she loved him, mostly because of Sasuke, but he said it. Love wasn't really a part of the terms and conditions of their fling. Yet that's was what it was, right? For a time she thought about a future with Neji. But then that ended. After that was Sasuke. She supposed since she "loved" him all her life, whether or not they were in it wasn't necessarily questioned. And then Ren. She was prepared to change her last name for someone who was virtually hated by every man in her life…what truly constituted as true love? She frowned before opening her mouth to answer.

"I—"

"If you had to think about it, sweetheart, then I know that somewhere deep in you, you believe that it doesn't." Hatsumi answered for her, a sympathetic smile on her face. Sakura pursed her lips and tried to get back on track.

"Hatsumi-san, what did you mean when you said that I take after you?" Her eyebrows lowered in thought.

"Well, Mei told me about the real Haruka Tan, the one underneath all of those cameras and tabloids." She sighed. "Like you, I didn't do what I did for fun, you know. Or to defy my father." She looked up at Mei with pursed lips, who just rolled her eyes. Sakura made a mental note. "I did it because I had to. I had no family and no way to make ends meet. I needed money quick and that was the quickest way to get it. But I didn't want to lose myself. I wanted to still be a person—well, you know how men view us. So at night, I changed my hair color," —She nodded to Sakura's own hair— "I got myself a stage name, and became a different person in its entirety. I didn't want Hatsumi to be associated with a stripper at all. And it worked perfectly. Until—"

"You fell in love." Sakura added. Mei snorted and walked out of the room. Her mother watched her retreating form and sighed.

"I didn't mean for it to happen—people like us rarely do. And Mei hates her father for it." Sakura always assumed that Mei and her father had a close relationship, seeing that he hired outside help to save his daughter. Or even because she worked so closely under him. This was a new perspective, on top of her previous realization. If Mei's mother was a stripper, then that explained why she didn't want her daughter marrying someone like Yuuki. Hell, Sakura even used an explanation like that in her backstory. But still, it was the Daimyo who called for them. The way Hatsumi's story was leaning, she and Mei's father were already separated. However, they clearly had the same opinion of Yuuki. She opened her mouth to ask a question but Hatsumi continued. "If you didn't know already, her father is the Daimyo of this respectful Village." She said sarcastically. "He wasn't then, though, he was a diplomat representing this land. So he traveled a lot. But like every other man in this Village, he favored the strip clubs when he was here, and more specifically my strip club. And somehow, he favored the girl with the fake breasts who got on that stage simply to make a few thousand for rent and food. I did what I had to do for the night, I gave my boss his cut, and I went back to the hole in the wall apartment I called home."

"Yet…" She sighed again, this one more nostalgic.

"Yet he still got me. Smooth talkers." She snorted. Sakura recalled painfully her experience with one. "But at the time, I think I was just confused. I was naïve. I thought maybe if he got to know the real Hatsumi, he could love me for who I was and forget about what I do. I wish that I knew he just wanted someone he could easily go back and forth to for sex." Hatsumi shrugged as Sakura winced. "He said those three magic words. I'll never know if he meant it or not. No sooner than our "relationship" started, it ended abruptly when I found out I was pregnant with Mei. Now it's way worse than it sounds," She said with a laugh and raised hands. "Real ugly. Near abortion, nasty fights, threatened exposure—it got to the point where I was prepared to blackmail Masaji with my baby to get him to stay. And I realized how dumb I was when he said 'A slut's word against mine.'" Sakura bit down on her lip as the venom of her words sunk in. "And then he's gone to some other Village, some other strip club, probably fucking a girl just like me. Someone stupid, someone naïve. Someone who believes in true love when it just. Doesn't. Exist." Her words struck Sakura deeply. "8 months later he's back. He's there doing the same shit he did to get me. Still being the naïve woman I was, I gave out a second chance. Stupid right? Thinking that he would want me despite all of those things he's said. Thinking that he's changed. So I give birth, he names her, and he's gone again. It wasn't as ugly as the first time, at least." She picked up her mug and sipped, her lips puckering once she found it was cold. She placed it back on the coffee table with a frown. "The next time he's back, he's Daimyo. With the Daimyo's word being the strongest in the land, who's going to tell him that he can't have a child out of wedlock? Nobody. So he fights me for my baby. And who wins against the Daimyo? Nobody." She pressed her lips together as wrinkles adorned her face. "If I didn't have the law on my side, I would've never even known my own daughter." Sakura blinked.

"What law?"

"There still had to be some ordinance of rules since it wasn't a total dictatorship. He couldn't just take my baby that I harbored alone for 9 months and I spent 6 hours in labor for and fully evoke my parental rights with no cause at all. But what he did do was take full guardianship over her." Sakura exhaled.

"That's just…so…" She was at a loss for words. It was easy to understand why her mother didn't want her with Yuuki.

"Mei told me about you and Sasaki-san. Tell me," Sakura frowned as the thoughts of his departure and the premonition of their ejection from the mission came flooding back to her. "Do you love him, Haruka?" Her frown ran deeper. Well, did she? She's thought this through over and over again. What exactly did she tell Kakashi was loving someone? Looking past the bad things, fixing what's wrong, blah, blah, blah. Did she truly believe that? Did she really think she could look past all the shit Sasuke's put her through? Rejection, absence, heartbreak, his superiority complex, the degrading comments, did she mention heartbreak? Sasuke's not going to change. It doesn't matter how much older he gets, or how much he matures, or how much more he learns about the inner workings of the other sex. Okay, so he's evolved. But he was still that brooding, self-gratifying bastard that he always has been. Could she still love him? After everything? Hatsumi called herself a fool for being naïve. Even after all the things Mei's father did to her, she still gave him a second chance. Despite everything he said, she forgave him. She couldn't speak for the Daimyo, but she could for Sasuke. He rarely said things out of pure anger. Everything was meticulously thought through, even despite the speed in which he reacted. So his words, everything he's ever said to her was done to purposely hurt her. To cause an adverse reaction.

She hated that she had to continue to brand him a sadist, but even still…

Sakura knew what she signed up for when Sasuke came back. Despite the fact that she wasn't as willing at first, she knew that she would be dealing with a broken, out of sorts boy with a few mental disorders under his belt. The three of them were all he had, so turning her back on him after practically the whole Village already had would be wrong. But calling it quits after his psyche evaluation results came back would've been appropriate, but also very low. Knowing what he's been through, she could understand his distress at not being reinstated as a ninja of the Hidden Leaf after the recovery of his leg. She could even understand his rampage in her Shishou's office...and her violent response afterward. But Sakura, not knowing the depth of what he went through only caused her to understand more of why he was the way that he was. She could understand Inoichi's qualms about letting the boy continue his Shinobi career in Konoha at all. So of course pills were suggested to combat the disorders he suffered from. But they seemed to help. Because of that, he had her respectfully request that he be taken off of them because of his progress. Does she regret her decision? All the time. She could still see that sick Sasuke from time to time—actually very often. She sees him in the way he acts, his mood swings...Sakura knew what she was signing up for. And somewhere deep inside of her, she knew that he wasn't going to change—that he couldn't change. That some of the things he did was inadvertently and also something he couldn't help. It hurt, but she knew. And one thing that she could not run out of was forgiveness in her heart for Sasuke. Time after time he's tested her, and the both of them knew Sakura couldn't lose him again. Sasuke was supposed to be sitting on her porch with her once she got old and gray right? Well, once she got a porch. If what she told Kakashi constituted as true love, then she had it for Sasuke. She had it bad. And it wasn't the fluttery type of love she had when she was 12. It went deeper than that. Beyond that. She closed her eyes and exhaled.

"Yes." Hatsumi's lips pursed as she eyed Sakura. "But he left." Her eyebrows raised at this.

"Oh?" Sakura nodded.

"He doesn't want to see me destroy myself again. I.e., get raped." Sakura said. It seemed that men weren't really high on the list of people respected by Hatsumi and her words wouldn't help one bit. She clicked her tongue.

"Well, it's my understanding that if you love something, you cherish it. You don't leave, you don't make up excuses, you don't cheat, you fight through whatever shit you got into with that person because that's what you signed up for. You sell your soul when you say those three words. Some people just don't get that." Sakura frowned. Sasuke's put her through all of the above without thinking twice. All of the men that she's been with has. Alright, so Sakura's perspective of what true love actually was has been skewed by the bastards that have come into her life. So what exactly was it? And if she didn't know what it was, how exactly could she believe in it? "What happens when you mix fire with water?" Hatsumi asked, breaking the silence.

"Something dies…" Sakura answered slowly.

"Right. Something dies. Be it love, a soul, or a heart. Something. Dies." She finished firmly. "When Masaji and I clashed, something was bound to die. It just turned out to be my heart." She shook her head sadly. "Mei never heeds my warnings, but I want to save somebody. Nothing good ever comes out of foolish things like love." She said sternly, her features schooled. "Sure, you can get momentary things like sex and maybe even kids. But that can come from anyone. Or am I wrong?" She grabbed her mug and stood, walking into her small kitchen. She dumped its contents into the sink and poured herself a new mug. "You're a smart girl. Don't indulge in a stupid thing like 'love.' Especially when it doesn't exist. All you're doing is throwing yourself to a pack of wolves. You either eat, or you get eaten. Don't get eaten, Haruka. Always stay one step ahead of them. Women are naturally smarter than men. We can manipulate them to get anything we want. We damn sure don't need a label or a title to get it." She said with a scoff. "If you leave yourself vulnerable, men will take advantage of that, and when they do, they're only going to hurt you. There will be lust and attraction but that'll grow old fast. They're going to leave, and once they do, they'll find someone else to 'love.'" She sipped from her mug. "Save yourself, Haruka."

"Are you done, mom?" Hatsumi placed her mug on the counter.

"Yes, dear." Mei appeared in the living room again. "She hates this talk." She said behind her hand. Mei rolled her eyes.

"That and everything else pertaining to my father." Sakura nodded slowly. Don't indulge in a stupid thing like 'love.' Especially when it doesn't exist.

"I hope you don't think I'm some crotchety, cold, old woman, Haruka." Hatsumi said with a laugh. Sakura forced a smile.

"Not at all, Hatsumi-san." Mei appeared at her side and pulled her to her feet.

"You two won't be staying for lunch?" Her mother asked with a frown.

"No, sorry, we still have a lot of things to get to today." Hatsumi sighed.

"Well, alright." Sakura was pulled to the door. "It was a pleasure meeting you, Haruka."

"You too," She whispered as she was pulled out the door. She heard Mei yell a quick goodbye before the door was shut and she was dragged back through the gate.

"Are you okay?" Mei asked as she closed it. Sakura swallowed and blinked.

"Yeah…your mother's quite the realist." Mei snorted.

"Try pessimist." Sakura noticed they veered off of the road.

"Where are we going?" Mei pointed up ahead.

"The park. We need to talk, because I'm sure you have many questions." Sakura scoffed.

"If you only knew." She muttered underneath her breath.

"Here's a great spot." They sat in the shade of a large tree. Sakura immediately kicked off her flip-flops and plunged her toes into the soil. She enjoyed the little piece of herself that would never change, no matter how much she did. She leaned back on her hands. "It's relaxing, isn't it? Feeling like you're connected to everything." Sakura nodded as she closed her eyes. She missed her chakra. She missed her connection to everything. Things felt a little off since Sasuke sealed her chakra, like she was missing one of her senses. And her body felt heavy, as if she was hauling around extra weight. Was this how civilians felt all the time? Earth was the last connection she had. "I should apologize for my mother. Like I said, she's a pessimist." Sakura opened her eyes.

"I can understand where she's coming from." Mei shook her head.

"You mean her bias? Sure, she has a reason to hate my father, but not men all over. There's definitely no reason to stop believing in love." The breeze tousled the wisps of hair not tied up in a bun on Sakura's head, and Mei's own hair flew back. She wasn't wearing a bra again...Sakura inwardly groaned. After another long moment, Mei sighed, as if finally letting something go. "I know you're planning on dancing for the Kansai. If not, you're thinking about it pretty deeply. And I feel like there should be no secrets between you and I, even since there are some between me and Yuuki. This might affect your decision, but I'd rather your opinion of me change now, then you become a dancer and learn later on." Sakura narrowed her eyes. Secrets?

"What do you mean?" Mei pressed her lips together.

"I'm not like you, Haruka. I don't do what I do because of a desperate need to dance. I don't do what I do because I need the money either. My father's the Goddamn Daimyo." The breeze came again, causing Mei's hair to smack her in the face. She tossed it off of her shoulders. "I do what I do to spite him. You saw what he did to my mother. It doesn't stop—It's never stopped. My father…he's a cruel man. He's heartless. And apparently there was some unspoken law that forces me to live with him." She said with narrowed eyes. "When I was 18, my mother bore all. The horrible man that my father is became the devil in my eyes. And I confront him about it, and he starts yelling and screaming and demeaning my mother? The only person who's showed me love all my life and you call her a conniving bitch because you couldn't keep it in your damn pants and you weren't man enough to be a father just because your mistress was a stripper?!" Her voice elevated as she became flushed with anger. "And he continues to bring home women—who knows how many of his bastard children are out there? And he calls me a slut because I'm my mother's child." She said through gritted teeth. "So I go and I become my mother's child. I'm the daughter of the Daimyo. Who doesn't want that type of publicity at their lounge? I brought in men, political standing means nothing there. And then," She started chuckling to herself. "And then word gets around that the Daimyo raised a stripper. This makes him, eh, less than happy. And we fight. But I don't stop what I'm doing. As long as he's miserable, I'm satisfied. But what I didn't expect was for a self-established millionaire to snatch me up and pitch business ideas to me." She shook her head at the thought. "Do you see Yuuki? Do you see me? I couldn't turn that opportunity down no matter how unrealistic it seemed." Sakura frowned. "We were business partners at first, but that would never work because I'm a "stripper" and he's a CEO. Then the sex worked for a long while, but I knew the love would never work because of all the women he had at his disposal. But then it did…is." She sighed, turning the ring on her finger. "And he proposes and it's all so unrealistic…especially the night afterward when my father kidnaps me and sticks me on a boat to somewhere in Fire Country."

Sakura's eyes widened. That explains why she was on their ferry. And also why she was so excited to see Yuuki their first night there. Who knows how long they were apart?

"My father even tries giving me—excuse me, forces me to take this job doing tours around this Village so I can stop dancing, but I'm in too deep now. There is no one that can stop me from dancing at the Kansai except for Yuuki himself. If he wasn't making so much money for the Village, my father would probably kidnap him and send him off to some foreign country too. He doesn't think Yuuki and I are actually in love because of who Yuuki is and what he has, and what I'm portraying to be. And my mother…well you know my mother and men. Especially prominent men with money." She ran her fingers through her long black hair as her eyes closed and she exhaled. Her expression was stressed. When she opened her light blue eyes, Sakura saw the sincerity in them. "Of course I was using Yuuki at first, but that's not what it turned out to be. To think the one thing that my parents would agree on would be this…" She scoffed. "I want to get married to him, but I know that my father will do everything in his power to stop it." She paused and looked Sakura in the eyes. "Haruka, the Daimyo is a very powerful, terrifying man. The fact that his word is the strongest in the land makes everything worse. He will stop at nothing to make sure I am unhappy, and that is a very scary thought." Mei said shakily before biting down on her quivering lip. "I'm so sorry for my lies, and misleading you, and my portrayals…I can't be you." Sakura's head jerked back. "I can't be the girl who lost everything and everyone and still stand tall to be this, this person, who doesn't need anyone…A person that, despite having to resort to doing the dirtiest things just for a meal, can rise above it all and still be a person who respects herself and doesn't let the job consume her…A person who has so much heart and influence she can move nations with her tragedy…A person who, after gaining everything, after rising from those deep trenches, can still do that thing that people would normally spit on, can still keep her integrity in spite of what she does…A person who is one of the most respected women in society just because. You have reasons behind you, moving forces to do what you do and here I am in your face, just pretending. I'm dancing at the Kansai to spite my father but also because I love Yuuki so much and to see him fail would just break my heart…" She bowed her head as tears fell from her eyes. Her hair fell around her face and shaking shoulders. Sakura's own slumped as her heart clenched painfully. I'm going to hurt this girl… "I must be a fool to you, to have everything and still do the very thing you did to survive, mocking you…My methods are unconventional, using people and mocking all the girls that are doing what I do just to make ends meet…People like you and my mother. But I have a moving force behind me too, and that's the fate of the Kansai. I need your help, Haruka…if only for a little while…if only for Yuuki…for me." Sakura exhaled sadly as a hand ruffled through her bangs and sat atop her head.

Things have changed so much, and the day has barely even started.

There was no way her Shishou could pull them now…not when Sakura has a lead. But now the Daimyo's actions are put into question. From his first impression she would've never have thought him to be a terrifying man who could do such a thing to his family. But that's just it, the devil has many masks…

She guessed the Daimyo was just trying to protect his daughter, using very unconventional methods. However, there seemed to be no foul play involved. She saw no signs of domestic abuse. She only saw a girl, madly in love with her fiancée. Yuuki is not the bad guy here. He's simply a man put in the middle of a family feud. A father and a mother desperate to stop their little girl from making the same mistakes they did. Her father, being a man like Yuuki and knowing what men with money do to strippers. Her mother, having lived the life of a stripper and knowing the trials and tribulations of it all, wants to stop her daughter from believing in something that doesn't exist and yearning for someone who will only leave and hurt her. Her mother having experienced it firsthand doesn't want her daughter to go through the same thing that she has. So her father called for outside help, knowing what strippers do to a man. Knowing that if one could get him, another could get Yuuki. So, in a way Sakura's stuck in it, too. She stuck deep. She's that stripper that's supposed to break Mei's heart and show her that all men are the same, and strippers aren't meant to find love, because it doesn't exist. But how could she? How could Sakura do such a thing when she knows that feeling so well? How could she go right along and hurt a girl who cleaves to true love when she was just that girl? Who was she to decide Mei's fate at the mercy of her two distraught parents? It was at this moment that Sakura knew she couldn't do this. She pulled Mei's shaking body closer to her own.

"No need to apologize, Mei. You and I are alike." Sakura said with a small smile as Mei looked up, her face stained with tears. There were so many warning bells and sirens, along with her duty to the Village and the oath that she took, screaming at her and pulsing behind her ears. But Sakura did what she did best. She ignored them. "You're doing something that you have to do. And I will help you." Mei hugged her tighter.

Sakura didn't know how much trouble this was going to get her in. She and Sasuke only recently had the conversation about why her judgment couldn't get blurry because that wasn't what they were sent here to do. She can't exactly be blamed for that either because the game has changed. The Daimyo has called them in under false pretenses, so he couldn't possibly be asking for his money's worth. Now she was going to go out on a limb and jump it the opposite direction of their mission objective. This was an executive decision she didn't have the right to make, because Sasuke made it absolutely clear how far down the leader scale she was. But as the person having to directly deal with the target, the call to further the mission, in whichever direction, was hers. And she's made it.

She wonders what constitutes as punishment for abandoning and totally botching their mission assignment. With all the favor she has with the elders these days, she's sure her head won't be too far from a silver platter.

"It's really not much to tell…" Mei shrugged.

"Anything's good." Sakura hummed as she took another bite of her food. They were at the same restaurant they visited the first day they were here, which was perfect for Sakura. The food here was absolutely delicious but she wasn't able to completely enjoy her money's worth because she wanted to be irresponsible and drink. She rolled her eyes in pleasure and swallowed. She wondered what her Shishou was doing with their aliases that made them so important. With Mei's confession earlier about the influence Haruka had, and also the constant badgering from Mei about Hatashi, she didn't doubt that her Shishou planned to use Sakura and Kakashi again down the line.

"My parents were killed in an ambush on their way home from a business trip. My father was Hatashi's idol. He would do everything my father did because he looked up to him so much. When they were killed, life…stopped." Mei watched her intently as Sakura took another bite of her food. "My brother was a robot. Our house became a mausoleum. He stopped…everything. He wouldn't talk, he would barely even look at me. I lost my brother. Don't get me wrong, he would still pick me up from school, and he never stopped taking care of me or the house. Taking care of himself, however, is something he failed to do. But after two years, a little bit after he turned 18, he just left." Mei frowned.

"Did he say anything?" Sakura nodded.

"He told me he loved me, but he couldn't stay. He told me that I would be taken care of—that everyone would take care of me. That everything would be alright. I was 10, so I believed him."

"I'm so sorry," Mei sympathized. Sakura shrugged.

"It took two years for the money to run dry. My nanny had already left a year before. I had to stop going to school so that I could work to feed myself. My house was taken a year and a half later, and then I lost my job some time after that. And I waited one more year orphaned and on the streets before I could work somewhere that would give me a place to live and help me make money fast. I did what I had to do. And my brother never once showed up. I did get a letter a little bit after my rape. From then on, I couldn't help but be a little suspicious of the Ambassador's suicide." Mei's eyes widened.

"Are you saying Hatashi could've killed him?" She exclaimed. Sakura shrugged again.

"Who knows? I thought he was dead, in all honesty. I buried the idea of him long ago. Besides, it would be just like him to get himself killed accidentally on purpose." Sakura finished with a laugh. "But that's all there is to it." Mei thought this through for a while as Sakura finished her food.

"Do you hate him?" She pushed her plate away from herself and propped her elbows up on the table, placing her chin in her hands.

"No, not at all. He was a bastard and a coward for leaving his little sister, but everyone deals with grief differently." She finished with a shrug. Mei hummed, finally looking satisfied that she got the full scoop on Kakashi's alias.

"You know," Mei spoke up. "You sounded like my mother this morning. That's why I was a little skeptical of my surprise. I didn't want you to meet her and have her harden your beliefs on men. I didn't want you to turn into her." Sakura exhaled as she thought back.

"This morning was just anger. And then I met your mom…I still believe in love. But with the right person." She spoke truthfully. "She asked if I love Sai. I thought it through, you know, after everything. And I said yes." Sakura finished with a sigh. She cupped her cheek and looked upward in thought. "I used to think love was looking past all the bad and all the flaws. That it was getting through the tough times." Mei nodded.

"Right. And that was the case with you and Sai." Sakura's eyebrows furrowed as her head jerked back, rejecting the thought.

"That's just it, Mei. I look past all the bad and all the flaws. I forgive him for all the wrong he does without hesitation, because I just feel like it's something I'm supposed to do. We don't get through tough times, we go around them and we sweep them under the rug. At least, he does. I've been through a lot because of Sai. And I just…I forgive him." She snapped her fingers. "Just like that. I feel like it's something I have to do because I don't want to lose him. I forgive, I forget, and I sweep under the rug. And we move on. Everything is still there though. The pain he's caused, the memories because of them, the scars…" She softly fingered the location of the burn through her shirt. "But we still move on. We move on because I cannot lose him, Mei." Sakura said through gritted teeth as her hands formed a fist. Her feelings on the matter broke through her ruse and she exhaled. "I just can't." She shook her head grimly as tears brimmed her eyes. She looked up and bit her lip, blinking them away. "So is that love?" She turned back to Mei. "Is it? Sacrificing reality or your chance for true happiness to be stuck in a cycle of forgiving and forgetting just so that you won't lose someone? How is that love? It can't be." Sakura was so sure of her ideal of love not too long ago. Now…now she wasn't. And that showed maybe she was never sure. Maybe she never knew what love was. "Love should be pure, and yeah, reckless. It'll hurt because you'll throw yourself into whatever shit for that person, just because. The pain is supposed to be fun. Something you look forward to getting through because you know you can. And after you do, everything will be alright again." She looked up in thought. "You'll crave that person's presence. Not just sexually, physically. They'll be the first person you think about when you wake up and your last thought before bed. They'll stimulate you intellectually and always make you laugh, even when you're mad. The bad things won't have to be looked past because you can fix them and grow. No looking past the flaws either. Accept them." Sakura sighed deeply as something filled her. She couldn't fix the bad things with Sasuke. She couldn't fix the fact that he was gone for seven years, that he hurt her whole team and the Village, that because of him, Naruto tried to kill himself. She couldn't fix that. She could never fix that. "I love Sai. I care for him in ways you cannot imagine and I want only the best for him. And I can't stand to see him hurt or lost. But am I in love with him?"

She pressed her lips together as she pondered the question she never had any trouble answering before. She did love Sasuke. She was spilling the truth to Mei. The 'in love' portion she told Hatsumi was just for the sake of the mission. She stashed away feelings like this so she wouldn't have to ask herself these questions. She didn't want to put herself into positions like these with Sasuke because these feelings would come back. She didn't want these feelings to come back because it always came with the pain and the arguments. This mission has pushed them together and forced all of those out. Hence his abrupt departure. She's been asking herself this question for two days now. Was she in love with him? She sighed.

"There was a time when I was content with forgiving and forgetting and sweeping under the rug. The burning passion I felt for his presence conquered and vanquished the pain of what he did. There was a time when I yearned for him to be by my side. I fought for him to be back with me at all costs. And then that time was gone…is gone. I noticed that we haven't changed, you know? Couples should evolve and grow together as the love grows. But we haven't. We're stuck in the past. It's the same love I felt for him when I was 18. The same love that makes me forgive and forget instead of deciding to fix and grow…The same love that continues to hurt me and everyone around me." She whispered. "But I love him in ways I cannot explain. I love him enough to let him go. It's better for us. To love and pull up that rug and just let go. That's what your mother showed me today, Mei. Not to hate men all over, but to learn from the mistakes that I've made. To grow." She thought back to Neji and his unexpected exclamation of love. He knew that if they continued to stay together, it would hurt. There would be something there that they would have to fix and grow from. But couldn't they have done that? It's not like Neji had sex with her. And clearly, TenTen was never a factor since they're still not together. If she was still with Neji, then all of that stuff with Sasuke would've never happened. But he left the choice up to her, and she chose not to fix and grow. Instead, she made the stupid choice to move on with Sasuke, thus creating her eternal conundrum. She inwardly groaned. Kami, now I'm thinking of a future with Neji. The point was, she was going to do that now. Moving on to someone, however…

"Then love and let go, Haruka. If you feel freed by that thought, love him and let go." Mei smiled softly at her as she frowned.

Splendid that she's come to this conclusion. She's happy, really. But what the hell was she supposed to do with that? She's 3 days in on a month-plus mission. If she presents her lead to her Shishou, it doesn't matter how unbearable crybaby Sasuke thinks Sakura is, she's going to force him to come back on the mission as her boyfriend. Then their close proximity would resume. Yeah, she's come to this realization, so what? In two days, maybe less, she would be all over Sasuke again, getting confused like she was yesterday morning. Especially confused on Wednesday with their restroom fiasco. The truth of the matter is, there wasn't going to be any letting go any time soon. The next time Sasuke's lips touch hers, they'll be back at square one, trying to figure out whether she was really in love with him, or if it's just his lips talking. She didn't feel 'freed' by that thought. She felt more trapped than ever. She tried to refrain from frowning any further.

"Easier said than done." She finally said, blowing her bangs out of her eyes. She crossed her arms over her chest. "So, what's on the agenda for the rest of the day?" Mei reached into her pocket and pulled out some bills.

"Well, are you up for getting your hair wet?" The frown she was holding back finally broke through as she looked up at her bangs.

Oh boy.

Now, this was worth getting her hair wet.

She hasn't felt this relaxed in who knows how long, and the hot, therapeutic water definitely took some of the edge off of the lead-limb feeling. Not to mention having the whole bath to herself. Although, she couldn't completely shove the feeling of longing for her teammates. Especially Naruto's loud obnoxious voice. But she didn't exactly mind when Mei left.

"Do you hear that?" Mei asked, a serious expression on her face as she quickly looked around.

"Nope," Sakura replied, sinking further into the water. The ringing continued.

"It's my phone!" She exclaimed, moving quickly through the water. Sakura's eyes followed her. She stopped and turned back around. "I have to take that…" She whispered to herself. Then she frowned, her inner conflictions continuing. "But I'll stay." Sakura emerged from the water far up enough for her to speak.

"No, no, take it. I'll be fine." Mei looked at her unsurely.

"Are you sure? I can really stay."

"Absolutely." Sakura said, her voice contorted by the water as she went back under.

"Alright." Mei said with a resigned sigh. She continued to the edge of the bath and placed a hand on the rock to help prop herself up. Sakura's eyes materialized as she watched Mei leave for the changing area.

"Intriguing…" She whispered. Her eyes widened before she plunged herself underneath the water.

This was why Ino called her a closet lesbian. She frowned. Oh how she missed her annoying best friend.

She should be able to call her right? It's not like a call back home would compromise the mission. No one was checking her phone records, or at least she didn't think so…Either way, she just wanted to talk to her. She would like her opinion on her newfound revelation. Being Ino, she would probably call her a dumbass and tell her she should've come to that conclusion a long time ago. Then Ino would ask about her mission and how scandalous it was so far, and then she would pester her about Kakashi—

She gasped. Kakashi. That baka. What was wrong with him? It's been 3 days since they've talked—not that she missed him or anything because she most definitely didn't. But he could've called and told her when the hell he was going to pop up so that she could act surprised like she was supposed to and not smack the shit out of him.

She shouldn't have a reason to, right?

She rolled her eyes and scoffed. They were fine. Besides, it was usually up to her whether or not they were talking, and as of now, they didn't have anything not to talk about. She sighed. She did want to talk to him, though. He was an awful lot better company than Sasuke, and he was familiar with this mission. Plus he wouldn't doubt her on her ability to perform. She was proud of Kakashi's faith in her. Even back when she was just a rookie on base taking pole dancing lessons, he had her back. He trusted her. Something Sasuke has never done. Not to mention Kakashi was a hell of a partner, too. She'd bet that if her Shishou set her up to work with him on this mission, they'd be home in less than a month.

But what would they be going home to?

She frowned again as her relaxation period ended abruptly with thoughts of war. War that was arguably Kakashi's fault, seeing that he—

She pouted. She was supposed to be relaxing, not stressing about a war she couldn't even fight in. She waded to the edge of the bath and placed her hands on the large stones. No use in her skin getting all pruned when she wasn't even enjoying it anymore. She put all her strength into lifting herself up. There's that lead-limb feeling I missed so much. She thought sarcastically. She walked toward the changing area as she wrung out her cerulean blue tresses. Once she entered the small house she moved toward where she left her bin. She paused.

"How the hell am I going to get back—?"

"Have you seen—?"

"Agh!" Yuuki stared with furrowed eyebrows at a very surprised Sakura who had an arm around her chest and had her legs crossed tightly. She pressed her lips together and tightly shut her eyes. Shit. Good job Sakura. She silently cursed her mother for raising her with self-respect and decency. Work with it. "Don't you know this is the women's changing area?" His eyes widened as he threw his hands up, an apology on his lips.

"I was just looking for Mei—"

"Maybe you could respect my indecency for a moment and turn around?" She replied impatiently. He complied almost immediately, swiftly turning on his heel with his face still full of embarrassment. Sakura felt the heat in her cheeks and tried to calm herself down. She figured Mei's father was right about one thing, women willingly got naked for Yuuki without hesitation. For Sakura to deny him of this was probably a surprise. That goes right along with the theory that no one tells him no. She exhaled before grabbing a clean towel from her bin and securing it around herself. "I would like to keep who I am at night separate from who I am during the day, if that's alright with you." She said snidely as she smoothed her hair into a ponytail. "You can turn around now, Yuuki." He had the sincerest look on his face. She almost felt guilty. It was her fault for fucking up, after all.

"Misses Tan, I'm so sorry." She rolled her eyes, a smile on her face as she waved him away.

"Please, not that Yuuki. It's okay. Completely understandable considering what I do. I'm just not the same person I am at night." He swallowed and nodded slowly. "Now, Mei left about half an hour ago. She said she had a call she had to take." He furrowed his eyebrows.

"Call? What call? I'm right here, who could she possibly be talking to?" He thought aloud with a hint of anger. Then he sighed. "I didn't even know she had a phone." Sakura raised her eyebrows. She quickly thought of Sasuke but banished the thought from her mind. Seeing that he never listened to her, he could've went right ahead with Mei. He would probably call her on the pretenses of investing in the lounge and ask to meet with her so that he could ask questions. She shook her head, trying to keep the frown off of her face. "I wanted to see her before tonight…" He whispered to himself.

"What's happening tonight?" He looked up from the phone he pulled from his pocket, a confused look of disbelief on his face.

"It's Friday, what's not happening tonight?" He dialed a number and put the phone to his ear. "Hiro." He said quickly.

"Yes sir?"

"Find Mei." Yuuki said through gritted teeth.

"Yes sir." And the line was disconnected. Yuuki snapped the phone shut and placed it in his pockets. Sakura watched as he checked it every seven seconds. She continued to wring out her hair.

"Yuuki, I'm sure she's fine. She's probably just with her mother. Or maybe her father called her." Sakura offered, trying to reassure him. His frantic look only got worse.

"Haruka, Mei's mother is dead." Yuuki said in a tone suggesting she should've known. Sakura's pressed her lips together. Mei could've warned her that faking her mother's death was a part of the lies she told Yuuki. If only as a means to prevent awkward moments like these. "And I pray to Kami she's not with her father." Sakura frowned as he started pacing. She was getting more and more confused by the second. Did Yuuki know or didn't he? Or did the whole 'I'm not going to let you marry this man, Mei' thing get around to him? It couldn't have, because she knew Yuuki was persistent. He wouldn't just take no for an answer, even if it was her father. Although he was also the Daimyo, on the other hand, the powerful, terrifying man. And Yuuki was a little soft…Anyway, she was sure he would've asked by now why he couldn't have Mei's hand in marriage. The Daimyo wouldn't hesitate to expose Mei's web of lies, if only to hurt Yuuki and cause him to leave. That would've been way easier then calling for outside help, and even managing to push the wedding back because Sakura had a mental relapse from a previous mission. Still…what was it that made Yuuki adverse to the Daimyo? She decided the only thing she could do was more digging.

"What if he needed her to escort—" He stopped, his head whipping around to face her.

"Escort?" He repeated, his voice sounding confused. Then he exhaled and gripped the bridge of his nose. "Her father's 'escort business.'" He said sarcastically with air quotes. Sakura didn't like being confused. She actually hated it. And right now it seemed like Yuuki's sole purpose was to keep her that way. "I don't believe in that bullshit. Probably all just a cover-up, anyway. Just to keep his leash on her." Sakura shook her head, trying to piece everything together.

"A cover up? Yuuki, I'm sorry, I don't see where you're going with this—" His expression became frantic again.

"Don't you understand, Haruka? Mei's father beats her!" Sakura's head jerked back as she tried once again to process all of the information.

"What?" She exhaled in shock. The Daimyo beat Mei? No, that couldn't be true…Maybe Yuuki beat her after all and was trying to pin it on the father…Why would he beat her? Wait. She thought grimly as she bit her lip. Yuuki's phone started ringing and he quickly put it to his ear.

"Have you found her, Hiro?" He asked impatiently.

"Yes sir." Yuuki sighed in relief, running a hand through his hair.

"Thank Kami…Where was she?" He asked slowly, fearful of his answer.

"She was at her home, sir." Yuuki closed his eyes and cursed silently.

"Put her on the phone, will you?" He turned away from Sakura. Her eyes softened.

"Yuuki?" Mei said. Yuuki turned slightly and she saw him light up once he heard her voice.

"Hey baby. Are you alright?" Sakura moved back to her bin and started gathering her clothes.

"Yes, I'm fine. Why wouldn't I be?" He exhaled again, shaking his head.

"Alright then. I know you had plans, but those will just have to wait. I'm going to see you before tonight." Mei sighed.

"Yuuki—"

"Don't tell me no, Mei. You'll regret it." He said with a sly smile. "I'll have Hiro drop you off at Haruka's hotel afterward. He's taking you to my place right now." He said with a tone of finality.

"Fine." She huffed.

"I love you,"

"I love you." He smiled again before disconnecting the call. But his emotions changed as he sighed deeply, turning back to Sakura. "Her father beats her." He repeated sadly. Sakura racked her brain. How could she have missed this? With the Daimyo lying about the cause for the mission, she should've examined the details. At first she suspected a father just trying to protect his daughter, but…She closed her eyes and thought back. 'Real ugly. Near abortion, nasty fights, threatened exposure…' 'Haruka, the Daimyo is a very powerful, terrifying man. The fact that his word is strongest in the land makes everything worse. He will stop at nothing to make sure I am unhappy, and that is a very scary thought…' He kidnapped her for Kami's sake! Mei all but told Sakura that she was getting abused by her father. Even her mother gave her hints. How could she have missed this?

"How do you…how do you know?" She asked softly as he sighed.

"We fuck all the time, Haruka. I know her body like the back of my hand. I know what should hurt, and what shouldn't hurt. I can tell when something is amiss." He shook his head. "She's so scared of him, and he knows that. Being the Daimyo, there's really nothing she can do about it either. If he sends for her, she has to go." Sakura frowned. No wonder Mei was debating whether or not to take the call.

"So Hiro is—"

"Hiro is Mei's bodyguard. The Daimyo has to at least respect her protection detail." Sakura remembers Mei sending Hiro away before they went to her mother's house. Hiro probably thought her mother was dead, too. She thought with a frown. "I don't need protection. I'm a rich man, Haruka, but no one wants me dead. Well, other than the Daimyo." Her eyebrows furrowed.

"Why would he want you dead?" He narrowed his eyes.

"So I won't marry his precious daughter." He spat. "Actually, that's not even his daughter. The only thing that makes them related is his developed sperm. Nothing else. They are not family." Yuuki finished darkly. If the Daimyo is abusing Mei, he cares nothing for her wellbeing and only for her unhappiness. So he forbids her even to get married? That seems like a little much...

"Why doesn't he want the two of you to get married?" Yuuki scoffed.

"If I get married to Mei, whatever binding contract she has to her "father" will end." Bingo. "She won't have to stay with him any longer. She can live with me. She can be safe. I've never even spoken to the man and I know he's a horrible person. If Mei hadn't forbid me of ever going near him, he would've gotten far more than a piece of my mind." So Mei has covered her bases. She's forbidden Yuuki from speaking to her father, but even so he's still the Daimyo. If he sends for someone they can't just refuse...Sakura bit her lip as she processed the new information. But if her father exposed Mei for who she was, Sakura was sure she would have no further qualms in exposing her father for the child-abuser he is...In that moment he would lose his place of power. Not soon after that would the mission request he sent out be found. It wasn't exactly lawful, but understandable circumstances, when he hired their team under the pretenses of trying to expose a man who beat his fiancée. But now there are no pretenses since the Daimyo himself is the criminal. And she was sure this mission wasn't discussed with his council because of it's details, and she was also sure his council would hire their police force to investigate the matter, rather than a stripper, her boyfriend, his advisor, and her brother. To add to the account, Mei's father is abusing his power as Daimyo and keeping his daughter locked under his supervision even though she's way past the age of consent. According to Mei's mother, it wasn't a total dictatorship. Maybe then it wasn't, when Mei was only a baby. Her father has been in power almost 18 years...clearly he would like to keep it this way. When Mei got married to Yuuki and the "binding contract" she had to her father ended, she could bare all of his abusive ways to the public. The Daimyo would still lose power. He didn't have very many ways to keep Mei bound to him and keep her from talking, but whatever unlawful way he did have he was holding on to it. And he got Team 7 involved in it too. It seemed they got a little more than they asked for with this mission. She heard Yuuki sigh again. "I don't mean to bother you with my problems." Sakura shook her head and smiled back at him, finally moving over to a bench to change. She put her back to him and let the towel fall.

"It's no problem, really. Now, if you don't mind turning around again…" She heard him hum.

"Nice tattoo." She blushed again, quickly pulling her shirt over her head.

"Yeah, whatever." She grumbled. "Can you tell me what else Mei has planned for me today? I don't really favor surprises." She stepped into her panties and then shimmied into her denim shorts.

"I'm sorry, she made me promise not to tell." Sakura rolled her eyes before standing. "I do have to say that I don't approve, though. And I'm sure Sai doesn't either. Maybe if I call him—"

"He left." Sakura replied indifferently. She shrugged at his reaction and slipped into her flip-flops. Yuuki blinked.

"I didn't—" He started, another apology on his lips. Sakura held up a palm.

"It's fine." Although it wasn't. She was left completely alone on this mission. No connection to Naruto whatsoever. She had a feeling he was watching her every move, but if she wasn't in any immediate danger, he wouldn't show himself. And she couldn't summon him since she couldn't mold chakra. She would have to wait until Kakashi gave the say-so, and she had no idea where the hell he was, so that would be another surprise. The whole leader scale thing kept coming around to bite her in the ass. Sasuke purposely left her with no contacts. But she'd be fine. She had her lead, and Kakashi said he would show up on Saturday, regardless of her dancing status, so the mission would still go on. But still… "Besides, I can do whatever I want now, especially those activities you're so against." She gave him a wink before linking her arm with his. "But my hotel is a little far from here, so if you don't mind…" He smiled down at her as they left the bath house. She pressed her lips together to hold back her own. "Some things just don't change, Yuuki." He shrugged as she pursed her lips, her smile finally breaking through.

"I guess not." She turned her attention to the road ahead. "Maybe your employment standing will…?" She shook her head as she chuckled, tapping a manicured finger to her temple. "Some things just don't change." He said, laughing. She raised her shoulders and her hands.

"You never know…"

"You ever wanted to be a man, Mei?" Sakura inhaled sharply. "Fucking everything that walks that has tits and ass with no emotional attachment whatsoever?" She finished in one breath before exhaling deeply.

"I do that sometimes," Mei started, blowing her breath upward. "Although they're not that attractive and never that good. I have to play blow-up doll a lot knowing I'm way better than that." She rolled her eyes as she shook her head.

"Well, besides the job." She rubbed her shoulders.

"Yeah, 'cause Kami knows the only men who come to lounges to fuck are the ones who don't get laid in the first place." She started laughing before a small cough broke out.

"Men could fuck their closest friend and not feel a thing. I don't get it." Mei frowned.

"Me neither. But I learned when that becomes a habit, they have no choice but to get attached and feel. And then love." Sakura frowned, removing the dwindling joint from her lips before exhaling.

"Isn't that what happened with you and Yuuki? That can't be real." Mei shrugged before taking a long pull.

"I thought that, at first. But me and Yuuki were more than "friends." We were best friends. We knew everything about each other, especially how to get on one another's last nerve. I knew that I would do whatever for him." She took another pull and exhaled. "I didn't plan on dancing for long. I actually didn't plan on anything. I just wanted to defy my father in any way possible. I didn't know what I wanted out of it. Living with my mother maybe…? I don't know. But then Yuuki comes to me with this big idea, and he wants me to help him. I didn't plan on a career, but I would do whatever for him." She took the small joint from her mouth and crushed it between her fingers before tossing it in the trash. "I went to some of the best schools and got the best education possible in this Village. I always know what I'm doing. And still, when I was around him, I felt so lost…like I knew nothing about anything. That feeling is so scary, Haruka. To have no idea what shit you might get into next because you're just so blinded. But spontaneity was so addicting to me—Yuuki was so addicting to me, and I felt refreshed by it. When we started taking things day by day, it just happened. Friends or lovers, I was so close to Yuuki that I couldn't see him not in my life. And thinking back on it, I'm glad I had no idea of what I was doing. If I did, then our love wasn't "reckless" enough." Mei smiled at a frowning Sakura. She smothered her own joint and tossed it.

"I'm starting to think Yuuki's a different breed of men." Sakura said, hearing Mei's laugh as a result. She must've been high because she was actually contemplating her words. "Spontaneity, huh?" She said, rolling the word around on her tongue.

She was already participating in a whole lot spontaneity. Sakura was a medic. She wasn't really one to take drugs for any other effect other than medicinal, and even then she preferred her own chakra to anything else. But she couldn't suppress her curiosity when Mei brought in a bag of marijuana and a few joints. So there they were. Mei was leaned against the outer wall of the tub, filling out her bra and underwear. Her legs were crossed as she lit the current joint held between her lips. Sakura was hunched over atop the toilet seat in a small camisole and her lace underwear, enjoying her high, as Mei passed her the joint. She happily took it.

"So what exactly is the breed of men that you're used to?" Sakura rolled her eyes as she exhaled.

"Sleazebags,"

"Virginity too?" Sakura threw her a look.

"Virginity especially. You?" Mei shrugged. "Was Yuuki the one who took your virginity?" Her face scrunched up in amusement.

"Oh no. I already had a large scarlet letter on my chest." Sakura raised her eyebrows.

"What happened to the man who did?" Mei rubbed her bare shoulder and smiled sheepishly.

"Well, I told you back then my only purpose was to defy my father. I was young and rebellious." Sakura pursed her lips.

"So you were—"

"Lesbian, yes." She shrugged.

"What about your first time with a man?" Mei shook her head at the memory.

"Stupid in love." Sakura scoffed.

"Weren't we all?" Mei laughed.

"Sleazebag?" Sakura pointed at her.

"Of course. The night he proposed." She rolled her eyes at her stupidity. "Then he had sex with a friend."

"That bastard." Mei gasped.

"My sentiments exactly." Mei paused for a moment.

"Would you ever do it?"

"What?"

"Sex with a friend. Spontaneity." Sakura furrowed her eyebrows as she considered the thought.

"Maybe if I was high enough." She said with a chuckle. Mei waved her away.

"Oh, weed won't make you do that." Sakura raised her shoulders.

"I don't know, one more drag of that stuff and I might." She said with a smile, raising the joint to her lips. "But then again, I have no friends at my disposal." She passed the joint to Mei.

"Friends, associates, strangers, what's the difference?" She said with a shrug, inhaling sharply. "The point is, you need some sex to get over Sai." She finished before finally exhaling upward. A cough broke out. She took the joint from her mouth and examined it with a scrutinizing look. "Ooh, that is some strong stuff." Mei admitted with puckered lips as she waved the smoke away with one hand and held the joint out for Sakura in the other. Frowning, she took it.

"And sex is going to get my mind off of him?" She took a pull as Mei shrugged, a sly smile on her features. She wasn't exactly familiar with that theory…

"Eh, not exactly." Sakura's frown ran deeper, passing the joint back. "Like I said, the sex isn't that good there. But I do have something to give it that extra kick. That and everything else for a few hours…" Mei mumbled the last part as Sakura raised her eyebrows.

"Geez, Mei, you trying to get me to OD?" Mei laughed it off. If only it was a joke. Sakura frowned.

"Live a little!" She exclaimed. She seemed to be hearing that a lot lately… "Besides, these aren't dirty. Terumi makes them herself." Sakura withheld the urge to make a smart comment. Stripper and a drug dealer? She smacked her lips as she remembered her last encounter with drugs. Well no, that was dirty. And almost killed her. Her common sense and skepticism were lost and faded the higher she got. She'd worry about the details later.

"What do you have?" Mei beamed, balancing the joint between her lips and using her hands to pull something from her bra.

"Ecstasy or molly?" She held out the colorful packets, one in each hand. "Now, ecstasy is a little more hardcore for your first time and it lasts longer. But if you're planning to get your feet wet, it's more fun." And more dangerous. Sakura recalled as she remembered all the active ingredients in the drug. Mei caught her eyeing the packet in her left hand. "Molly it is!" She exclaimed, dropping the small packet in Sakura's hand. She stared at it unsurely.

"I'm not taking this myself, am I?" Mei pursed her lips as she produced another packet from her bra.

"Now why would I let you have all the fun?" Sakura opened the packet and rolled the pill around her thumb and index finger.

"I hope I don't regret this…" Mei rolled her eyes.

"Trust me, when you're back in those booths having, well, arguably the best sex of your life, you'll be thanking me."

Sakura jumped up and down to the beat of the music. Her heightened senses screamed at the handsy touch of the man who seemed to be all too familiar with her ass. Not that she left much to cover it to begin with. She wore Ino's dress. Its camisole straps were thin and the material of the black dress hung low on her chest; the cut of her small breasts on display. The black material clung to her like a second skin, along with the pieces of her hair that stuck to the sweat on her body. The bottom part of her dress flared around her each time she moved, providing easy access to anyone who dared try. There were a lot of daredevils around her tonight. Especially the man behind her. She felt his exciting touch all over her.

The song changed and she removed herself from his grasp. Mei was only a few steps away.

"The lights are beautiful aren't they?" Mei exclaimed, beaming as she tried to disentangle herself from her own beau.

"I've never seen them this bright." Sakura replied in awe as she stared above her. The blurriness of the lights and her colorful, spinning vision probably added to the effect. "Amazing." She felt so aware of everything and everyone. Her free limbs didn't mind being jerked away by another man. She happily obliged, and didn't mind that thing poking her in the ass either. She slinked her arms up behind her and wrapped them around his neck. She felt his steady hands encased around her small waist, rubbing her up and down. She enjoyed it.

The song changed again and she slipped away. Her eyes squinted as it focused on a tuff of dark brown hair in the distance. She sauntered over to the figure and pressed her chest hard against his back, slipping her hands under his shirt.

"Sakura?" He said, his voice with a hint of confusion.

"Sasuke-kun," She said in return as he turned to face her, her voice low. She stepped on the tips of her toes. Her lips started working on his neck.

"Sakura…" He moaned. Her mouth lingered at his ear before softly tugging at it.

"Touch me." She breathed, her hands slipping into his shirt again. "I know you want to." His hands remained glued to his sides as his inner conflictions prevented him from moving. Her hand slowly slipped into the waistband of his pants. A gruntled sound emerged from his throat and electricity shot up his spine. Her lips made its way to his and he gave, overpowering her touch. His hands found her ass immediately and he squeezed. Her body melted perfectly against his. He could do this. He could forget—

She removed herself from his grasp and he immediately felt the loss of body heat. He panted slowly as she smiled. She loved putting him on edge, didn't she? She crooked her head slightly, nodding toward the back. She outstretched her arm and pulled on his hand. He took a cautious step forward. He could do this. He could forget—

He saw her eyes.

"Sakura?" She danced to music in her head instead of the sounds blaring around them.

"Yes?" She closed her eyes, raising her arms above her head.

"Your pupils are dilated." She slowed and opened her eyes, trying to narrow them.

"No they're not." He stepped closer to her, taking her chin in his fingers. "Okay, okay." She said laughing giddily, raising her hands in surrender.

"Are you drunk?"

"Nope." She tapped his nose and erupted in giggles. He furrowed his eyebrows.

"Sakura, are you high?" He exclaimed. She gave him a goofy smile.

"Off of weed or a molly? Because I took both." She started giggling again as she ran a hand through his hair. He grabbed her wrists. She slipped from them and started tugging on his arms. "Come on, Sasuke-kun." She started dancing again.

"I'm not doing this when you're not in your right mind." He tried to reason. More so to himself than to her.

"Seems like the perfect time to me." She offered with a shrug.

"Sakura—"

"Haruka." She corrected as she tried her best to give him a pointed look, which had her in a fit of giggles again. "Oh, come on. Where's the confidence in your—"

"Sakura." He warned. She laughed and twirled herself using his hands. Her dress moved around her in a wild circle. He could see the curve of her ass each time she—He subtly shook his head.

"Once in a lifetime, Sasuke." She started dancing again, her voice nonchalant. "This chance might not come up again. It's now or never." She held her hand out as she continued to sway her hips to her imaginary music. A sly smile broke out on her face as she eyed him. He took her hand.

"Not now." He answered. She pulled her hand back and shrugged.

"Suit yourself." She laughed and twirled again before merging into the crowd. He watched her. Her arm was suddenly being jerked one way and he took a precautionary step forward but he saw she was laughing. He sighed, running a hand through her hair.

That was not Sakura.

Sakura didn't readily agree to dance with any man, especially when she was forced. You couldn't force her to do anything. So he got upset when he saw the man behind her enjoying his dance a bit too much. Touching his ass and his breasts—he was furious.

"Hey—" Sakura started as she was roughly pulled aside. "What are you doing?" She exclaimed just as Sasuke's fist landed on his jaw. He slid a few feet back, cradling his chin in his hand.

"What the hell are you doing?" The man said. Not too angrily, Sasuke could hear the inebriation in his voice. He would know, especially since he was a little drunk himself…

Sakura appeared in front of him and pushed him in the chest. The impact was almost nonexistent. "Yeah, what the hell are you doing?" A person stooped down to help the man back to his feet. Everyone else ignored the rather normal scene.

"That's enough." He growled. What was he doing? She tried pushing him again.

"Enough of what?" She turned quickly and made sure the man was okay before trying to push Sasuke again. He knew that would've normally hurt, but he really covered his bases last night… "What's wrong with you?" His eyes met her dilated ones. "Are you drunk? Seriously?"

"Not about me." He dismissed her. He was a little juiced. Maybe a lot… "What's wrong with you?" He looked behind her and met Mei's cold eyes. What happened there?

"I'm enjoying my night." She said, crossing her arms and shoving her chin in the air.

"No, you're on drugs." He pointed out. "You—"

"No, you left so you have no control over me." She huffed. Mei grabbed her arm and started to pull her away. "He's really blowing my high, Mei." He heard her whisper. She turned back around once more. "You should've stayed wherever you ran off to last night." She mumbled as Mei succeeded in dragging her from the scene.

Why didn't he?

He was comfortable with Naruto. Naruto didn't nag him, well, nag him like Sakura nagged him. He didn't pick fights or force him into arguments. He didn't cause his hair to gray. But then Naruto didn't get him aroused either…

He can't remember why he came here. Naruto got him juiced and got himself juiced. He remembers a faint warning before he passed out. Was it 'Don't go anywhere near, Sakura tonight?' or something like 'Don't go anywhere near my chakra tonight?' When he left Naruto's apartment he was nowhere near sober, and figured it was the latter seeing how the Kyuubi hated all Uchihas. Okay, he wasn't in his right mind when he left. But neither was Sakura right? So they were even. No. He thought. He impaired Sakura last night, so they weren't even. Why did he do that again? He remembers drinking a little wine last night as well. Even the littlest amounts of alcohol puts him on edge. And so did Sakura. He was practically dangling off of a cliff right now. His drunkenness didn't help anything, on top of the fact that he couldn't control himself while intoxicated. She had to know that right? She was the one who found that out. She had to sense that he wasn't in his right mind last night. Sakura couldn't possibly be holding a grudge over that. But if not that, which he knew it was, then it was definitely him leaving. Both of those together probably produced a very angry Sakura. So is that why she took drugs? To take some of the edge off? Well that just wasn't fair. Sasuke wanted to blow off some steam too, steam that she produced, but he couldn't look at another pill as long as he lived. Also her fault, her and the whole damn hierarchy of the Leaf Village—

Look at him. He was supposed to be enjoying his Sakura-free time, and he knew that wouldn't last long because Naruto snitched to Kakashi, but here he was, and here she was, offering him sex. Why did he turn her down again? He considered finding her and changing his mind, but her drug-induced offer was probably all forgotten about with his last episode. He sighed. He was always fucking something up. Sakura was a siren. A dangerous, seductive siren. Just her touch—

He was supposed to be enjoying his Sakura-free time. He intended to do just that.

She continued to sway her hips and he continued to whisper sweet nothings in her ear. He was way too familiar with her body—like every other man tonight—and she's probably given him one too many dances. His words never stopped, and neither did his wandering hands, but she enjoyed it. This was what she was supposed to do. Enjoy. She was 23 for Kami's sake. She always went to night clubs yet she was always preoccupied with someone. There was a time she only danced with Neji, there was a time when Sasuke wouldn't let her dance with anyone else, and then there was Ren…whatever they had during that time. But she loved the attention she got. She knew she never got enough of it. No wonder Ino associated herself with so many men. Although she was still with Hatsuharu…The point was she loved attention and he was giving it to her, even if she knew his intentions. He was using her just as much as she was using him. She didn't mind.

She assumed he was handsome, but it was dark and her vision was a little off so she couldn't tell for sure. She was usually right when she assumed, anyway. She felt a hand snake up her thigh.

"Those aren't yours…" She whispered. He lowered his head so she could hear him.

"I can make them mine." He said seductively. She could smell the alcohol in his breath. She bit her lip. This was against her morals. But really, did morals even exist in this Village? But he was a total stranger, that she knew for sure. She wouldn't be able to combat any infection he could give her. The fact that she didn't know him seemed to stand on top of all the other reasons she could just turn and walk away. She heard Mei's voice in her head. Friends, associates, strangers, what's the difference? Sakura rolled her eyes and grabbed him by the hand.

"Oh, what the hell," She muttered to herself. She led him by one hand to the back where the booths were. She knocked on the closest one and waited for a response. Her partner, apparently, would not. Actually, he was a little too eager. He sloppily pushed her into the door and reached an arm over her shoulder, twisting the knob himself. Well, it wasn't locked. She probably wouldn't stumble in on anyone. She hoped.

The Gods never did favor her, anyway.

"What the hell are you doing?!" She screamed. High: gone.

"What the hell are you doing? I'm with a client!" Asami yelled back. Sakura stomped her heel on the floor as anger rose within her.

"That's my boyfriend!" Her voice was a high shrill now. Asami's scoff pushed the wrong button.

"Hell of a boyfriend." She remarked.

And she was right. Sasuke was one hell of a "boyfriend." She didn't feel sadness, or the need to cry. Her face was flushed red with anger, yes. But it wasn't even toward Sasuke this time. It should've been, but it wasn't. It never was, was it? She just, at that exact moment, had an overwhelming emotion coursing through her that told her to break this brown-haired beauty's face.

Asami had long since raised herself from Sasuke. Sakura didn't care for her barely clothed state, she just cared for her blood. She craved it. All over her fingers. At that precise moment.

She could deal with Sasuke later. She always did.

"Another one, then." The man behind her slurred, trying to pull her away. She snatched her wrist from his grasp. Oh, her sex drive had dissipated. She was filled with something else now.

"Haruka!" Sasuke shouted from atop the bed. She ignored him. She'd deal with him later.

"What a relationship the two of you have—" She didn't get to finish her sentence because ten manicured digits were currently clawing at her throat and also cutting off her air supply. Asami scratched at them as she gaped.

"Haruka!" It was getting easier to ignore him now. She could ignore everything. All she heard was the pulsing in her ears and the beautiful sound of someone not getting enough oxygen. She loved that sound. She was so caught up in her bliss, she didn't notice the heel coming straight for her rib cage.

She held her chest and stumbled back as Asami gasped for air. That hurt a lot more than it normally would. Damn you, Sasuke. But she'd deal with him later. He wouldn't jump in, anyway. He knew better. If he forced her to deal with him at that moment, there would be more than hell to pay. The throbbing in her ribs brought her from her thoughts. The pain was so much she thought the girl had punctured something.

When Sasuke took away her chakra, he took away one of her senses. Probably why she didn't see the fist aimed straight for her face.

Her eyes squeezed shut and her fingers held her nose tightly. She immediately tasted blood dripping down her throat and felt the wet substance on her fingers. She blinked a few times to get her vision back, but it was never totally there in the first place. Her fingers burned too; she looked down and noticed a few of her nails had been ripped off. Sakura always took care of her hands. As a Shinobi, there wasn't much to do to keep your hands from callousing and your nails from wearing down to the cuticle. But Sakura did. And now some of her nails were torn, leaving in its wake a jagged piece and a few spots of blood.

After the night was over, she would blame it on the dual effects of the drugs. Asami just kept evading her eyesight…She lunged for Sakura and they stumbled back, Sakura turning her around just in time to push her against the door of the booth, which seemed to be opening. Asami screamed as the force from the door hitting her back caused her body to arch. Sakura punched her in the jaw, she thinks, or something sharp enough to hurt her hand. She stumbled back and tried to recover, but the searing pain coming from her nose was affecting her eyesight as well. It didn't matter how doped up she was, her medical instinct told her to do a damage report. Just as she looked down to check why her hand was throbbing so painfully, more hands reached out for her, pulling her by her hair. Sakura felt unbearable pain as unwanted memories filled her skull. Thoughts of Grass ninja momentarily impaired her. She could still hear Sasuke, but he knew better than to get involved. She faintly heard a female voice—was that Mei? Asami pulled again and Sakura latched onto her own curly mass of hair, pulling her down just as she was getting pulled. But Asami was in heels and Sakura wasn't. Sakura tugged once more and Asami slipped forward, right into Sakura's waiting knee. She was getting used to her screams.

"Watch it, bitch. You don't know who you're dealing with." She growled, wiping the blood from her mouth with the back of her hand. "You filthy—" Distracted again. Asami had recovered and mustered all of her strength into this push, it seemed. Sakura was flung back and didn't stop until she hit the bed post. The impact of the hit had her head hurling back and hitting the very thick, very wooden corner of the top of the bed post. Her eyesight went black and she slid to the floor unceremoniously.

"Haruka!" She heard her name shouted repeatedly and it was various voices, very distinct voices. But the pulsing from her head immediately blocked that out. Her eyes slid shut, she couldn't see anything out of them anyway. She thought she was unconscious, but she felt hands on her shoulders jolting her awake. Her eyes blinked open but there was colorful circles blocking most of her vision. The voices faded in slowly and then all at once, loud, intensifying the searing pain at the base of her skull. Someone was screaming. Why was someone screaming when her head hurt so much? She felt a hand caress her face and felt the pulling of her muscles. Her mouth was open. Oh, she was screaming. She didn't have much will at the moment to get herself to stop, but her lungs must've ran out of air so she did. But she could still talk, that was good.

"Sakura! Sakura!" She heard someone whisper. That wasn't Sasuke's voice…

"Haruka!" That was. Thoughts of him half naked on the bed that caused her doom rushed behind her eyelids. She squeezed her eyes shut as her vision came flooding back. Even the dim light in the room hurt to look at. Room? Where was she? "Haruka! Stop trying to talk!" Sasuke again. He must've not heard her. She couldn't hear herself so how could she? She tried anyway.

"Oi, Sasuke-kun. Is it me or do we always end up like this?"

Early Saturday Morning

"Naruto, you have absolutely no channels. What are you paying for here?" Sasuke stood near the television, incessantly clicking buttons on the remote as Naruto burst through the door. "I would've thought—" The remote flew from his hand as his shoulder was sharply pulled back and a fist connected with his jaw. He stumbled back. "You wanna pick a fight, Naruto?" Sasuke growled as Naruto raised his fists, ready to strike again. Sasuke swung, but his fist was slow and Naruto ducked under his arm and moved behind him. He clipped Sasuke by his legs and pushed him onto the floor.

"You're drunk." He spat. Sasuke rolled over and wiped his mouth. He held himself up by his hands.

"And you're not. We're even." Naruto had no time for jokes. He brought his foot back and kicked him in the stomach. "Kick me while I'm down, huh?" He said, amusement in his voice as he coughed. Blood trickled down his lip. Naruto brought his foot back again and aimed it for his face. Sasuke caught it but his hands were weak. Naruto snatched him up by the collar of his shirt. "Naruto, what the hell do you want me to do? Apologize? I'll apologize." He threw him back on the couch and the piece of furniture slid back. He paced once across the living area before kicking the small, glass coffee table against the wall. It shattered.

"An apology? That's what you have? A fucking apology?" Sasuke looked on, his expression stoic. "You owe her your soul!" He indifferently ran a hand through his hair.

"That's already gone." He stated, rubbing a hand against his jaw. Naruto stopped in front of him and put his hands on his hips.

"Kami knows I try so damn hard to stay out of your bullshit. Because really, what can I do? I sit back, and I watch, and I grit my fucking teeth while you prance along doing whatever the hell you want to because you don't give a damn about her! So many times I dreamed of ripping you a new one, but I promised. I promised my best friend not to get in between your shit because she claims she's grown, and she can handle all of your bullshit by herself." He pressed his lips together. "I did it to Neji, and I did it to Ren. What makes you so immune? The fact that you're my brother? Hell no! That shouldn't matter! Not when it comes to Sakura!" He yelled. "But it does. It matters to her. It matters to the girl who continuously puts up with you time and time again, and handles it time and time again, and I have to watch her soul wither away. Time and time again." He growled through gritted teeth. "Why do you do this to her? Huh?" Sasuke looked on. Naruto grabbed him by his shirt. "If you don't love her, why do you play these cat and mouse games with her? Because you know she'll come back?" He scoffed and threw him back down. "Well, you were right about one thing back then, Teme. Sakura just keeps coming back to your dumbass. She keeps coming back to the sadist. The bipolar maniac. The bastard who will do anything to see her cry for his own sexual pleasure—"

"You think that's who I am?!" Sasuke shouted.

"You have yet to prove anyone otherwise!" Naruto shouted back as Sasuke pulled at his scalp.

"You think I enjoy this? You think I can help it?" Naruto pointed a finger at him.

"You had help! You had all the help in the whole damn world at your fingertips, but you chose—" He shot up.

"I chose reality! You know what those pills did to me!" He yelled, pounding a fist on his chest. "Horrible hallucinations that were supposed to curb my anger and my pleasure in pain. I can't look at the world through rose-colored glasses, Naruto! That isn't real. You and I both know that." He shook his head. "There are some things in life that you just can't cope with. That anti-depressants can't fix. My family was slaughtered when I was seven, Naruto. They aren't coming back. And I can't cope with that. I can never cope with that. I can never cope with trying to kill my brother, when in turn he was just a manipulation of this damn Village! I can't cope with that same Village trying to shove pills down my throat and trying to force me to cope with things when it can't. Be. Done." He finished darkly. "I'm a bad person. You and everyone else who saw me descend into a pit of darkness knows that. You all knew what you were bargaining with when you chased me. Yet you still brought me back." He said, outstretching his arms. "I enjoy pain. I enjoy misfortune. I can't help that, and no amount of pills can help that either. But I try to stay stress free. I try to keep a lid on my anger. I do what this goddamned Village tells me to do because one mistake, one slip-up, one more rampage and I'm back on those pills. I'm back to being probed by Inoichi and all those interrogators trying to find out what the hell is wrong with me when I don't even know myself." He said with raised shoulders. "So I've learned to stay calm, and meditate, and not to react. But that woman." He pointed to the door. "She puts me on edge in every sense of the word. She makes me so damn angry—"

"So angry that you have to sleep with a woman to get back at her?" Naruto retorted. Sasuke narrowed his eyes.

"She knows what I am. She fed me the goddamned pills herself! She knows how much pain I can cause to everyone around me just by opening my mouth. She knows. Why do I do things to hurt her? I don't know." He turned away. "And somewhere inside of me, I know its wrong. But I can't...I realize that's just who I am, someone who will keep hurting her. And deep inside, she knows I'm a bad person, too. She knows that I will never change. That I can't change. But on the surface? She sees what I show her. She sees my practice, and my calmness, and she thinks those pills have worked. Because I am trying, Naruto. I'm trying to be a good person. For her. You don't care who I am. I've showed you the rawness of my soul. The monster that I am. But Sakura? You think if she sees what Inoichi sees that she'll come running back like she always does? She's foolish for loving me." Naruto seethed.

"Foolish? She's foolish for trying to save you?" He asked incredulously.

"I can't be saved!" Naruto shook his head and stepped away from him. Before he hit him. Before he killed him.

"You're worth saving to her." Sasuke's eyes widened for a split second before narrowing.

"Why?" He yelled.

"Sakura sees the good in everyone. Even if you can't see it yourself." He scoffed. "She loves you wholeheartedly and gives her all to you. And you can't even respect her by trying to give her something back." Sasuke turned to face him.

"Here's the thing, Naruto: there's nothing 'whole' left in me. She deserves the purest love possible. And I…I can't give that to her." His voice cracked as he finally broke and his indifferent ruse faded. "But I'm giving her all I have. It's not enough at times, and sometimes all I have hurts her. But that doesn't mean I don't love her. I don't have much to give, but I'm trying." He said sincerely.

"Try harder, Sasuke." He walked toward the door as Sasuke sat back down on the couch, exhausted and spent. He ran a tired hand through his hair.

"What am I supposed to do, Naruto?" He narrowed his eyes.

"You hurt her, Sasuke. Physically and mentally. An apology just can't make up for that." He spat coldly. "Last time you did something like this, she ran away from us for two years." He twisted the knob and opened the door. "I don't care what you have to do. It better be good enough to make her stay. Because if she leaves again, just know there won't be a lot of forgiveness on my side."

Now

The events slowly came back to her, accompanied with a slight tinge of pain in her chest.

"Yuuki and Mei wouldn't leave until they knew you were alright. So he threatened a doctor to take a look at you. That's why it took so long to get you here. We had to wait for one of those bum ass civilians to wake up." He grumbled. She chuckled at his pout.

"Naruto…" She started, looking him up and down. He looked tired, like he had been running around all night. Which he has. For her. And her stupid boy problems. "Thank-you." She said lightly touching his arm. He placed his hands on top of hers.

"No biggie." He mustered a smile. "I had loads of alcohol in me but Kurama burned it off pretty quickly. I wasn't really out for long." She frowned.

"When was the last time you slept, Uzumaki?" She said, her medic instinct taking over. He rubbed a hand behind his head.

"Eh…" If she wasn't so weak she would smack him.

"I can tell it's been a while. You don't look so well." He turned his nose up at her.

"You're talking, Haruno? Give me your clean bill of health or call it even." She rolled her eyes. His softened as he moved closer. "Give me the word, Sakura. I'll handle him. I'll handle all of it. Just give me the word." He said through gritted teeth. His face was serious as his blue eyes searched hers. She rolled her eyes again.

"I can handle it, Naruto. I've been handling it." He sighed exasperatedly.

"Sakura—" His voice was clearly annoyed.

"We'll be fine. We always are." She said in a reassuring tone. He shook his head.

"My loyalty is to you, Sakura. Always has been, always will be. He may be my brother, but you come first. My loyalty is to you." He repeated more slowly. "Forget this mission. If you want him off, he's off. No questions asked." She bit her lip. She couldn't think about what she wanted. She couldn't think about anything. Everything still hurt, and the steady, dull pain in the base of her skull reminded her of it. But she had no time to be selfish right now. She had to stay on course. There was still a mission to be completed and she had enough on her plate as is. Naruto giving Sasuke a good beating would be well deserved, but that's not what she wanted. She had no tears, no vindictiveness, and no plots of revenge in her heart. She just wanted to move on. And maybe at another treaty exchange, another interrogation, he can bare all then. But she didn't want that right now. "Is that what you want?" She shook her head.

"The team comes first." He closed his eyes and sighed.

"Always has."

"Despite what my anger and selfishness tries to tell me, Sasuke and I are partners right now. And the four of us are a team. I can't compromise the mission because of my quick temper anymore." She said quietly as Naruto sighed.

"Then you know what you have to do." She nodded. Move on. "Don't hesitate, Haruno. You don't have to do this." She shook her head again.

"I'll be fine, Naruto. I'm used to it." She gave him a smile. He could feel the pain behind her words and behind her fake smile. He was angry. Furious, was a more fitting term. And the only way he could calm down was by hitting Sasuke again. But he already hit him enough to bruise, and there was no doubt that Sakura would be more worried about the promise he made to her than his doing what was right. Which, in that moment, was hurting Sasuke. "Is Kakashi somewhere here?" He blinked out of his thoughts.

"Kakashi's a few towns over." She blinked a few times, not really registering the information.

"He's where?" Naruto furrowed his eyebrows, expecting her reaction to be a little louder.

"He said being in this Village risks him getting seen, so he traveled a few towns over." She rested a shaky hand against her forehead. "I know he said Saturday, but right now you need him. You and Haruka. But Hatashi isn't supposed to show up when you need him, even though when he's your partner he does." She exhaled before her eyes widened slightly, bringing a stronger pain.

"What about the—" He held up a palm.

"Press? Everything's already taken care of. You're sick at home so you can't make it, but you're going to be represented as the newest dancer at the Kansai longue." She sunk down into her pillow in relief. He patted her thigh and rose from the bed. "I'll be right in the other room, Sakura. If you need something, yell." She nodded as he pulled the covers above her shoulders.

"Naruto." She called as he was about to exit the bedroom. He turned and faced her, his eyebrows raised. "You already "handled" Sasuke, didn't you?" He gave her a sheepish look. She exhaled before nodding. "Thank you. For everything." He gave her a two finger salute before walking through the doors.

"My loyalty is to you, Haruno."

She lit the last candle and moved to sit on the couch. Regular light was too much for her. Everything was too much for her, but she didn't really want to dwell on that.

They both sat stiffly beside each other, the only thing heard was their various breaths and the low hum from the heat of the candle.

"Sakura." She fisted the fabric of her oversized sweater between her fingertips. "There's no right way for me to do this. No right way for me to explain—" She slowly shifted over and sat near him, resting her head on his shoulder. He was tense, but soon relaxed. She rubbed the material over her bare legs. "You can't forgive me, Sakura. For what I've done—for what I do."

"I do, Sasuke." He tensed again, looking at her. Forgive, forget, and sweep under the rug. It was a cycle she could never escape, and she knew that now. Whether or not she was at peace with it…that would come in due time. Maybe in two more years he could explain to her why he did it. But not now. Not now. He exhaled shakily.

"Will you stay? Not for me, but—well, for me, and Naruto. And Kakashi. Will you stay?" She heard his vulnerability. She nodded her head against his shoulder and she felt him relax again.

"Always." She answered. That word meant so much more than not running off on a quest for more power, to get stronger because she still gets hurt, to find meaning in something, meaning in herself—It was a word that was signed in blood on her forehead. It was their curse, Sasuke and Sakura. They were governed by fate. Always. She would always forgive, and always forget, and always sweep under the rug. Because she didn't know how to do anything else. She grabbed the remote and turned on the television. Sasuke furrowed his eyebrows.

"Dirty porn?" He asked.

"The dirtiest." She answered plainly, biting down as hard as she could on her lip to keep the tears brimming her eyes at bay.

They would always be fine. She would always come back.

Because they're bound together by this cursed cycle.

Always.

I promised, and I really hope I delivered! I tried to get this chapter up a little faster than the last one *sweatdrops.* Also, there may be some misconceptions with the drugs in the story. I've never taken a molly, so I did a little research and used my own creativity. I'm sorry I'm not the FDA but I do the best I can. Since I've kept you all waiting for so long, I'm going to drop a little spoiler so I don't get anymore threats, lol. I know the SasuSaku has been a little heavy these past few chapters. It was promised in the beginning. But don't worry, I'm easing up on it. A lot. And—drumroll please—Kakashi comes back next chapter! Stay tuned,

-Keoo19