~Bulletproof~ SasuSaku Mafia Story

Chapter 49 ~ Lemon Sorbet

There are long showers, and then there's the shower Sasuke and Sakura took. Neither of them wanted to interrupt the moment, so they sat in lukewarm water holding each other for who knows how long.

It was cathartic, especially after so much peril and separation anxiety they both felt. Eventually, the lukewarm water ran out at the budget inn, and they were both jolted awake by a sudden stream of cold water coming from the shower head.

Sakura shrieked and jumped out of the bathtub, wetting most of the bathroom floor. She wrapped herself in a towel, and threw one at Sasuke. Neither of them had any clean clothes, so they had to resort to the robes provided by the inn.

The room felt very liminal with very little furniture and minimal lighting. Sakura sat on the bed just for it to immediately creak. Sasuke chuckled at how poorly maintained the room was before sitting down next to her.

 They hadn't said much to each other after Sasuke's last remark. Sakura still didn't know how to respond, as she has never said the L-word to any guy before. Sasuke had no regrets about anything he said. Sakura had a way of creating a safe place for him without even trying to the point where he could speak his mind freely. He could tell Sakura wasn't thrown off by anything he said, but rather that she was processing it in her own way.

The two sat on the janky bed in their robes with Sakura's head leaning on his shoulder. Sasuke had to put in a lot of mental work to avoid thinking about the bruises on Sakura's face and throat, otherwise his eye would start to twitch from fury. He wanted to maintain the serenity of this moment.

"Sasuke?"

"Hm?"

"How did you find the warehouse?"

"Oh, it was all you."

"You got it from my computer?!"

"Yeah, our IT unit decoded it."

"Ha, I never thought of that possibility. I guess it all worked out, though it means I have to upgrade my protection if some IT guys broke in so easily!"

Sasuke laughed and rested his head on top of hers. Life had never felt so slow before.

"So, this is it?" Sakura was fidgeting with her hands on her bare knees.

"What do you mean?"

"After this, we just go back to wherever you're staying?"

"Yeah, would you like that?"

"Yeah, I just haven't been to Hidden Mist before. How is it?"

"It's a bit more bleak than Konoha, but we don't plan to stay there long. My father is appreciating the company, but this is short term."

"And where will you move afterwards?"

"We."

Sakura blushed and cleared her throat.

"Right, where will we move afterwards?"

"Shisui wants to move back to Konoha, which is logistically challenging, but difficult. We'd have to wait a while for the investigations to die down. Izuna wants to move to the Kirigakure location, and send Madara to the Konoha mansion."

"What do you want, Sasuke?"

"I've come to realize that it's less about the location and more about the company. So, it doesn't make much difference to me as long as I am with the right company." His hand squeezed hers on in her lap. Sakura rolled her eyes and laughed.

"Okay Romeo, but you must have a preference. You're the clan leader after all!"

"My preference is wherever you want to go."