Oh the hectic life in Konoha!

Sakura’s POV

I strolled down the streets of Konoha; breathing in the fresh air and reveling in the fact that I was somewhere OTHER than the Uchiha Mansion. I had to stay in the bloody mansion for a week ‘cuz Sasuke was feeing antisocial and didn’t want to go out. ‘Hn. Typical Sasuke. WAIT…….…Did I just say HN?????? NOOOOOOOO!!!!! I’M TURNING INTO A SASUKE! The world’s gonna end!!!!’ My musings were cut short as I heard a pained scream and Naruto shouting for everyone to calm down. ‘Really Naruto? At 6 in the morning??!!! I just hope he and Sasuke aren’t in too much trouble.’

I scoffed at that ridiculous thought. Naruto ATTRACTS trouble. ‘Why do I have the feeling that today’s gonna be a loooong day?’

End Sakura’s POV

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Normal POV

‘OH CRAP! That ANBU Captain is gonna KILL me!’A certain blonde loudmouth thought, pulling his hair in anxiety. He stared at the scene before him. ‘Damn it Sasuke! I gonna be dead ‘cuz of you!’

“TEME! Would you just put down the guy and CALM DOWN!!!???? I promised the ANBU taijou (1) I would take over the 24/7 supervision thingy for today for her!!”

There in all his glory was the Uchiha avenger……holding an already bleeding man by the collar of his shirt……Sharingan activated.

End Normal POV

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Sakura’s POV

I walked towards the direction of the noise, massaging my already throbbing head. ‘This is NOT what I planned for today!’ Sighing, my eyes skimmed over the forming crowd (I mean who would want to miss a fight when there was an UCHIHA fighting?) and spotted the mop of untidy blond hair I was searching for. ‘Right in the middle of the commotion eh Naruto? Some things never change.’ I shook my head and grinned, joining the crowd. As if I was gonna stop this! This is about as much entertainment as I get! I pushed my way to the front of the crowd where I had a better view, I’m not being pushy! I’m just short! Humph!

Focusing on the fight in front of me, I wondered what could have gotten Sasuke so pissed he would have lost his cool. He hadn’t said a word since I moved into his mansion the day he received his punishment but I figured he was just being his emo self. I rolled my eyes; he probably was. Chuckling lightly, I refocused my attention to the fight as Sasuke punched the man once more. Blood trickled down the man’s chin into his now blood soaked shirt.

“Repeat that.” the Uchiha growled, hands trembling in fury. Daammmnnn……….he was PISSED! The man merely whimpered, mumbling something that sounded an awful lot like ‘Haruno’ and ‘the village slut.’ I saw red.

“AARRGGG!!!!” The sole pained cry echoed throughout Konoha. The man, now on the ground, glanced down at his broken arm, whimpering pathetically, and looked up, expecting to see an Uchiha above him. All he saw was a blur of pink heading in his direction before feeling hot breath on the side of his neck.

“If I were a miserable bastard like you, I would watch my words when talking about one of the most respected ninjas in Konoha.” Pores raised, he stuttered out a breath sorry. Glancing upwards, he saw a surprised Uchiha standing not too far behind me, his arm still raised where he was holding the bastard. Not a second later, he passed out.

I took once last glance at the unconscious man before throwing him on the ground like a rag doll. Unconsciously, I was still glaring, a fierce glint present in my eyes. I felt a tap on my shoulder and spun around.

“What?” I snapped, my glare softening at the slightly awed, slightly terrified look the blonde loudmouth was giving me.

“Ummm, Sakura-chan……….don’t know if this is the right time but umm……. You wanna come with me and Hinata-chan to have some Ramen?” His eyes were actually sparkling at the thought of his beloved ramen. I shook my head and giggled at his craziness. I know, I’m not one to talk……but I’m not this crazy…………………right? My musings were cut short by a velvety voice whispering my name.

Oh CRAP! I had forgotten Sasuke was there. I know, how could I right, he was just so………………..presency? Laughing a little at my wackiness, I took a deep breath and turned around; only to find said Uchiha a few centimeters away from my face. I couldn’t help it, I screamed. HARD. Oh HELL! Sasuke looks pissed!

‘RUNNNNNN SAKU! RUN!!!’Heeding my inner’s advice, I spun on my heels, ready to bolt when long fingers enclosed my small, fragile wrists in a firm grip. Did I mention my wrist was FRAGILE!

“Let. Me. Go. Sasuke.” I growled, emitting a dark aura. Onyx orbs glanced casually upwards, surprise at my curt tone clearly displayed.

My mouth gaped for a second at his monotonous reply. “I refuse.”

End Sakura’s POV

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Sasuke’s POV

The day was already turning out to be annoying. Of course, I should have known it would have been when that ANBU Captain handed me over to my blonde idiot of a friend. ‘Hn. I’ll give her props. She did quite well to be in the Uchiha mansion without speaking or leaving for a week.’ Smirking, he regarded the ANBU Taijou. She was certainly different from a certain pink haired kunoichi who couldn’t seem to leave his mind in peace. ‘Sakura.’ The thought of her brought memories of the past, memories which had been haunting him since he left the village 5 YEARS AGO!

Flashback

“Sasuke-kun!” A familiar annoying high pitched voice squealed.

‘What does she want now?’ An irritated Uchiha grumbled to himself.

“Hn?”

“I was wondering if you wanted to come with Naruto and Kaka-sensei to have some Ramen. Kaka-sensei’s treat!” She grinned like a Cheshire cat, her eyes lighting up at the thought of having lunch with her boys.

My gaze softened and my annoyance slowly ebbed at her serene expression. She was always the one who tried to include me in gatherings. ‘Sakura.’ I watched her with unwavering intensity as her pink locks blew gently around her face and a faint smell of cherries wafted through the air. Pink dusted her cheeks as she noticed my stare.

“Sasuke-kun……….nani?” Emerald green orbs displayed confusion.

I shook my head and gathered my emotions, hiding them once more. “Hn.” Nodding my head curtly, I briefly wondered how she did it. How she brought back emotions that I thought I had locked away. It was because she was Sakura, I figured. It was always only to her that I would show my emotions to. Always her. Only her. ‘Sakura.’

End Flashback

I shook my head to eliminate such unnecessary, troublesome thoughts. That was the past. Only the past. I repeated it several times to convince myself that those foolish things called emotions were long gone. I came to an abrupt halt as my trained ears picked up a single deadly whisper.

“Hey, you heard about Haruno? Word says she’s easy to get…..if you know what I mean. Just a village slut if you ask m…..”

The man’s sentence was, however, abruptly cut as I hauled the bastard by his shirt midair.

“Hey man. What’re you doing? Oh…I see you want some of pinky. Damn she must be good if even an Uchiha wants her……BAM!” Blood splattered on the nearby wall. I shoved the man’s now dislocated jaw back into place. Raising my hand for another strike I pummeled the venomous bastard that dared speak about Sakura that way. Meanwhile a section of my brain wondered about the truth of the man’s words. Not wanting to dwell on than thought, I channel all my frustration into another blow, ignoring the forming crowd. Blood trickled into the man’s now blood soaked shirt.

I vaguely heard my blonde idiot of a friend yell for me to put the man down. Ignoring him as I usually do, I lowered my voice until it reached a deathly low. “Repeat that.” I was partially aware that my hands were trembling. I took a moment to calm myself down before I did something irrational. Slaughter sounded very enticing right now. The arrogant bastard had the nerve to mumble out Haruno’s the village slut. I only glimpsed a blur of pink before I heard a scream of pure agony. Only then did I realize that the thing I held in my hands moments before was now under a pissed looking kunoichi…..with pink hair. ‘Sakura? What the hell?’ I watched unflinchingly as she slammed the man into the ground before flinging him off of her as if he was a filthy rag doll.

I lowered my arms in a dignified manner and turned to face the now standing kunoichi. Well, it’s been damn long, Sakura. I made the mistake of glancing into those bottomless emerald orbs. I knew, once I looked, that I was hooked. She turned for a brief moment and I moved unconsciously towards her. I heard her sigh and she swiftly spun around, surprising the both of us when our faces ended up centimeters from each other’s. She reacted first.

“AAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHH!” A long bloodcurdling scream. I ducked my head, immediately covering my ears. I noticed she was turning to leave, run away perhaps. A sudden image of a younger her yelling at me not to leave, that she would stay with me no matter what, filled my vision and I had a surge of unknown, unwelcome affection rise within me. I reacted before I thought twice about it. I grabbed her wrists. Her hands were so small, both of them fit into one of mine.

An unexpected reaction had me staring at her in confusion. “Let. Me. Go. Sasuke.” She growled. The lack of suffix hit home. The denial within me that she had actually moved on enacted me to do something that surprised us both. “I refuse.” I watched as her tender mouth formed an O, surprise clearly written in those endless emerald orbs. I was lost in them once more. My onyx eyes bored into hers, with an intensity that had the air between us sizzling. Neither one of us looked away, but neither one of us moved closer either.

Unconsciously, my hand rose as If to stroke her cheek. Almost touching. “OY YOU TWO LOVE BIRDS! COME ON! RAMEN AND HINATA-CHAN AWAITS!” Grinning from ear to ear, Naruto took no notice of the two intense death glares that was sent his way at his statement. We both straightened and looked the other way awkwardly.

“I’m not coming Dobe.” I stated my voice by to its monotonous flat.

“Eh? We’ll see about that.” I saw him lunge at me and ducked out of the way. I deactivated my Sharingan, not knowing exactly when it had come out. Naruto tackled me as I turned to enjoy whatever remained of my morning cruise. He hooked an arm around my throat, claiming that the ANBU taijou instructed him to go with Sasuke wherever he went.

“If you want me to follow you home and talk until your ears bleed then that’s your problem, but, if we go get ramen, I’ll be too busy eating to talk.”

“Hn. I’m surprised. You actually said something smart Dobe.”

“TEME!” Naruto was held back by a pissed off Sakura who was rubbing her ear drums. Grabbing his ear, she hoisted him into the air.

“Listen boys. I’m supposed to have a relaxing, quiet morning so would you two SHUT THE HELL UP!” I merely grunted while Naruto pleaded to be put on solid ground once more. Sakura consented and dropped the idiot on the ground. Naruto ran off claiming he was gonna pick up Hinata.

“Meet me by Ichiraku’s.” He yelled. I glanced at Sakura, and started down the street, Understanding the gesture that it was time to go, she picked up her pace to match mine.

I gazed at the girl walking (If you considered the speed of a rocket, walking) beside me. ‘She’s clearly different than the pathetic girl I left behind. Hmmm……..this’ll be amusing if not anything else.’

End Sasuke’s POV

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Normal POV

The Uchiha was still seething about the blonde’s violent insistence of him joining the group for lunch. He sighed, running a hand through his raven locks and causing the girls on the sidewalk to swoon. ‘Hn. She didn’t react.’ He casually dismissed his immediate feeling of disappointment. Well, here was something to do until probation ended. Shoving his hands in his pockets, he tilted his head backwards to gaze at the sky. ‘So clear today.’ He redirected his attention to the rosette who had taken any form of peace of mind he once had. He trained his vision intently on her and smirked, tousled his hair and unbuttoned the top button of his shirt.

Sakura whipped her head towards him. “What the HELL are you doing?! If you wanna strip, join a damn strip club! Keep it off the streets!”

He glanced at her. So she really wasn’t affected by him. ‘Interesting.’ “Hn. I was feeling hot Sakura.” He stated, voice void of interest. Unbeknownst to him, the rosette was desperately trying to fight down a heavy blush at the double meaning of his statement. Oh and there was the fact that his bloody toned chest was directly in front of her face. She turned away from him, wrestling with her inner.

‘DAMNNN! Body of a golden God if you ask me. Why’d we turn away again?’

‘Because we are officially OVER Uchiha Sasuke.’

‘So? Damn Saku that doesn’t mean that we can’t have hormones! Turn back around!’

‘I guess he wouldn’t notice if I took one peek.’

‘WHOO! And we’re back on track! Maybe we could ask him to unbutton a few mor…’

‘NO! I just told him to join a freakin STRIP CLUB! I CAN’T SAY THAT NOW!’

‘Shame. Think before you speak next time kay.’

‘Whatev.’

Sakura turned her head toward the dark haired Uchiha walking beside her. The breath caught in her throat.

‘He really is hot. HE TOOK HALF THE DAMN SHIRT OFF!!’

‘Aha! You finally admit it! He’s HOT! Denial is bad you know Saku.’

Sakura growled at her inner’s misinterpretation f her statement. Unfortunately for her, she growled out loud as well. . Sasuke glanced at her weirdly. ‘Crap! I have to stop dong that! Half of konoha already thinks I’m half crack. The other half thinks that I’ve fully lost it. I’m starting to agree with them.’ Sasuke was walking noticeably further from her. “He he he?” Sakura rubbed her head nervously and went back to ignoring the stoic bastard. To their relief, the couple walking in awkward silence reached Ichiraku Ramen. Sasuke scanned the place for his blonde idiot of a friend.

“Hn. Not here yet. Kakashi’s rubbing off on him.”

Sakura grunted and spotted her best friend. Squealing, she unconsciously grabbed Sasuke’s hand and pulled him with her. “TENNIE-CHAN!” Sasuke immediate used his free hand to block his ear. Why did she scream so much? ‘Annoying. Cute.’ The thought came too quickly to stop. Shaking his head (still ringing from Sakura’s piercing scream) he ignored those irrelevant thoughts. It took him a moment to realize that Sakura had released his hand and was now hugging a girl with two Chinese style buns on her head. The hairstyle gave her the semblance of a panda. ‘Tentan or something.’

End Normal POV

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Sasuke’s POV

Sakura jumped on her best friend, enveloping her in a giant bear hug. Panda’s petite frame vanished beneath Sakura’s. Only then did I noticed how well toned her body was.

Flashback

“Owie…….Ahhhhh! Sasuke-kun! You cut me with your kunai! Oh no blood! Itaii! It hurts.” A younger Sakura held her bleeding side where a now lost kunai had hit its mark.

“Hn. You’re pathetic. One: You can’t even dodge a kunai, Two: Your body is not muscled or toned into that of a ninja and Three: A ninja never shows his or her pain. You keep fighting till your last breath.” I walked away, trying to get as far from the crying girl as fast as I possibly could. I was never good with tears. Besides, she was just annoying and in the way of my training. She didn’t have a toned muscle in her body besides that big mouth of hers.

I had left her there and looked for Naruto to train with. It was obvious the girl was weak and of no use to me. I always had to save her on missions. Besides, she was just a distraction, always bringing up unwanted emotions. ‘Hn. Damn it!’

No matter how hard I tried to talk myself out of it, I had turned back and dropped her off at the hospital. What was it about her that she was so irritating? She was weak……..she made me weak. She made me care, something I could NOT afford to do if I had to face Itachi. I could not care. Caring was weakness. Sakura was my weakness.

End Flashback

I was snapped back into reality when Panda snapped her fingers in front of my face. I grunted. “Hn?”

“Nothing. You dazed out.” She looked at me with unflinching eyes. “There a problem?”

“Why are you staring at my fiancé Uchiha?” I tilted my head to the side and noticed the Hyuuga staring defensively at me. He put his arm around Panda, protectively pulling her closer to him.

I rolled my eyes. Couldn’t these people see I was trying to daze out here? I sighed. Konoha was filled with troublesome people who couldn’t seem to leave you in peace. ‘Just like I remember.’ “Hn. Can’t I daze out in peace?” Sakura rolled her eyes.

“Come on Tennie. Let’s leave the anti-social folks to daze out in peace.” Shaking her head, she pulled Panda out the door and began to chat animatedly with her. I smirked, finally in peace. Only then did I realize she had left me with Hyuuga. I glared in her direction. Apparently sensing a death glare sent her way, she turned around and finding the source, grinned and stuck her tongue out. I shook my head at her childishness.

“Hn.” Apparently the Hyuuga couldn’t stand the silence.

“Hn?” I raised an eyebrow questioningly.

“Hn.” And that was the end of our conversation.

“WHAT THE HELL KIND OF CONVERSATION WAS THAT??!! But then again…..what do you expect from the two most stoic bastards in Kon…..?” It seemed that Naruto had finally arrived. I sighed, massaging my aching head. Guess I’ll never get my peace.

A small timid voice interrupted him. “Umm……Naruto-kun, I do-o-n’t su-u-uggest you insult N-Neji-nii san.” Hinata was holding Naruto away from Neji as if afraid her cousin would attack him. ‘Hn. Wouldn’t put it past him. He looks pretty pissed right now.’

“So where’s that beautiful fiancé of yours eh Neji? You really don’t deserve her you know. She’s way too good looking for you. I mean if anyone who didn’t know you saw you together, they would think that it was two girl…” Naruto abruptly stopped talking as Neji raised his fist to pummel the idiot into the ground. He shut his eyes tightly and waited for the pain. After two minutes, he reopened them, surprised that he was still fully intact.

I glanced at the hand now enclosing Neji’s wrist. Panda and Sakura had returned. “Right. Well, we’ll be going before Neji beats Naruto to a bloody pulp. Bye Hinata-chan! Naruto, Sasuke.” She acknowledged us with a nod of the head, hugged Sakura and pulled Neji out of the Ramen shop. It was suddenly quiet. Ah sweet peace.

For some reason, I ended up next to Sakura…….pushed in the corner of the counter. Naruto and Hinata sat together (of course) and seemed rather contented to completely ignore us. We ate our ramen in peace, contrary to the blonde loudmouth next to us. I ignored her intent gaze on me. I had studied her, it was her turn now. I noticed her green eyes travelling down my body, taking in all the scars, estimating my potential in battle. I recalled her attack on the man this morning. She was fast, if not anything else. She hadn’t always been.

Flashback

“Uwaaa! Sasuke-kun! Slow down! Kaka-sensei! Naruto! You guys are moving too fast!” Squealed a 12 year old Sakura, falling, once more, behind her group on one of their missions.

“Ne Sakura-chan, you’re so SLOW! We’ll never make it in time if we move at this pace. We already slowed down!” Naruto reprimanded her.

“Shut UP NARUTO!” Sakura yelled, pouting at his words. I rolled my eyes, annoyed. The Dobe was right. We’d never make it in time. ‘Hn. Annoying.’

I stopped, causing Naruto to jump around me to prevent himself from falling off the branch he was perched on. I spun around, picked up Sakura and flung her over my shoulder. She let out a surprised squeal next to my ear. I growled.

“Cut that out, it’s annoying.” Turning to my team I nodded to Kakashi. “Let’s go.”

End Flashback

I was jolted out of my musings when Sakura let out a surprised gasp. I couldn’t remember anything that surprising on my body.

“Gaara? Gaara!” I turned my head and followed her gaze to a tall red head outside the shop. He had paused when his name was called.

‘Why is that name familiar?’ A brief memory of sand and an intense fight between him and me came to mind. ‘Ah. He was the one I fought in the chuunin exams.’ What was he doing here?

I was even more confused when Sakura jumped from her and engulfed Gaara in a bear hug. Even more confused when the red head laughed and returned her hug. I tried, to no avail, to clamp down the surge of jealousy I felt at seeing Sakura in another man’s arms ‘What the hell is going on here?’

End Sasuke’s POV