chapter thirty

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"What's new today?" Naruto said as he slumped into his chair. "Sorry I'm late, I didn't wake up."

Sasuke set paper after paper down before the blonde, piling them as they were before he arrived. "This, this, this, this, and, oh, another request from Sakura for a mission."

Naruto picked the request up. He hadn't seen Sakura since they bumped into each other after the festival. He hummed, "Yeah, that, I should get on with that." He left the request in another pile.

"You should just send her off already, she's been sending requests for days now, Naruto," Sasuke said as he sifted through the pile. "You have enough work as it is."

Naruto considered it. Her requests, if they were to continue, would jam his paperwork with request after request. Sasuke continued, "You told me about that bout you two had that night, and in the unlikely chance she's still angry at you, you definitely do not need some drama getting in the way of your work. Send her off, problem solved."

Problem solved indeed, Sasuke called it, and Naruto scoffed. "You're talking more now that you got that ring of yours, huh?"

Sasuke looked down at his prosthetic hand, now carrying new meaning with a silver band wrapped around his unfeeling ring finger. "Yes, right..."

Naruto rolled his eyes, "Alright loverboy, do me a favor and get TenTen here."

...---...

"Where's Sakura, TenTen?"

"Oh, uh," TenTen hummed as she stomped out the wading fire. The sun was rising now, and if Gaara wanted to pick up where he left off in his paperwork, they had to get a move on quick. "She's just out--she left last night to gather some herbs for the hospital, as per request from Tsunade."

Temari watched as she scratched the nape of her neck. "Are you sure? She's been gone a while. If you want, you can go back and check on her, we're well into Suna by now."

"Ah, no! No worries, I'm sure she's fine," TenTen continued. "Ah, we should hurry now, if you want to get to the Tower before dinner!" The Sand Siblings shared a hesitant glance before embarking on the rest of their trip.

TenTen strayed behind, a worried bite adorning her sweat-stained face. Sakura left after dinner, saying she'd come back later, but to not wait on me, TenTen. She left once her shift ended and had yet to return with that same shining smile of hers. And for the first few hours of her shift, TenTen worried little; Sakura was strong, and the only enemies around were those who came from Ishigakure. But as time progressed, TenTen grew worried.

And the worry stressed the further they parted through the desert. With each step they parked in the sand, the wind flattened it until all they could follow was the sun. TenTen readjusted the bag carrying their food and water on her back. She could only hope Sakura was safe in the time being.

Gaara, being the most suspicious of Sakura's lack of appearance, stayed behind the two siblings at a slower pace. He still had that file on Otogakure left untouched, and if Sakura hadn't disappeared into the night, he would have found it sooner and considered her for the job. And perhaps, she would've considered it a better escape, especially after that night of the Hokage's festival.

"Well, this is where the mission ends," Temari said once they reached the gates. She looked back at TenTen with a smile. "Hey, why don't you stay a night and rest before going back? Take it as payment for escorting us back."

"Oh, no, I'd better go back and pick up Sakura. I don't want her staying out there for too long," TenTen chuckled and wrung her hands behind her back. Gaara eyed her as he crossed the gates.

"Oh, yeah! Tell her we said thanks too. Anyways, see you!" The gates closed and TenTen was to cross over the sea of sand once more to find Sakura.

And step by step, each another boot-full of scorching sand, TenTen trudged through grain after grain and called Sakura and where are you over and over again. By the time the sun reached its low, only a hazy eye blinking over the lowest hill, TenTen had yet to spot the pinkette through the campfire. By now, Sakura was lost for a full day in the desert, and would be miles away.

TenTen dared not to imagine what would happen if she were to return to Konoha without Sakura by her side. But in truth, (unbeknownst to TenTen) Sakura was too much of a stranger to everyone that her disappearance would be a left hand column in the daily newspaper and nothing more. And so when morning came, TenTen packed up quick and set off for a morning run.

And after an hour or so of slowing to a jog and spreading her chakra through far and wide, TenTen found it. Past the sand, deep in the dry forest, in the midst of flattened leaves and trampled branches, there she found it; Sakura's limp and bleeding body, melting like red syrup on the grove, with only a kunai in hand (unstained, unscathed).

"Oh kami, Sakura, Sakura? Please, are you okay?" Tenten kneeled in the red and, with hesitant, shaky fingers, she dug under the body and turned it over. "Sakura, please, wake up, please, oh my god, what happened?" And it was in that moment that she recalled her parting words with the Hokage, which were keep Sakura safe for me, TenTen, and it was in that moment that she panicked because she left Sakura go off on her own and here she was, bleeding out as if she weren't a medic nin.

"Sakura, wake up, you need to heal yourself," TenTen said as she lifted her from the blood, now dried and sticking to her side, and leaned Sakura on a nearby stump. She fished out a canteen and brought it up to Sakura's dried lips. "Here, drink, please, you still have time."

The canteen was only a quarter left until Sakura, breathing in her own blood, pushed it away. She peeled her eyes open, wheezing in another bloody breath, and TenTen cried, "Sakura! Kami, you're awake, oh, just keep your eyes open for now, okay? I'll carry you, and we'll run back to Konoha, okay? We might make it back in--"

"No, no," Sakura mumbled under her breath.

"Wh-what?" TenTen held the pinkette down as she tried to pull herself up. "You need to stay down, or that wound will--"

"Don't take me back, TenTen," Sakura whispered, nearly pleading.

"But we have to. You're bleeding--I'm gonna pick you up, okay?" With a grunt and a worried, shaky breath, TenTen hoisted Sakura's body into her arms and without a hitch, she set off for Konoha. "Can you um--can you try to heal the wound? Have you done that yet?"

Sakura stopped answering and began her string incoherent mumbles of keiko and birds and don't worry i'm sorry and naruto and oh pity the and TenTen picked up the pace because Konoha would be just hours away if she hurried just a bit more.

And as TenTen ran the fastest she'd ever run since the war, she filled the air with oh kamis and sakura please live and stay awake, please while Sakura continued her murmurs of don't cry its okay and it's not your fault and don't take me back please Tenten pity the and what's that sound?

And it was only then when TenTen reached the gates, panting and bloody and breathing hard, that she finally noticed that Sakura had gone quiet, as quiet as the village became upon laying eyes on her limp body. 

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