In the early, sunny afternoon, Sakura headed towards the Nara forest, feeling quite shady as she did so. She tried to look calm and normal, and not show how nervous she actually was. She had a lot of reasons to feel nervous about her meeting with Itachi. First of all, it was Itachi and while she was quite sure he wouldn't hurt her — he had no reason to — he'd been the enemy for years. Second, she'd be getting information. Of course, she was glad that she'd no longer be left in the dark but she'd had enough to time to realise just how dangerous their situation was. Not only that, but responsibility they carried was just enormous.

They hadn't even asked her if she wanted to take on the job! They hadn't even bothered to tell her that there was a job to begin with. Well, to be fair, it was not like she would have said no, but it was the principle of the thing. But it was not like she could complain to Uchiha Itachi, least of all to a deity. She'd just have to suck it up, sit down and listen to what Itachi had to say. Hopefully, he'd make sense of this situation.

And third, it was the situation. She was sneaking in the Nara forest — she was unsure how she'd accomplish that, since Shikamaru had told them that no one outside their clan could enter the forest without a special permission from a member of the clan — and not only that, but she was sneaking in the forest to meet with a man everyone thought to be their enemy. She couldn't even begin to imagine how Sasuke would react if he knew who she was about to meet with. It certainly wouldn't help her win a place back in his good books.

The good thing was that there was no way he could find out, unless he was stalking her, which she found highly doubtful. Especially considering Kakashi's latest interest with his training. Sakura allowed herself a smug smirk and a mental pat on the back for job well done.

Sakura mentally thanked the Nara for having their forest in such a convenient, remote place such as the outskirts of the village. There were no people around to witness her skulking about a private area, owned by one of Konoha's most prestigious clans and she felt her confidence increase. Still there was the matter of not being allowed to enter to think about.

There must be some sort of a way to enter without needing a permission if Itachi could do it. Now, if he had been so kind as to share this piece of information in his little letter to her, she'd have been eternally grateful. She bit on her lip thoughtfully, standing a couple of feet away from the entrance.

Turned out, she needn't have worried. Just as she was contemplating just storming in without a care in the world (She could lie her way around it, she was a civilian born after all and she could say she'd gotten lost and didn't know that she wasn't supposed to be inside the forest without a permission if it came down to it. Of course, that'd be a blow to her pride — getting lost in Konoha, how embarrassing — but she preferred them to think of her as an uncoördinated idiot rather than a traitor, thanks.), so just as she was about to storm inside the forest, a small black cat came out the shadows — like, it literary sprung from the shadows like it was a part of them — and halted in front of her. Brows furrowed, Sakura knelt in front of the cat and stared at it in confusion. And then the cat opened its mouth and spoke.

"Please follow me. Itachi-san said not to worry about the protection jutsu." With that being said, the cat spun around and ran inside the forest. Sakura had a second to recover from the shock of hearing the animal speak and follow the cat before it had disappeared from her sight. She briefly wondered what Itachi had done about the protective jutsu, but when she realised she'd soon have the chance to question him, about this and a lot of many things, she only concentrated on running and the excited pounding of her heart. It was hard to keep track of the cat, since it was pure black and the huge, rich crowns of the trees made it impossible for light to enter but somehow she managed.

She halted, startled, when the cat suddenly dug her nails in the dirt and froze on spot. Sakura looked around wildly, searching for what might have made the cat stop in such abrupt way but she found nothing. Raising her eyebrows, she turned around to look at the feline, her mouth already open to form her question but instead of words, a small squeak fell from her lips when instead of a cat, there stood Uchiha Itachi, quite literary looming over her.

"Uh..." Look away. Look away. Her common sense was screaming instructions at her but nothing seemed to register except for Itachi's hypnotizing, intense eyes. Sakura knew that the Sharingan had that effect on people — she'd often lost herself in Sasuke's sharingan eyes — but the pull his eyes had on hers was too much. It was like they demanded to be looked at. Sasuke's eyes had been hypnotizing as well but not to this extent. Then she remembered that back when she had the luxury of staring in Sasuke's sharingan without the threat of him putting her under some horrible genjutsu or just plain killing her was when his sharingan hadn't fully developed. "Uh.." She was fully aware she sounded like an idiot and probably looked like one too.

Fortunately, Itachi was merciful enough to avert his eyes. Sakura shook herself out of it and took a couple of steps backwards, feeling uncomfortable with their close proximity. "Where's the cat?" She asked once her brain started to function properly.

"She's gone." Itachi replied shortly in a calm voice. "Now, I assume you have questions for me."

"Damn straight I do!" Sakura exclaimed, putting her hands on her hips, two weeks of frustration because of his silence rushing back to the front of her mind. "Are we really back in time? This is not some twisted genjutsu or a way for Mei-sama to amuse herself?"

"This is not a genjutsu." Itachi replied and Sakura breathed a sigh of relief, despite already knowing that. She just needed to hear him confirm it. "As for this being a source of amusement for Mei-sama... I'm not entirely sure. It might as well be, but she has also... emphasized with my — our — situation and agreed to help us in any way she can. I will advice you to treat her generosity with respect." His statement was accompanied by a reproachful look.

Sakura frowned, crossing her arms in front of her non-existent chest indignantly. "I respect her generosity! I'm just confused, that's all. This is a bit too much to take in, you realise."

Itachi nodded solemnly, an apologetic look in his eyes. Sakura stared, surprised, as he bowed his head a fraction in a gesture of apology. "Please forgive me for being so rude. I was unsure myself of which route Mei-sama had decided to take. We had a few plans but we never had the time to decide which one will prove to be the most successful. This plan was our last resort, since it is the most dangerous. I'm sure you have already realised the seriousness of our situation and the responsibility we currently hold in our hands. I'm sorry to have dragged you with me, but Mei-sama and I agreed that it will be for the best if I didn't try to do everything on my own this time around."

At least he learned from his mistakes, Sakura thought with a mixture of pity and some lingering resentment. It would be hard to look past his actions despite knowing the true reason behind them. Willingly or not, he had ruined Sasuke's life and turned him into the sadistic, heartless monster that nearly killed her and Naruto on a few occasions.

"You said something about a deal back in the hotel." Sakura said, her brow wrinkling in thought. "What did you mean by that? What kind of deal?"

"You don't have to concern yourself with this." Itachi replied smoothly, his eyes focused on the tree next to Sakura. "My deal doesn't involve you. Consider this a favour — a free ride to a brighter, easier future without having to give anything return."

Sakura's eyes narrowed suspiciously, something about the way he phrased that bothered her — not having to give anything in return? If she was having a so-called "free ride" than what could he possibly be giving in return to Mei-sama? Her hand jumped to her hair and she ran her fingers through the short strands, her unfocused eyes fixed on the uneven ground. Was he going to sacrifice himself again? She pursed her lips as his thought became the focus of her musings. Why must she always surround herself with people who were willing to give their lives away without a second thought? (She ignored the sneaky voice in her head that accused her of hypocrisy.) Even though she was bothered by his answer, she knew better than to pressure him for the truth.

"Alright." She said eventually, moving past the matter. "So, how are we going to do this? Obviously, we have a lot of work to do. Mind if I sit?" She'd had a very gruesome training session with Gai and Lee this morning and she didn't feel nearly as energetic as she normally did. Itachi gave a curt nod and Sakura took a seat on the ground, crossing her legs Indian-style. "Have you thought about telling someone about our situation?" She looked up to him and felt slightly uncomfortable at having to crane her neck so much. It wasn't only a physical discomfort, either.

Itachi seemed to sense that, somehow, and she watched in wonder as he took a sit across from her and crossed his legs in a similar style, resting his only visible arm on his knee. Sakura's eyes were immediately glued to the ring on his ring finger. It was a simple ring, with a standard metal band with the kanji for scarlet (or vermilion) painted over a red stone. But knowing that this simple ring marked him as a member of Akatsuki made the jewellery far from ordinary.

"I have thought over the possibility." His voice made her gaze snap up to his face and she blushed faintly when she saw that one of his eyebrows had raised slightly, most likely because of her staring. "But I think it will be unwise to share the information we have with someone else. We have Mei-sama's protection— " Itachi's eyes fell on thin chain around Sakura's neck. " — but others don't. Mei-sama told me that she is taking a huge risk by doing this and I don't want to put her in an uncomfortable position with the High Council."

"So we're basically all alone in this?" Sakura asked, wringing her hands together. Seeing Itachi nod, she exhaled deeply and rubbed her temples. "Well, at least I have Uchiha Itachi as a partner." She muttered to herself. "For all your faults, you're still brilliant." She said this a little louder, though she was sure he'd heard what she had previously, too. "Your genius is legendary."

Itachi inclined his head as a way of accepting her compliment and spoke. "First and foremost, we must dispose of Orochimaru." His impassive eyes flashed and the commas around his pupil started to spin alarmingly fast. Sakura sucked in a breath unconsciously, the hairs on her body standing up at the sight. Her startled reaction seemed to snap Itachi out of it and he assumed his calm exterior once again. Sakura felt envy at how quickly he regained control over his emotions.

"I agree." Sakura said firmly, her hands clenching slightly at the thought of the Snake Sannin. "He's definitely a priority right now."

"Given the knowledge I have of the whereabouts of his current base, I will be the one to deal with him personally. Your responsibility for now is to make sure Sasuke doesn't live the village." He fixed her with a stern look. "You will do everything in your powers to stop him — even attack him if necessary. You understand, do you not?"

Sakura nodded. She understood. The last time she'd been too weak to even hope to do anything to stop him — and embarrassingly enough, the thought of hurting him had been so out of her realm of understanding that the thought hadn't even occurred to her — but she was a different person now. She knew that sometimes you had to do things you didn't want to in order to get the job done.

Itachi nodded, a satisfied expression settling over his features. "Good." He rose to his feet. "If you have no more questions to ask him, I will take my leave. Kisame will become suspicious if I am gone for too long."

Sakura's mouth dropped open in surprise. She did have more questions! She had so many questions. What were they going to do about Akatsuki? What about Tobi? There were some many threats and so many things to be done, they'd hardly even scratched the surface. But she understood that he was pressured about time and closed her mouth. "None, I guess." She said, rather sulkily. "When will be able to meet again?"

"I am not sure." Itachi replied, his voice falling into a monotone. Sakura just now realised that he had allowed some emotions to seep through his voice while they had talked. Wow. "Kisame's presence is a setback but I will find a way to set another meeting. Meanwhile, I will be contacting you through the cats, whenever they agree to deliver my messages."

"O-okay.." Sakura said hesitantly. That sounded like she wouldn't be hearing from him for a while.

"Focus all of your attention on your task, Sakura-san, and the time will fly by without you noticing." Itachi said, once again showing uncanny ability to read her. She blinked and nodded slowly. "I will contact you as soon as possible."

Sakura nodded and opened her mouth to bid him goodbye, when a sudden thought struck her. "Hey!" Itachi stopped and looked at her. "How did you manage to get us here without having a permission from the Nara?"

She watched in wonder as the corners of his lips twitched into something that resembled a smile. "Genjutsu." He said and his entire form dissolved in a flock of crows, much to her surprise.

She stood still for several moments and then shook her head, a small smile coming to her lips. "Incredible." She muttered and headed back towards the village.