A/N: Yay for continuing the story like you promised and not leaving for months at a time only to return two years later. I'm sorry guys, I just can't get over the fact that it's been two years since I updated. As I said yesterday, this chapter is going to be more touchy-feely between Madara and Sakura besides the regular 'Madara teases her bit.' I am afraid that what happens to Sakura next is too similar to what happened to her in the last chapter, but I think we all knew this was going to happen after the last two chapters with Karin. I will try to make this longer if I can because I thought the last chapter was long when in reality it wasn't that long at all, it just appeared that way in word docx. Also, how's my writing? Again, thank you for reading and here's the continuation of Euphoria, Chapter 11.

Disclaimer: I don't Naruto or any of its related franchises. I, however, do own the plotline to this story and its creative merits. I also don't own any of the famous name brands mentioned in this chapter or entire store as I am just a poor fanfic writer. Please do not sue me.

It was just as he thought. Madara ended the call as he placed his smartphone face down on his satchel, his knuckles whitening as he replaced his hands on the steering wheel. He had just hung up the phone with the receptionist at S&U and after a small inquiry of the today's attendance, Madara discovered Sakura hadn't shown up to class like she vehemently promised she would after he reluctantly granted her the day off yesterday. His little sprite had intended to play hooky today as well, probably to spend the day with….

"My younger nephew," Madara slammed his hands against his steering wheel and took a deep inhale of air then exhaled to calm his waning gentility, fleeting so fast past him as abhorrent thoughts of what Sasuke was doing to Sakura, what he had done to her, what they planned to do later on. His deep breathing sounding more like a rattle now, he pushed the clutch into drive and jammed the gas pedal. He need not pay no mind to speed limits; he knew everyone on the police force and could even tell who was on duty at the moment as he was their blood relative, not to mention elder.

The silver Mercedes sped through another yellow light turned red as Madara made a right turn onto an adjoining road. So, it seemed his little toy wanted to make a fool out of him by sneaking behind his back with some less man. Heh, who was he kidding, his nephew barely had grown three hairs on his chest and much less couldn't be called a man, which was what Sakura needed. Sure, she was barely out of grade school and Madara was borderline robbing the cradle by taking acute interest in her, but that was different. Sakura was mature for her age (or so he kept trying to convince himself) and could handle his advances towards her, even if they were not always welcomed. She was a fiery young lady, who needed some goading to come out of her thin modest veneer. Only a man could do that and Madara was just the one, someone with experience in the matters of manipulating the hearts of maidens. Perhaps Sakura wasn't as mature as he'd originally assessed considering her flippant need to lie to him about her whereabouts instead of straightforwardly saying she was going to see another man. If she had been truthful with him, he still would have been as furious as he was now and definitely would not have allowed her to go anywhere, but at least it would have been honest and Madara wouldn't feel this emotion so familiar to him, bringing back days long past.

Betrayal, that was this feeling. Something he had first witnessed in the deadly throngs of war, suffered from numerous times as he slowly advanced to power above his peers, and desensitized himself to as he ran one of the world's most prosperous businesses and saw success carved by the broken dreams of others on a daily basis. Deception was an everyday part of his life as a powerful clan leader and business man. He had been deceived by others and, more often than not, he deceived his fellow business associates. It is simply a part of how the human psyche works. Why humble yourself and eat the scraps from the floor when you could be worshiped and sit at the head of the table with a feast before you? Life is a relatively short state and to spend the entirety of it pining for better days seemed absolutely ludicrous. If you have to stomp on a few toes to receive your portion of bread then so be it, as others surely won't hesitate in doing the same act to you, this Madara was sure of. Though the question still stood, why was it that this meek-playing, pink haired high school girl's dishonesty bothered him so?

'Because I expected more from her,' he thought to himself. By appearance alone, Sakura looked like she couldn't hurt a rat stealing her last mochi, never the less having the audacity to lie to a man of high stature such as himself. By now, Madara knew looks were deceiving when it came to Sakura Haruno. She had turned out nothing like he had expected her to be at all and maybe that's what made toying with her so fun to him, because there was always an adventure to be had when he was around her.

Madara blinked, incredulous. What on earth was he thinking? Technically, he still barely knew the girl and already she had found a way to penetrate the closed off barracks of his mind. Never did he have to chase after a woman and Sakura was not going to break his record. It was the simple fact that she lied to him and felt bold enough to rendezvous with other men that had infuriated him, nothing more. He'd learn her for a first and final time that he wasn't a man for games and toying with his time and generosity would not be tolerated. She could forget about ever asking for more absences from S&U and her duties at his apartment and if she thought for a second that her platonic relationship (and that better be all it is) with his younger nephew was going to progress any further, she was going to receive a rude awakening when he found her.

The Mercedes rounded another street corner and Madara slowed himself down from 65 mph on a 45 mile per hour zone to scan the surroundings. It was later in the day when he made the phone call to S&U and deduced that since she hadn't attended dance class, then she was either at school or home—preferably her home both for his young nephew's and Madara's clean criminal record sake. The sun had yet to set on the horizon, but the sky had turned a soft golden orange signaling the approaching end of the day. The front Konoha high school parking lot was deserted of any cars or automobiles.

'Good, I can go about my business without any disturbances.'

He parked the Mercedes under a streetlamp and exited the car, hearing it locking itself with a chirp. He pocketed his keys and scanned the grounds before him. The school was quite large in regards to the main building itself, never mind the football field, outer adjoining classrooms, gym, and library. He hadn't the slightest idea where to look as Sakura usually didn't talk about her school day activities with him during their 'special' moments alone together. He clicked his teeth in frustration at the fix his little toy had put him in.

'I have known her naught more than a month and a half and already I am scouring the streets looking for her like a cuckold searching for his wayward wife. I suppose I will start at the football field,' and Madara began his search for the pinkette, striding the sloped hill to make his way to the football field.

[One Hour Later]

'The next time I choose a woman to entertain my time with, she will be some ditsy, voluptuous, self-conceited airhead like usual and have at least graduated high school.'

It seemed like Madara had overturned every rock, bench, and chair with gum adhered to it and still had no sign of where the pinkette could be. 'She isn't here then,' he said curtly, and began his long walk back to his Mercedes. In the midst of searching for his pinkette, Madara's prior infuriation with her had simmered down to mild irritation and aggravation. He decided that the girl was merely reaching out for a male figure to treat her a bit kinder. Perhaps Madara had mistaken himself in reassurance that she could handle his romantic advances by internal pride and will alone. He reasoned with himself as he spotted his car as he neared closer to KSH's main gate again. It was possible that she was still growing emotionally accustomed to himself and his forcing his will upon her had scared into the arms of another. Sakura might be saucy and fiery at times, but she was much too weak to willingly beguile him. He could bend her to his pleasure as this was simply Sakura's nature; she was a young tart with will yes, but had not much of a backbone.

'From now on I'll have to be much gentler with her until I consummate the relationship or become bored of her.'

His car was just a few yards away from him now as he strolled into the blacktop parking lot. He inwardly patted himself on the back for parking under the streetlight as it was now dusk and some of the stars began to peek out of their slumber to grace the sky with their presence. Madara brought out his keys, unlocked the car door, got in and turned the ignition. If she wasn't here, and for the sake of all involved she wasn't at Sasuke's house, then she must be at home. He turned up the radio dial's volume and classical music poured from the surround sound speakers he custom installed. Madara grasps the back of his neck as he felt the ache in his back returning.

After sweating in his Armani suit looking for her and nearly caused three accidents on his way here, it was best to swing by her house to make sure she was home then go to the Uchiha compound. Tonight, he'd go to the house he shared with Izuna instead of his condominium on the other side of town since he hadn't seen his brother in three days and it would do him good to have normal human interaction after the stressful day he had endured.

With his window rolled down as an effort to relax himself, Madara pulled out of the parking lot and made a right turn towards Konoha's downtown to go by Sakura's house. This time he drove the speed as there was no point in flying like a bat out of hell down the road to see something he was 95% sure was there. He'd just drive slow past her house and look to see if her lights were on in the small lower window near the left edge of her house. He had temporarily considered ringing the doorbell and asking her family if she was home, then immediately tossed aside the idea; it was much too crass of a decision to follow through on and Madara doubted her family would take it well if they find out he and Sakura's arrangement after someone so much her senior felt bold enough to come up to their front doorstep.

Well, from what he gathered, Madara knew that Sakura's parents sometimes treated her unfairly in favor of their other daughter, whatever he name was, which might be the reason for her passive aggressive demeanor. Now as he pondered about it as the song turned and Debussy trickled through the speakers, for the extremely short time he had known her, Sakura always seemed to have a daunting look upon her when he mentioned her home life, almost like she was fearing of waking some sleeping giant that haunted her days and nights to people unaware. To live in the basement of her house while assumingly the rest of her family stayed above ground was an odd arrangement to him. She might be hesitant to answer, but he'd ask her anyway the next time he had a chance to corner her during her class break at S&U.

His car drove past downtown Konoha's glittering lights they still hadn't taken down after Christmas and towards Sakura's neighborhood slowly. As he was near miles away from her home, he saw he was low on gas and stopped at the first gas station he came to.

The doorbell chimed as Madara entered the small corner store and approached the counter. "I'll take pump number seven," he said as he pulled out his wallet. The elderly clerk glanced at him, then did a double take as he recognized the man before him. "M-Madara Uchiha! In my store! Who would've ever thought—"

"Pump number seven," Madara reminded him, no mood to be worshipped today by the dregs of society. The crinkly faced clerk smiled at him then opened his change drawer, "Of course, Uchiha-sama, of course. Anything else I can do for you?"

"No, that will be all," Madara handed him the one, calling back, "keep the change." The clerk looked after him in awe as he turned over the 5,000 yen bill in his stiff, pale hands.

After pumping gas and closing the gas cap, Madara started off on his journey again to Sakura's house. He was only a mile from it now, he was sure, as he slowed to a stop at the red light. Drumming his fingers to "Claire de Lune" as he waited, impatient, he peered out of his window as his peripheral vision spotted something glinting from the light of the streetlamps on the sidewalk. Madara narrowed his eyes at the small object, then vaguely recognizing its shape, he parked his car right there in the middle of the street as what he was seeing couldn't possibly be real. He leaned over the object and with gentle hands picked up the silver cherry blossom necklace that lay broken on the sidewalk. Assessing the damage, it looked like it had been forcefully ripped off from the way the clasp held onto another broken end of the chain. Sakura may have been angry at him numerous reasons, but she knew the monetary value of this necklace and from what he could tell from how she cherished what little she possessed she was not a woman of waste.

A disturbing sound reached his ears as the wind blew through his long spiky mane and Madara snapped his head in its direction. Turning off his radio and taking the keys out of the ignition, Madara quickly followed the sound, growing louder and more pained with each step he took toward it. He was right in front of it now as it lead him to the darkened corner of an abandoned building. He rounded the corner and nearly gasp at the sight.

There Sakura lay on the cold ground behind the building, moaning in a low, deep tenor as air struggled to reach her lungs. Her body was littered with cuts, scrapes, and a few new bruises blooming a bright, angry purple color. Her usual soft bubblegum pink hair was covered with scum from the dirty back alley way and muddled with fresh blood that was running through bandages at her forehead. Madara immediately knelt beside her, lightly shaking her, "Koi, koi wake up! Who did this to you? Can you walk?"

Sakura, seemingly breaking out of her painful reverie, looked him through one side of her unbruised eye and upon seeing his face peering down with such intense concern into her, her painful moans grew louder and she began to cough, blood trickling down the side of her mouth, as the cold wind blew across her. Madara, gingerly taking the injured girl in his arms, cradled her head to his chest as a coughing fit overtook her again, rattling her body in his arms. Her moans had quieted to low grumbling sound as she leaned against him for warmth away from the harsh winds that had been chilling her for the past two hours. He felt her shiver as the approaching night air lifted up tiny strands of her hair away from her face. He shielded her against him with his strong arms wrapped firmly around her. A low, pitiful moan left her lips as her head lolled against his chest.

"Hush, Koi. I've got you now. We're going home."

Madara briskly walked back to his silver Mercedes still parked in the middle of the road at a stop light and opened the backseat door to lay Sakura down. He rested her head against the cushion of the seat and placed his suit jacket over her to keep her warm. Once finding her secure, he shut the back door and hurriedly got into the driver's seat. Slamming his door shut, he pressed gas pedal and with a start the car darted off into the night.

After yelling at the guards to let him through the compound gates, Madara drove up through the neighborhoods to a more secluded part of the compound where his residence was. Parking in the driveway, he opened the backseat door and carried Sakura in his arms again, shutting the door with his foot. Cursing himself for being the one to demand the house have stairs, he made his way up them slowly so as not to drop Sakura and banged on the door, calling out, "Izuna! Open the door, it's me."

He heard a rustling from within the house before the door opened to reveal his younger sibling in a white tank top and pajama pants, a large, dark, wet tea stain noticeable against his white shirt. "Aniki, you nearly scared me half to death, I dropped hot tea all over myself! Don't do that."

Never minding his brother's chastisements, Madara pushed passed him and headed for the living room where he laid Sakura down on the couch, readjusting his jacket so it covered her shoulders. He heard Izuna enter the room after him, his head motioning around as his nose detected a strange odor wafting through the air.

"Aniki, do I smell blood?"

Quick to think of a response, Madara answered, "Yes, I-I cut myself on the railing at work today. You know the one that lazy maintenance team won't replace? It cut me on my way out of the office on my forearm. I was able to drive here by sheer luck, but I couldn't stick my keys into the lock, so I called for you. My apologies, brother."

"Are you sure you're all right? I'll get the first aid kit and stitch you up."

"No, arigatou. Call Fukumoto and tell him I'll be in my bedroom when he comes. I am filthy right now and I can't let him see me like this."

Izuna nodded, then left to fetch their personal family doctor living two houses down from them. Once Madara heard the front door shut, he picked Sakura back up into his arms and proceeded to carry her up the stairway onto the second floor. He opened his bedroom door, passing his bathroom, and laid Sakura on his bed, replacing his jacket with his silk 1,800 thread count sheets and comforter. Her breathing had evened out and her coughs had fortunately ceased for the time being. He collected the few strands of hair that were obstructing his view of her face and placed them behind her ear, caressing the swan-like arch of her neck. The fury he had felt earlier in the day had come back full force as examined all of the offensive marks which had taken root of her once beautiful body.

"Whoever did this to you, Koi, do not fear. They will pay dearly," he stroked her cheek with his index finger.

As he heard his brother and Fukumoto climbing the steps, Madara reluctantly left her side to meet them at the doorway.

"Evening, Madara-sama. Izuna told me you had an accident with your arm. Sit down on your bed, I'll take a look at it."

Madara nodded, "Hai," and turned to Izuna, "Izuna, could you fix some hot chai tea for Fukumoto? He might be here a while."

"Of course. Fukumoto-san," he said as he bowed at the older man, bidding him goodnight and departed downstairs to prepare the tea. Not until he heard his brother's steps hit the stairs did Madara move aside and pulled Fukumoto into the room, motioning towards Sakura.

"She's been attacked by something or someone. She needs care."

"My word! What on earth happened to this poor child?"

Fukumoto looked at Madara with wide, unbelieving eyes and Madara narrowed his onyx eyes at the elderly doctor. "I found her on a street corner like this, so you can get that look out your eyes and stop staring at me like that."

Fukumoto was quick to apologize, "My sincere regrets and apologies, Uchiha-sama. Do you have a foot stool? It might take a while to treat her wounds."

Madara left the room and came back with a leather chair from his home office three doors down, placing it before Fukumoto.

"Yes, yes, this will do. So, there are no injuries to your arm?"

"No, I'm fine. Will she be alright?"

Fukumoto looked over her bruised body with nimble fingers, probing her cuts and lesions, earning a couple of groans from the woman below. "Her exterior wounds look like they will heal with the right of amount of ointment and time, though I need to check for internal damage before I proceed."

The elderly man's palms pressed into Sakura's ribcage, checking for damage. Upon reaching further downward on her chest, Sakura let out a stifled cry as Fukumoto pressed on the area. "She most likely has a fractured rib. It's not terminal, but it needs to be addressed quickly."

Reaching in his medical bag, he pulled out his stethoscope, placing the cold metal disc over her upper left breast to listen to her heartbeat. He noted his findings mentally and moved onto her head. Unwrapping the soiled bandages, he examined the angry cut still bleeding profusely into the pinkette's hair and down the side of her face.

"This is bad," Fukumoto shook his head, "her disorientation and this wound shows she might be suffering from a concussion. I can't do anything about that, but prescribe her some medication to help with the dizziness and pain." He looked to Madara, "Hopefully, it will heal quickly as long as she abstains from moving too much or sports. I can dress the head wound, but that's all I can do for her."

Madara nodded understandingly, "Just make her well. I'll take care of the rest."

Soon after, Izuna came to the bedroom door with two cups of steaming chai tea and Fukumoto offered to him with thanks before Izuna bid his brother good night and Madara did the same. After his departure, Madara closed his door so as not to have any more interruptions. Hours passed as he watched elder Fukumoto work over the young woman, dressing her wounds, wrapping gauze lightly around her chest to provide some support for her cracked rib. "The rib will have to heal naturally for about two or three months before it'll be able to function as usual. Until then, make sure she gets plenty of rest and tell her not to refrain from coughing or breathing as normal. We don't want an infection."

"Hai," Madara replied, sitting beside him as he cared for Sakura. Fukumoto placed his tools back into his bag and snapped it shut, preparing himself to leave. Madara followed him on his way to the door, listening as he listed of instructions on how to care for Sakura in the weeks coming.

"And remember to keep her prostrate, straining herself this early could cause her to pass out."

"Duly noted. Thank you for doing this on such short notice."

Fukumoto looked at him with beseeching eyes, "Well, you're welcome. Just keep a limit of rescuing damsels in distress. I nearly turned you away, but," he glanced back at Sakura's still form on the bed, "when I saw her state I knew I couldn't turn her away. Whatever attacked her most definitely did it intentionally. Poor girl."

Fukumoto shrugged on his winter coat and made to leave when Madara grabbed his forearm.

"Listen to me carefully, tell no one of this. If they ask, say you were here to treat my ar—"

Fukumoto, pulled his arm out of Madara's grasp. "Aha! I knew you had something to do with this! Of all of the low rumors I've hear about you, Madara-sama, this," he motioned to Sakura,"beating up a poor defenseless girl?! Your mother would be ashamed of you."

"I respect you as an elder Fukumoto-sama as you've cared for my family for years. I warn you, I have obviously had a trying day and for you to test my patience would not do you good. I found her shivering and scared behind an abandoned building and asked for you to care for her, not conduct an analysis on my character."

"Don't get impertinent with me, you saucy boy. Remember I was the one who helped bring you into this world when your mother, Kami rest her soul, suffered when you were breached within her. That woman laying over there looks like she's been attacked by a bear and for goodness sakes I think I have a right to know why you're being so secretive about this if you had nothing to do with it."

Madara sighed in frustration at his elder, then deeply replied, "I do not want to worry others, especially Izuna. He's suffered so much already with the war and we're still dealing with the side effects," he took a step closer to Fukumoto, "or have you already forgotten?"

Perplexed, Fukumoto looked at Madara up and down before replying, "I took an oath to keep the ills of my patients confidential and I intend to keep it. Just make sure the miss doesn't end up behind abandoned buildings again."

"As I stated before, duly noted," Madara said, words coming from between his teeth like hornets departing from a nest.

Fukumoto shook his head, then opened the door to leave. "Good night, Madara-sama," he said without turning back to look at him before leaving through the hallway.

Madara watched as his form disappeared down the stairwell before closing the door after him and making his way back to Sakura's side. She looked slightly better than before, but nothing like her old self. Her breaths had slowed as she rested upon his bed, her head craning gently against his crimson red pillow case. He sighed, then pulled the comforter up to her chin so it encased her completely. Taking a pillow on the other side of her, he stood up to go to his office and sleep; if he was going to be in bed with Sakura at any time, he wanted her conscious and of able body. Running his hand through his long black hair, he checked the time on his watch.

'9:45pm.'

He took one last longing look at Sakura's sleeping form in his bed. Despite having bruises, cuts and a cracked rib, somehow Sakura still managed to look like an angel in repose. It was then that he noticed something drastically different that he ignored in his quest to aide her. Nearly six inches of her long pink hair was gone, cut in a jagged, hurried sort of way. He looked at her locks with bitterness and smoldering fury threatening to bubble up to the surface. Whoever did this would be resigned to a life of purgatory on Earth as long as he had power and breath in his body.

He gazed upon her sweet, solemn face and leaned down to her freshly bandaged forehead, kissing it with as much passion as he could muster and whispered to her, "Sleep well, Koi," and departed from the room, locking the door from the outside with a brass key.

It was some time in the middle of the next day when Sakura awoke in the foreign bed and room. Her head was swimming with vague memories of the day previous along with a splitting headache that nearly made her collapse back down if she hadn't steadied herself on the bed post. Everything was a blur in regards to how she got where ever she was now. She felt a strange pressure across her chest and carefully lifted up her shirt to see fresh gauze wrapped around her aching torso. When she carefully prodded the area, she hissed in pain as she made contact with her fractured rib and immediately jerked her hand away. Accompanied with the intense vertigo she was experiencing, Sakura was finding it harder to breathe and took short, halted breaths so as not to cause pain to her injured torso. Propping the pillow behind her so she could lay upright, Sakura leaned against it for support.

'Now that I think about it, this room looks familiar…wait a minute, don't tell me—'

Sakura looked above the headboard of the bed and saw the Uchiha Crest hanging proudly on the back wall along with a small collection of landscape paintings and an abnormally large gunbai. Sakura slapped her hands down like a pouting child at the realization she was once again in Madara's house. After lying and taking so many precautions to avoid the Uchiha, her unexpected visit to his house now seemed like terrible karma. She crossed her arms, then hurriedly unfolded them again when her forearm made harsh contact with her ribs. Spotting herself in the mirror directly across from Madara's bed, Sakura gazed at her reflection, transfixed with horror. Cuts and bruises polluted her face, arms, and shoulders, some long while others were short nicks. Sakura touched her face, unbelieving that the person looking back at her was truly herself. She moved her head to assess anymore inflictions on her body and noticed the most terrible of all the disfigurements to her appearance. She fingered the short, jagged remaining locks of her once long, flowing hair, feeling the caked blood collect under her fingertips as finger combed her pink tresses.

"No, this…no!"

Pulling her knees up to her aching chest, Sakura sobbed loudly into the soft comforter below her, bellowing out her cries not caring if the entire neighborhood heard her. Madara was working in his home office when he heard the distressing sounds coming from his room, seemingly increasing in volume and disturbing tones. When he entered, he saw Sakura bawling in a way that unsettled his spirit. He sat at the doorway like that, staring at her a few moments as he had never heard a human being make such troubling sounds. Remembering the presence of his neighbors and security guards nearby, Madara went to her and commanded, "Koi, stop this."

However, Sakura's cries did not cease, but instead increased in sound and horrible tenor. She didn't even sound human anymore, more like a dying animal chocking on its last breath before a death rattle overtook it.

'She's hysterical,' he thought to himself as Sakura rocked back and forth, clutching her knees.

Feeling like he had no other option, Madara grabbed Sakura by her marred shoulders and shook her abruptly to calm her down, "Sakura, stop it this instant!"

When Sakura pushed him away and his back hit the wall beside his bed, Madara grew angry. Making one last attempt to quiet her without physical force, Madara raised his voice, "SAKURA, STOP IT! STOP YOUR WAILING!"

The pinkette's cries ceased to a light sniffle as she still clutched her knees and buried her head in her lap. Madara looked upon her form with increasing disgust as he examined her emotional state. All intentions of being gentle and kind towards her fleeted from him like a distant memory as he unleashed his fury upon her trembling form, "Look at yourself now! You look pathetic the way you're carrying on like this. If I misjudged you as more than this shaking wretch you present yourself to be now, then my sincerest apologies. But considering I never misjudge anything, you are acting like some spoiled child. This is not who you are! For goodness sakes woman, I can clearly see you've been challenged and lost, but retain some decency and respect for yourself and don't go on whining incessantly like this!"

He knew his words were brutal to her considering the obvious trauma she'd been through, but that could be dealt with later. As a man of war and living to see all of his siblings die barring one, it irked him to see Sakura carry on as she was. Life was not for the weak and he meant every word he said about misjudging her, though a small fraction him wished he didn't lose his temper with her and berate like he had. Reaching for the wet cloth on the night stand he had helped Fukumoto use to clean the blood from her wounds, Madara wadded up the cloth and moved towards Sakura to clean the blood which had dripped from the gauze at her forehead down to the side of her face. Upon instant contact with her skin, Sakura rebuffed him.

"Dammit, woman! Let me care for you."

He moved to her again and this time, to his extreme surprise, she pushed him away and commenced to raining down slaps and punches on him. Her tiny fists were balled up and tears welled in her jade eyes as she continued her sudden assault on him. "I hate you! I hate you, I hate EVERYONE!"

Having enough with the abuse, Madara tackled the pinkette onto the bed, pinning her fist above her, making her unable to continue her vicious blows. Sakura saw the unbridled rage in Madara's face, his dark black eyes looking at her with deadly intent, though she didn't care. This was it, she had had enough. She was done with the unprovoked hate, the constant torment, the years of loneliness and abuse that had accompanied her for nearly a decade while she treated those abused her like they were worthy of her kindness. This life was not meant to be lived like a meek mouse, confined to tiniest corner of the house and regarded with disgust and threats whenever she even attempted to venture into the outside world. Something in her snapped when Madara said those cruel words to her, an emotion which was lying dormant in for the past eight years reawakened with a flaming vengeance.

"You disgust me," Sakura spat, hoping her words burned though him like venom.

With just as much disdain as she, Madara replied, "At the moment, you do the same for me."

Sakura conjured up the mucus that had been collecting the back of her throat and spat in his face, watching in satisfaction as he wiped her saliva from his cheek in revulsion. The sting of a slap came across the right side of her face when Madara struck her.

"Here I am nursing after you, worrying like a dog about your welfare and you disrespect me?! You silly, insolent girl! I am the reason you're not lying behind some alleyway with maggots feasting upon the fresh blood from your gash. Sit here like the pathetic excuse of a woman you are," he moved off of her and jerked open the bedroom door, "what I see in you I'll never know!"

The door slammed shut as Sakura listens to his heavy footfalls down the hallway. She sat in her same position flat against the bed as she closed her eyes. She wasn't tired, but right now she really just wanted some serenity and silence after awakening to the hell she had just confronted.

'Whether they like it or not, this is my life. I want more.'

It was nighttime when Madara entered his bedroom again carrying a new of gauze and rubbing alcohol. He was silent as he placed the items in his hand on the night stand next his bed, Sakura's eyes tracing his movements. When he reached the door and made to leave again, a low sound escaped her lips, "Sorry," it was a mumble more than a sincere apology. Madara halted his steps and closed the oak door, facing her with an unreadable emotion his face. Thinking that he wanted her to go on, Sakura rolled her eyes and mumbled, "Sorry for the way I acted earlier. It was…um, uncalled for."

Standing still with his arms crossed, Madara looked at her with acknowledgement, "Yes, it was."

"Well, don't you have something to say to me?"

Madara reflected on her words for a minute, "I accept your apology."

"What? You hit me after hurling insults at me like rear ended your car. That's all you can say?"

Madara dropped his arms to his hips, standing akimbo as he reluctantly replied, "I…we both did things we regret and I'm sohursh…"

Sakura held a hand up her ear, "What, I didn't catch that last part."

"I apologize, you minx!"

Sakura folded her arms lightly away from her ribs and smirked in satisfaction, "Apology accepted."

Madara nodded, he wasn't expecting this upon returning to his room after the heated bout between himself and Sakura. After sitting in his office for hours unproductive, he decided he wanted to apologize to Sakura. Of course, once he reached her room, pride wouldn't allow him to, especially after her sudden attack on him and he planned to leave for his office to go pace some more, but fortunately Sakura had the done the hard part of initializing conversation for him.

"Madara?"

He quirked his perfectly arched eyebrow at the pinkette. She was holding her hands in her and stared at him with a reserved look upon her face.

"Did you mean what you said earlier about me being pathetic?"

He met her stare and moved to prepare a replacement bandage for her head on the night stand, "Every word."

Sakura looked down, a sad, forlorn expression on her face when she replied, "I thought so. I-I meant every word I said too." Sakura grabbed his hand as he was dabbing rubbing alcohol on the bandage, "I don't want to be controlled anymore, Madara. I…I can't take it. I feel like I'm losing my mind. But," she gazed at him with large longing eyes that warmed him for some unknown reason, "I don't want to go back to being alone, not again. And sure, you may be the most narcissistic, rudest, and intimidating person I know, but…I think…you're all I've got."

Madara stood beside the pinkette, shocked at the words coming out of her mouth. She released his hand and threw up her hands in woe, "Oh Kami, I'm pouring out my heart and soul to someone nearly ten years my senior who's forcing me into a relationship with him using promises of free college tuition." She chuckled to herself as she covered her face with her hands, "I'm so desperate."

A small puff of hot air ghosted across her collarbone and she looked up to Madara's face being incredibly close to hers , the tips of the their noses almost touching. "What are you doing?," Sakura asked hesitantly as her emerald eyes locked with Madara's black ones. He did not verbally reply, but instead made a slow awkward movement for her. He encased her in his arms and pressed her to him, feeling the ends of her choppy hair ticking the sensitive skin at his neck. Taken aback at first by the gesture, Sakura froze until Madara pressed himself to her further, urging her to respond. Giving in to the warmth surrounding her, Sakura pressed herself close to Madara and laid her head in the crook of his shoulder. Madara instinctively growled in pleasure at this and rubbed circles over the small of her back.

Smelling his natural scent mixed with the expensive cologne he wears, Sakura took a deep breath as she nuzzled herself against him. The aroma of pine trees, spearmint, and, surprisingly, a distant burnt caramel scent drifted through her nostrils. She unthinkingly said, "You smell really good."

She could Madara's smirk widen next her cheek. "Why, I am flattered, Koi. Why don't I accompany you in my bed without these pesky clothes so you can get a better sample?"

Sakura slapped his thigh for his lewd suggestion and removed herself from his embrace. They shared a moment together and Madara had to go and ruin it by trying to coax her into a bed like some cheesy half-baked Casanova. Ugh, this man.

"Can't you come in contact with me for one moment without trying to seduce me?"

"Yes, you were there when we started our banter earlier and just a minute ago you seemed to be enjoying my charming embrace."

Sakura narrowed her eyes at him, "You're a dirty old man."

Frowning, Madara replied in monotone, "I am not a dirty old man. I hardly consider twenty-nine to classify as old."

"You're twenty-nine? I would have never guessed you were that young."

Madara shrugged his shoulders, "I have more responsibilities than your average twenty-nine year old. I don't have time to cater to the women flaunting themselves at me or take weekend getaways to Morocco. I'm sorry if my refinement mislead you, Koi, but I assure you," his wink sent a shiver down her spine, "I am of healthy mind and body."

"Jeez, I try to have a decent conversation with you for one minute—"

He chuckled at her outrage, "I am just teasing you, Koi."

"Oh."

Madara replaced the soiled, bloody bandage on Sakura's head with a new one, following Fukumoto's instructions as he read his barely legible handwriting. As he secured the new cloth at the back of her head, Sakura cleared her throat, "So…"

"Hm?" His deep silky voice reverberated against her back as he double looped the knot. She hesitated, but then found the courage to say, "Does this mean our contract is up?"

Madara whipped her around to face him. "Of course not. I'm a business man, Sakura, and the first rule of business is to keep your word. The deal is still on."

"I just thought—"

"You thought that my sudden change in demeanor towards you would make weak to your any want and need. I am only healing you because I have duties that need to be fulfilled and without you, I'll have to hire someone."

Sakura silenced herself and turned around so he could finish dressing her wounds. Sakura was serious this time; she wanted freedom from her abusers and unfortunately, despite the benevolent way he was treating her now, Madara was still on that list. To him, his kind way of treating her now was all just a part of his plan to break the spirit of young girl, but some part of her had hoped that his gentle efforts came from sincere worry about her without benefiting from them. Then again, this was Madara she was talking to. "I should have known better. You don't care."

She heard his sigh from behind her, "No, I think I care too much." She felt the last tightening jerk from the cloth at her forehead as Madara finished. The sound of clanking reached her ears as he put away the medical tools into the respective containers.

"Since we're playing Twenty Questions with each other, I'll ask mine. How and who?"

He faced her and tapped on her forehead bandage. Immediately, she redirect her eyes to his comforter as if she found the fabric weave much more interesting than their conversation. "I-um, I went out running—"

He cut her off, "At 5:00pm in the day time with your backpack and school clothes? Don't offend my intelligence. I want a name now."

She looked up from his comforter, her small pink lips slightly trembling, "I don't remember."

"Koi, you're making this much harder than it should be by lying to me," he took her small, scarred hands, "I'm trying to help you."

Madara watched as silent tears fell down her face, but he could tell these were not the pitiful tears of lamentation, but out of overwhelming frustration. He brushed hair from her face and leaned in closer towards her. Her jade eyes, rimmed with red from her tears, gazed at him with hopelessness. "You don't know her and there's nothing you can do anyway. I've got to handle it myself." Sakura brushed away her tears with the back of her hand, trying to reclaim her composure.

"So it's a woman? Good, that means I don't have to financially bankrupt my great nephew."

"Great nephew? Who's that?"

Madara smirked bitterly, "I know everything, Koi, about you two sneaking off behind my back. Though I can see your interest in him, as he does bear semblance to me through our common paternal lineage."

Sakura snorted at his inclination, "It wasn't Sasuke. As of right now, I couldn't care if I ever saw him again."

"Good choice, it saves me having to separate you two permanently. What I do with other women is none of your concern, but I will not be made a fool of and as of now, our contract includes involving yourself in any other romantic relationships but myself."

"For crying out loud, I asked the day off so Sasuke and I could finish as class project assigned to us, not for a roll in your hay barn. He ditched me and I had to walk home when…"

"Continue."

Her short pink hair flailed as Sakura shook her head. "Like I said, it's really none of your business, it's something I have to handle by myself."

"You are in my bed with cuts and bruises all over you, a gash in your forehead, and a mild concussion. I have been laboring over you for the past day. I am not playing this cat-and-mouse game. I want answers now."

Feeling his pressuring get the best of her, Sakura gave in and decided it wouldn't do her anymore harm to tell him than had already been done to her. She pursed her lips and finger combed her hair, not bearing to look at him, "It was…my sister, Karin and her friends."

He scoffed, "Some sister."

"When I walked home the day before yesterday, these idiots came after me, harassing me and threw vodka in my eyes when Sasuke came and rescued me," she heard his disgruntled snort when she mentioned Sasuke, "and then I slapped him for standing me up."

"You seem to be making your rounds when it comes to physically assaulting Uchiha men. I'll have to keep Izuna away from you."

Sakura delivered a rude gesture his way before continuing, "One of the guys that Sasuke beat up started telling everyone we made out, it got back to my sister who really has a thing for Sasuke and when I was walking home," she motioned her hands like she was scanning her body, "she and her friends did this. Then you found me I guess, that's the story."

He considered her words for a minute, piecing together what he heard at the office and her story, and once deeming it was the truth, he replied, "Is your home life that bad?"

Sakura bit her dark pink bottom lip, "Not usually."

"I ask because every time I bring it up, you feel the need to look everywhere, but at me. Is this the first time this has happened?"

"She hasn't ever physically touched me until now, but she had taken every chance she could to make my life pure hell. The idiots who threw vodka at me were her friends and they spread that rumor hoping it would reach her and she'd get back at me—and they succeeded."

"It's just," she rubbed her aching forehead, "it's gone on too long. I can see the look in your eye and I don't want you to interfere. I'm handling this on my own, then once I graduate, I'm never going to see any one of them again. Well, maybe Naruto and Hinata, but that's it."

Cocking his head so his spiky black hair stands fell into his face, Madara suddenly burst into a smile at the pinkette, alarming her. "What are you grinning about? I just recounted the story of how crappy my life is!"

"Because it's back for good this time."

"What you talking about?"

Without warning, he thrust himself onto her and Sakura yelped. He wrapped his arms around her neck as he chuckled like a small child, "My Koi has found her spunk again and it's back for good. No woman has ever attacked me, honestly no man has ever attacked me like you did earlier because they feared me," he lifted her chin so their eyes could meet, "but not you. I can say you almost had me fooled. For a moment I thought I was wrong in judging your character and that you really were just as meek and pathetic as you seemed, but now I see it just took some harsh, truthful words to crack that little shell of yours and for a beautiful butterfly to emerge. Welcome back, my dear."

He laid a kiss on her cheek and looked into her face, scanning her features. Just like he thought, there was no tinge of bashful redness on her face at all. It seemed her days of pretending to be weak were finally over.

"Madara?"

"Yes, my sweet?"

"You're crushing my broken rib."

Madara lurched back from her and Sakura released an exasperated exhale as she rubbed her sore ribcage. "Don't just throw yourself at me like that! I could have suffocated. You know, for someone who boast all the time about how much women want him, you keep hurling yourself at me like I'm the last smoked sausage in a room full of wolves."

"For your information, I have thousands of women tempt me every day, but in preservation of your feelings, I try to keep their amorous intentions from you. An outsider would say that you're jealous."

"Ha! Dream on, you dirty old man."

"Stop calling me that!"

"Sure thing, Madara-sama."

A disdainful look spread across his face. "Don't call me that either. I'll accept it from everyone else, but you. I thought I already explained this."

Sakura tapped her gauze wrapped head, "I think my concussion makes me more forgetful."

Seemingly reminded of her gesture, Madara were over to his black desk with the mirror and picked up his cellphone, dialing a number.

"What are you—"

"Shush," he held up a finger to her signaling her silence. Sakura did the same to him in mockery. He held the phone call for a long time as Sakura sat upright in his bed observing him as he responded to the caller with simple words like 'yes', 'ah', and 'hm'. He bid the caller good night and hung up, glancing at her out of the corner his eye as he checked his email messages. "You're staying here for the next week. Ah," he raised his index finger at her again, knowing she was about to protest, "and I don't want to hear any complaints."

"But school? I still have classes at S&U and Konoha. Oh my gosh, I missed school today!"

"You are suffering from a concussion. If the front office does not accept that as a plausible excuse, then it is not you who is in the wrong."

Still, the Uchiha's reassurance did not quell the feelings of anxiety swirling within her. Defeated, Sakura resigned herself back down to the soft, plush mattress, closing her eyes to the madness that had occurred with only the span of two days. A slow breath exited from her pink lips as she snuggled deeper into the covers.

The sound of heavy footsteps approached her and she felt the warm exhalations of Madara's breath on her face. Her eyes were closed, but she could feel him as he leaned over her, moving a lock of pink hair to uncover her ear and whispered words she longed to hear for eight long years.

"Rest."

A/N: Whelp, that's it. I still suck at updating on time, but they'll get up eventually. I wanted this to be longer, but after working on this for a week then not adding any more to it for a month, I just said to heck with it I'll update this and go from there. One of the reviewers already guessed that Madara has went from psycho narcissist to life coach, which I hope wasn't too forward for you guys. I know Madara's supposed to be a jerk and this chapter seems to develop MadaxSaku a little too fast, so I'll clarify that he's still a jerk and Sakura still disdains him, but they've reached a new understanding for each other as he sees Sakura struggle and more of a person than an object. Next chapter is going to be recap on Sakura's fight with Karin and some funny stuff at the Uchiha Manor. Hope you liked the chapter, caio!