"Firefight" by JackieLupin

Disclaimer: All characters belong to Kishimoto-sama.

-

Yeah, you can tell me all your thoughts

About the stars that fill polluted skies

And show me where you run to

When no one's left to take your side

But don't tell me where the road ends

'Cause I just don't wanna know,

No I don't wanna know

-Thriving Ivory, "Angels on the Moon"

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CHAPTER ONE

-

She knew she was in deep trouble the minute a simple touch made her tremble and flush. What once had been just an affectionate ruffling of her hair now seemed so much more, to her at least; whenever their skin touched, it would send tiny tingles through her spine. Where once she had seen her sensei, a man who was both leader and friend at the same time, she now saw a man. A very attractive man with that cliched mysteriousness about him that Sakura could not help but find irresistible.

One touch had changed everything

They had been sparring. It wasn't anything unusual that hadn't happened before, for although she was talented, the Copy Ninja had years and experience under his belt. When Kakashi had finally gotten through her defenses and knocked her off her feet, she took him down with her. Maybe it was the way they landed; his weight on her wasn't uncomfortable, just their sudden proximity in more intimate areas. Maybe it was the way he had cradled her head as they fell to soften the blow. Maybe it was the odd look in his eye. Or maybe it was the fact that his lips had been inches away from hers.

Sakura knew that at the age of twenty-three she had already found the man who was destined to be her companion. The only problem with that was the particular man her heart had chosen. It was unfair, really, how horrible her love life had been. Her first love had been Sasuke. He had left Konoha and Team 7 only a few months later in an attempt to sever all ties and defeat his brother. Her second love had surprisingly been Kiba; their relationship was carefree and affectionate, for the most part. But then Kiba had fallen in love with Hinata and Sakura had been left alone. Just when Sakura had sworn off all men and prepared to dedicate herself to a solo shinobi lifestyle, this specific twist had all but shoved her off her path and unravelled all the defenses and barriers she had thrown up to protect her heart from men.

It was so unfair. And this man was probably the worst of the worst. If Sasuke had been unsocial, her ex-sensei was probably three-times that. If Kiba had been distracted and detached even before he fell in love with the sweet Hyuuga heiress, Kakashi was probably just as bad. And the porn. The mere sight of those books in public made her eye twitch with irritation.

"I'm doomed," she had muttered to herself after she realized that she actually may have fallen in love with the highly eccentric, highly elusive Copy Ninja.

And as she stared up at the ceiling of her small, cozy apartment around 9:30 in the morning, Sakura couldn't help but repeat those sentiments to herself. "I am doomed." With a heavy sigh, she rolled onto her side to gaze out of the window at the bustling scenery of Konoha. The sun was shining into her room freely; the sunny cloudless day would prove to be stifling and hot. A perfect day - in Naruto's opinion - to meet and train. She scoffed, wishing that she could get out of it, having absolutely no desire to see her ex-sensei. It was bad enough that she looked for him wherever she went and was disappointed merely when he wasn't around. It would be worse to be forced to suffer those feelings for Kakashi in such a physical context like training. He would guess her infatuation for him in half a second with his Sharingan.

When she next glanced at the clock, it read 10:00. Deciding that she had lingered in bed long enough, Sakura threw the blankets back and all but rolled out of bed. She padded quietly into the bathroom across the hall and shut the door behind her. After she had relieved her full bladder, she turned on the shower and undressed, occasionally sticking her hand in to check the water temperature before stepping inside.

"He had better not be there today," she hissed at her reflection in the mirror hanging on the wall before slamming the shower door shut with a bang.

-

My luck may actually be holding out, Sakura thought, partially relieved when an hour after she had arrived at the training grounds there was still no sign of Kakashi. "I don't think he's coming today," she called dryly to the ever-impatient Naruto who was high up in an ancient oak tree scanning the area for signs of a mane of silver hair or a small orange book.

Naruto laughed and jumped down from the tree. "We'll just start without him."

Sai, who was leaning against the same tree that Naruto had just been up in, merely nodded. "We have waited long enough," he said simply, his eyes creasing into his fake smile. Sakura rolled her eyes at it, but Sai didn't notice; he was too busy meticulously packing away his precious drawing book and ink brushes in their individual containers.

"Yamato-taichou!" Naruto yelled after looking around for their temporary sensei, "Where'd you go? We're gonna start! Kaka-sensei probably isn't coming today!"

To their right, the underbrush rustled and parted as the tall ex-ANBU shinobi walked to them. Sakura felt her chest grow tight as she remembered that Yamato had served under Kakashi when they had been in ANBU together. Suddenly a desire came over her to question him about Kakashi and the many missions they had spent together. She wondered how much more he knew about her and Naruto's old genin sensei then they did. She was sure he had learned some details about him! But then Sakura clamped down on that thought process. She didn't want to violate what was Kakashi's business alone. Even after all this time and the ordeals they had gone through as a team, she still didn't really know Kakashi. He had never let anyone get close to him after the demise of his own team and sensei.

She must have let some of the desperation and hurt show on her face, for a hand on her shoulder interrupted her thoughts. She looked up at Yamato and smiled apologetically. "You alright, Sakura?" Yamato asked, his concern written in his eyes.

"Gomen," she said, "I'm fine."

Yamato didn't look convinced, but he did not press her for details. He was a very collected person himself, so she knew he would understand her reluctance in sharing anything that was... well, personal.

Naruto, however, lacked that kind of understanding. "What's wrong?" he asked immediately after Yamato released her shoulder and walked deeper into the training grounds. Sai followed him, though not before glancing back at them curiously until the dense vegetation obstructed his view. "Sakura-chan, you okay? Is it anything I did? Do I have to beat someone up?"

Sakura chuckled. "No, Naruto, you baka. I'm okay, really."

"If you're sure." He looked at her. "You could tell me, you know."

She stared up in his solemn blue eyes, debating what his reaction would be if she told him. No, she thought inwardly, He'd either try and kill Kakashi or force us together. And besides, I'm supposed to be forgetting about my... feelings... for Kakashi. Admitting them to Naruto would mean that I expected them to last. And that would make them real. Out loud, she said, "Thanks Naruto, but really, it's nothing. I just don't want to have to go to work after this."

Naruto grinned. "Is Baa-chan giving you all of her normal shifts now so she can go drown herself with sake?"

"No!" she giggled, but they both knew it was true. "Tsunade-sama gave them to me because I can handle anything that is thrown at me. I've been able to heal injuries for years now. I guess she just figured I could use the money, since we haven't been on a mission in nearly a month."

"I know!" Naruto groaned, "I feel so cooped up in Konoha; maybe we can bug Baa-chan to give us a mission soon!"

"To get you out of her hair, I think she'll agree."

"Yeah, me t- Sakura-chaaaaaaan! That wasn't nice!"

Training passed away the rest of the morning and also took a chunk out of the early afternoon. Three o'clock rolled around before Sakura knew it and she happily excused herself - Naruto and Sai were fighting, their skills so closely matched that no one appeared to have an advantage over the other - after bidding the collected Yamato a warm goodbye and ran home to wash away the blood, sweat and dirt that all but coated her body.

She slowed down her breakneck pace a couple of blocks from her apartment to enjoy the sunshine. Now that she wasn't exercising, the warmth from the sun's rays felt nice against her skin instead of burning. A faint breeze that she hadn't detected earlier blew in from the east, ruffling the leaves in the wind and providing a welcome respite from the heat. As she passed, many other Leaf villagers exited their homes to happily relish the wind. She couldn't help but smile as a little girl escaped her careful mother's clutches to run out into the light and splash around in a puddle from the rain the night before.

Her sudden good mood all but evaporated when she thought she glimpsed a tuft of silver hair heading in the opposite direction.

-

A half hour later, Sakura climbed the stairs to the entrance of the Konoha Hospital and let herself in. She hung up her jean jacket and smoothed down her lab coat over her dark sweater and tan pencil skirt, suddenly wishing she had forgone the heels for a more comfortable shoe. But hell, her legs looked damn good in them. It was almost worth the pain in her toes and the arch of her foot.

She had barely tugged her skirt down when the quick clicking pace that walked with such authority caused her to look up with a smile. That had to be her shishou; only Tsunade walked with such a confidence in her step and face that even the beautiful Ino would sigh with envy as she passed. The Hokage rounded the corner and smiled at her student. "Sakura, right on time," she greeted gruffly.

Sakura laughed. "Of course, Tsunade-sama."

Tsunade too grinned. "You get it from me, you know." They both knew she was teasing; Tsunade-sama was almost as bad as Kakashi when it came to being on time for all events, from meetings with the stuffy council members to all social engagements. The thought of Kakashi reminded her of what she had been so curious about.

"Have you seen my old sensei, by any chance?"

The Godaime fixed her with hazel, questioning eyes but did not pursue her curiosity on the matter, something that Sakura greatly appreciated. "No," she finally answered, "Not since this morning. He has border duties tomorrow with an ANBU squad, so I ordered him to remain in the village for the time being."

"Oh," Sakura remarked as nonchalantly as she could, hiding behind her facade a rather silly disappointment. Why hadn't he come to see them? Then she frowned; she had to STOP this attraction for her old sensei before it interfered with her judgement any more. This was stupid. Kakashi did not really care about her feelings, nor did he about Naruto's. He hadn't made an effort to see them in nearly a month! So why the hell was she still moping over his absence? If anything, she should be thankful; this distance between them would help her heart to realize that its feelings were just a passing fancy that weren't really real. "Thanks, Tsunade-sama."

Her mentor patted her on the shoulder. "You're a good girl, Sakura," she murmured quietly, "Too good to get caught up with a man like him."

Sakura spun around with a gasp at the Hokage's words, her cheeks flaring in embarrassment. "T-Tsunade-sama!" she stuttered, but the Hokage was already strolling down the hall, her high heels accenting her every step.

For a few moments, she just stood there in the middle of the empty hall, shocked to her core. How did she...? Am I that transparent? Then she shook her head at her behavior. This was not the time to mope; she had work to do!

Sakura had just walked to the front desk when a frantic nurse hurried up to her, clutching multiple files in her hands. She had waist-length black hair and a small oval face. She was pretty and sweet but rather forgetful and annoying to work with. "Sakura-san!" Manami called anxiously, handing her one of the thick manilla files, "Tanaka-san is back! His fever came back and his skin is really yellow. He said that-"

"Thank you," Sakura interrupted firmly but kindly, as Manami's quick update was drawing the attention of some of the patients waiting to be seen in the side room, "I will look into it right away. Now, what room is Tanaka-san in?"

"Room 6," Manami answered.

Sakura quickly strode down the hallway, her high heels clicking against the floor and echoing off of the walls. It was a little eerie how quiet the hospital was at the moment. She then shook her head to clear her thoughts. She had a patient to heal. Finally reaching room 6 halfway down the hallway, Sakura gently knocked on the door and then opened it. Mr. Tanaka, a middle-aged balding man, looked up when she entered with obvious relief on his large face. "Good afternoon, Tanaka-san," Sakura greeted him politely, taking in his yellow features and glazed eyes in just one glance. Jaundice and fever, she thought to herself, mentally trying to match up Mr. Tanaka's symptoms with any known sickness.

"How are you feeling?" she asked, taking a seat in the available chair and opening up the file to view his medical records.

"Not so good," Tanaka-san joked weakly, clasping his sweaty hands together nervously. "My fever came back, and when I looked in the mirror I realized my skin had changed its color."

"Do you have any other symptoms?"

"My...my joints ache. And I've lost almost all appetite. When I eat, I usually vomit."

She surveyed him through lowered lashes. His large cheeks were tinged red with fever, though the rest of his face had a yellow sheen. The yellow was what had her concerned. Well, she thought, We'll see what happens after the urine test. She got to her feet and rummaged around in the cabinets; she pulled out a small cup and lid and handed them both to Mr. Tanaka. "We'll find out what's going on. I'd like to get a urine sample from you to test. Have you had any trouble going to the bathroom?"

"No," Mr. Tanaka replied, getting to his feet shakily. Sakura led him out of the room to the bathroom.

"Leave the sample on the counter when you're done, and then meet me back in your room. I will be back shortly to take a blood sample and then run all of the tests that we normally do during physicals, just to make sure we haven't missed anything."

After Tanaka thanked her and entered the bathroom, Sakura strode back down the hallway. She entered room 6 and pulled out a plastic syringe and tube and placed them on the sterilized counter. Then she slammed open his file once more and thumbed through the pages, wondering if she might have missed some detail that would explain Mr. Tanaka's current symptoms.

Five minutes later the heavy man reentered the room and took a seat. His hands, Sakura noticed immediately, were now shaking. "What is it, Tanaka-san?" Sakura asked nonchalantly in an effort not to startle the man.

He cleared his throat and responded shakily, "My urine was... dark."

Her head snapped up to look at him. "Dark? In color or was there blood present in your urine?" Blood?

Mr. Tanaka shook his head. "I don't know," he said heavily.

Time for different tactics, Sakura thought, picking up the syringe and gesturing for the man to give her his arm. She quickly sanitized the area from which she would draw the blood, then used her index finger to feel around underneath the skin for a suitable vein to draw from. She drew only a small vial of blood, then removed the needle. "Alright," she said in an upbeat tone, "We will run some tests on the blood and urine to see what the problem is. In the meantime, I'm going to look around in your body for myself, if I have your permission."

Mr. Tanaka gazed at her wearily. Most civilians were rather afraid of chakra being used on their body, and it appeared that Mr. Tanaka was no different. Nevertheless, he agreed with a reluctant. "If you must."

Gently, Sakura concentrated a small amount of chakra into her fingertips, then pressed them into Mr. Tanaka's arms. Her energy slowly seeped through the man's arms and down into his core, searching for any abnormality in the surrounding tissues. Nothing registered at first, only the large amount of white blood cells that seemed oddly high. Then something large and sickly drew her attention; Mr. Tanaka's liver seemed very swollen and ill.

She knew what his illness was, even without the blood and urine test that would only confirm it. Everything added up.

"Tanaka-san," Sakura said, withdrawing all of her chakra from his body after altering the healthy liver cells so they would not be affected by the same disease, "You had a severe case of hepatitis B. I have healed most of your liver, but with some more medication I think we can avoid any permanent liver damage and you'll soon be back to normal."

Tanaka-san seemed troubled, then relieved, then anxious. "How soon should I start my medication?"

She scribbled out the prescription, then handed it to the man sitting across from her. "As soon as possible," she answered with a smile, "No need to worry, Tanaka-san, this illness is definitely curable."

-

Sakura stood outside of the hospital near the back entrance, arms wrapped around herself and eyes closed, simply enjoying the cool night breeze. She was thankful that Mr. Tanaka had come in to the hospital as early as he had. If he had waited any longer, she was afraid there would have been much more serious complications. Hepatitis B was treatable, but that didn't make it any less frightening. It was a life-threatening disease if left untreated.

Hurried footsteps echoed down the hallway. With a weary sigh, Sakura opened her eyes and waited to be found. It was always like this. She had given up even trying to hide to enjoy a short break because no matter where she went, Manami always seemed to find her. It was like she had a homing chip installed in her or something, for her tracking skills - for a civilian - were rather extraordinary.

Sure enough, the brunette soon came slamming through the doorway, completely out of breath. "Sakura-san!" she called while the pink-haired kunoichi inwardly groaned, "We have another patient!"

"What is the problem?" she inquired patiently, wondering why Manami couldn't just take care of it herself. She was competent enough, afterall.

"This woman-"

"What is her name?"

"Oh, I don't know!" Manami fumbled around with the chart in her hand and managed to open it without spilling the mess of papers out onto the sidewalk, "It's Goto Chiasa. She's in her forties and complaining of fatigue, a sore throat, and and a high fever."

Sakura fixed her emerald eyes on Manami. "Those sound like pretty common symptoms. Are you sure this needs my personal attention?"Manami shrunk a little underneath the kunoichi's unwavering gaze. "Well, I-I guess I could..." she said sheepishly, flicking her long dark hair out of her face and closing the file with a small snap.

Sakura smiled and placed a hand on Manami's arm, regretting the harsh approach she had taken with the younger woman. Manami was a very nice girl who didn't mean any harm. It was just a little annoying to always have her rushing around, hot on her trail to take another patient when she was perfectly able to do it herself. "Manami, you are a very capable medic. I'm sure this is well within your control."

It was worth a hit to her pride to see Manami's oval face light up with a confident smile. "Hai, Sakura-san. Arigato, arigato." Then Manami was away again down the hall.

Sakura sighed in relief when she was positive Manami wasn't in earshot anymore and turned her back on the door. A sudden chuckle made her jump.

"Very skillful," Tsunade-sama congratulated her with a wicked grin as she walked forward into the light, "I could not have handled that better myself."

"Shishou, you scared me!"

The Hokage chuckled again, then handed her a small cup filled to the brim with sake. "Here you go, gaki," she said affectionately, "Drink up."

Under any other circumstance, Sakura probably would have refused with the excuse of working. However, now she was beginning to understand why Tsunade drank so much. Alcohol did have a calming effect on one's body in sparing amounts. And one drink really couldn't hurt. Besides, Tsunade seemed to know that she needed it. It was her way of offering a shoulder without actually expressing the words. "Us kunoichi have to stick together," the Godaime added wisely, "Our lives are never easy. Love complicates it tenfold."

Sakura said nothing, only nodded. She downed the sake in one gulp.

They stood there in comfortable silence for a couple of minutes, each lost in their own thoughts and memories of a time when perchance things may have worked out. Amused, she realized that she had never seen her teacher in such a good, calm mood before. How much sake had she had? And how much sleep? She smiled inwardly at the idea for a time.

Sakura was the first to break the silence as she mulled the Hokage's words over in her head again. "Tsunade-sama?" she inquired softly, "Who was the man you fell in love with?"

Her mentor fixed her with hazel eyes, then sighed and replied with a gentle smile. "Dan. He was my...everything. We were lucky enough to even be with one another. But the life of a shinobi is never fixed in stone. He was killed, and I left Leaf for a time to heal," she said simply.

"That must have been hard..."

"It was. But I have never regretted it. The time we had together was more than enough." Tsunade glanced down at her. "I know your feelings are true for Hatake. I will not fill you with false hope, but to love is a powerful thing. If he weren't so blind, he would see that he has a team that cares for him and will protect him to the death, if only he would let them. Someday, he will realize this."

"I just don't know why he hasn't realized it yet," she complained sadly, "We're a team. Of course we care for him. He was like our... brother, friend... after he was our sensei." She sighed, then blurted out, "I want him to think of me as a woman, as a friend. As something other than just another shinobi."

"Give him time," Tsunade replied, "He has led a hard life, more so than the rest of us. He will learn to open up again."

She nodded.

Tsunade refilled her sake glass.

Sakura stared at the golden contents mulishly for a moment, then downed the second glass as quickly as she had the first. "Thank you."

"Go home and get some sleep," the Hokage said, "Tomorrow, bring your team and meet me at my office. I have a mission for you."

"Hai, shishou."

-

Ten minutes later, she was on her way home. She took the long route back to her apartment to enjoy the night life. The bars had opened hours before, the music and crowds inside making her smile as she remembered a particular 'girl's night out' that ended with Ino sleeping next to the toilet and Sakura somehow ending up on the outside porch of Tenten's house.

Familiar laughter stopped her dead in her tracks.

Sakura whipped her head around to its source and saw Kiba sitting at Ichiraku, Hinata and Shino at his side, Akamaru's massive head against his thigh. Kiba laughed again at something Shino muttered, tears gathering at the corner of his eyes as he held his stomach. Hinata too was smiling, her fingers intertwined with Kiba's free hand. To any passerby, they were a happy group of friends and comrades.

Her chest began to constrict and burn as she fought against sudden tears - why the hell was she crying? She didn't even love Kiba anymore! So what was the fucking problem? She brushed the offensive tears away furiously. She was over him, really. They got along well as friends and even though the breakup had been - abrupt - they had mutually decided it was best to continue only as friendly acquaintances. Then why was she suddenly so upset? Her life was full and happy... enough. Was it because she had feelings that were never returned no matter who she fell for? Was it because Kiba had been the man to finally return her feelings, if only for a time? Was it because he had been the closest thing to a lover that she had ever had?

Or was it jealousy for their closeness that made her upset? Team 7 would never again be whole; their fourth member was probably lost forever.

Sakura frowned and forced her legs to move again. She shouldn't be moping over this right now. She just had to concentrate on all the positive things in her life that outweighed the bad. But even as she fought to list the pros, Kakashi's face crept unbidden into her mind. "Not this," she moaned, "Not now."

She barely made it home before the tears that had been building up in her eyes flowed in rivers down her face. She couldn't remember a time she had felt so alone and lost in the world. And just when she had thought that the path she had chosen - the life of a confident, solo kunoichi - was going to work, everything was destroyed. No, she just had to realize her attraction to Kakashi to completely erase all of her future plans and goals in the span of a mere couple of weeks!

"What the hell is wrong with me?" she whispered into the darkness.

Hatake, you're going down.

-

Rough Translations

Hai= yes

Arigato= thanks

Shishou= teacher

Gaki= kid

-

I'm back! After a rather long hiatus, my apologies. I've been getting ready for college, sending applications in, attempting to handle my now-massive amount of homework... blah blah blah. I'm still in the process of creating a story-line for the sequel to The Mission From Hell, but until then I needed to get this rather demanding plot bunny satisfied with a daily dose of KakaSaku.

This piece will be multi-chaptered, though will not be as long as TMFH. Please bear with me; some updates with be irregular due to prior engagements and HOMEWORK. I do plan to update biweekly though.

It's nice to be back. :D

-Jackie 3