Shades of Grey

Chapter 37

As soon as they touched land and booked two rooms at a halfway decent inn Kisame went out to get them dinner. Sakura decided to await until morning to make her purchases since most of the shops they had passed were closed. That left her and Itachi alone in her room where they had all agreed to meet for dinner.

"Would you like to get tonight's healing session out of the way?" Itachi asked.

"But won't Kisame be back soon?" Sakura wondered. "I am going to need at least an hour to work."

"Trust me, Kisame will be gone for at least two hours." Itachi sighed. "He seems incapable of walking past a bar without stopping for a couple of drinks."

"Alright then, let's get started." She smiled as they both crossed to the bed. It was larger than the beds in Itachi's house so they both set on it. Sakura had him place his head in her lap and she leaned back against the wall to get comfortable.

"You told me you would explain your relationship with Sasuke." Itachi prompted once he felt her soothing chakra begin to flow.

"It's a long story." Sakura sighed. "Not to mention embarrassing, in the beginning I did everything wrong."

"I promise not to laugh at you." He assured.

"I wouldn't promise that just yet if I was you." She told him. "I guess the most appropriate place to start would be when we all joined the ninja academy. From the very first day of class every girl there was in love with Sasuke. It was actually kind of funny all of the things they tried to get his attention, but Sasuke just ignored them all. Naturally, that just made them all even more determined. Any little thing would make them go to extraordinary lengths to get his attention. Once a girl discovered that he liked tomatoes so every day for a week that was all any of them brought for lunch. Then they found out that he preferred long hair, so everyone started growing theirs out."

"You have acknowledged that you too were in love with him, but you keep saying they." Itachi pointed out with a smirk.

"Alright fine, I grew my hair out." Sakura relented. "But I didn't eat tomatoes; I hate them. Anyways, I guess I did not categorize myself with them because for me it was different. I am sure that they would have said the same thing, but it was not so. Most of them were nuts over Sasuke for his looks or his strength, but the minute he left, they moved on. Out of sight out of mind I suppose."

"But you did not move on." He interjected.

"No." She sighed with a faraway look in her eyes. "I foolishly refused to let go, even after he made it abundantly clear that I should. We had been through so much together that I just did not know how to let those bonds be broken. Not until Sasuke ripped them apart."

"You do not have to tell me anymore." Itachi told her when he detected a hint of sadness in her voice.

"No, that's ok I want to tell you." Sakura firmed her resolve. "I guess up until that point in my life I had never been as happy as when Sasuke, Naruto, and I were placed on the same genin team. Team 7 was born. We went through so much together. Kakashi of course was our sensei, and there has never been a more reluctant teacher. We were the first, and only team, to ever pass his bell test. We trained so hard together, but Sasuke refused to acknowledge any progress that I made. Not that there was much progress back then, but it was still a slap in the face when I would accomplish something, and he would just call me annoying. I guess the real moment that cemented our team's bod was in the forest of death."

"When the Third was killed by Orochimaru?" Itachi asked even though he already knew the answer; he had checked on his brother shortly after the occurrence.

"Just before that." She clarified. "Before we advanced to that round, we had to survive the forest, and it wasn't easy. Orochimaru did not just come for the third. He wanted the sharingan; he wanted Sasuke. We were just kids in that hellish forest, with nothing to depend on but each other. So far as team dynamics went it was simple Sasuke and Naruto were the fighters. I knew some basic medical jutsu and that was it. Up until the time in the forest I had never been able to do anything but watch their backs, but that forest changed everything. Orochimaru was hot on our tails and he managed to disable Naruto, and then he placed his curse mark on Sasuke. Suddenly there was just me, but they had always protected me, and there was no way that I was going to let them down."

"As a genin it must have been terrifying." Itachi interjected. It should not have happened; he should have kept his brother from getting the curse mark. A genin Sakura should not have had to face those horrors alone.

"Oh, I was." Sakura agreed. "I was outclassed, but I wasn't going to let that stop me. All my training went out the window, but I fought with all that I had. I took one of the worst beatings of my life. Finally, the girl from their squad grabbed my hair, and I was trapped. At least that was what she thought, until I used my last kunai to cut my hair to escape. Sasuke woke up afterwards and was enraged when he saw how injured I was. His curse seal almost completely overtook him. Finally, I hugged him from behind and told him that I was ok. We thought that everything was going to be alright, but the damage had already been done. The pull of the curse seal and the power it offered was just too strong."

"Especially combined with his desire to kill me." Itachi added.

"I guess there was that too." She nodded. "Those were the events though that really cemented our bonds. We had already grown close, but that all made us more than just a team. We were a family. But the same thing that brought is forever together tore us apart. I knew Sasuke was going to leave, and I failed him. Instead of telling Kakashi like I should have, I went alone to try to stop him. I admitted that I loved him and begged him to stay. I plead with him to just take him with me if he had to go, but he refused. Instead he called me annoying, told me thank you for everything, and left me on a cold damn bench."

"I am sorry Sakura." He apologized. The hurt in her voice even after all the years was evident. Itachi wished that he could somehow make everything right for her.

"Don't be." The kunoichi offered him a sad smile. "It was what drove me to ask Tsunade to train me. If not for all of that hurt I would not be the kunoichi that I am today."

"How did he finally kill your affection?" Itachi asked.

"By trying to kill me." Sakura sighed. "When I killed Sasori he gave us information that led us to Orochimaru. We found Sasuke and my heart soared when I heard him call my name. Things got ugly after that though. He and Naruto got into it like they always do. When I tried to defend Naruto, he charged at me with his katana drawn. It was aimed straight at my heart, but I did not move. I couldn't; he had already ripped out my heart and stomped all over it. As I stared into his eyes, I did not care if he killed me. If not for Yamoto I would not be here. After he returned to the Leaf Sasuke claimed that he would not have hurt me, but I saw the look in his eyes that day. I know what he meant to do. The feelings that he had from me and Naruto were holding him back. Whether he admits it or not he meant to sever those ties forever that day. Since he came back things have changed. I know he has the feelings that I always wanted from him. Problem is I love him dearly as a friend, but any romantic feelings I had died in Sound that day."

"I am truly sorry." The Uchiha humbly apologized again. "The damage that I inflicted on him left him unable to return your feelings from the start. You are yet another of my victims."

"Well I am not sorry." She looked into his eyes. "Trust me, your brother wants what your father did. Sasuke will eventually marry, of that I am sure, but when he does it will be the end of his wife's kunoichi career. I fought too long and too hard to prove myself. Those trials made me who I am today. I am the strongest kunoichi to come out of Konoha since Tsunade herself. I will not let anyone take that away from me. I chose this life and I will be a kunoichi until the day I die. Your brother and I would have never worked. I won't be forced into a life that I couldn't find fulfilling."

"I am glad that you now have Mother's katana." Itachi offered her a small but genuine smile. "It is an honor to have such a strong woman wield it in her stead."