"Are you sure you want to bring all of them with you?" Iruka frowned as he looked at all three genin a few meters away from him, at the edge of the large gate.

"Yes," Jiraiya replied, shouldering his bag. "It would be wise for Sakura especially to go with me. Just in case anything about Orochimaru is leaked again. If it did happen again, there wouldn't be anyone to protect her this time."

"Ah. And Naruto and Sasuke? Why is it necessary to bring them along in order to retrieve the next Hokage?"

"Like Sakura, it would be best to bring Naruto with me because without Hiruzen, someone that hates the Kyūbi could easily get rid of its carrier. Also, I was planning to teach him another technique before I leave on a big journey!" Jiraiya smiled and chuckled. "As for Sasuke," he leaned closer and whispered in a hushed tone, "Itachi Uchiha was spotted near Konoha's borders. It would be best to take him with me."

Iruka nodded solemnly once again when the white-haired man backed up. "And do you know where to find Tsunade?"

A nostalgic grin crept onto Jiraiya's face. "Yes, I think so."

:::

"Man, I am so bored, —ttebayo! Don't you agree, Teme, Sakura-chan?"

"Hn," Sasuke grunted in reply. The entire time he had been silent, not counting his grunts. Sakura didn't say anything, but continued walking in the dirt road, her concealed weapons stashed in her kimono-styled tunic, ready to be used at any given moment.

After a few more minutes, Naruto spoke again. "Hey, hey! There's a small town up ahead, —ttebayo! Can we stop there, since we're all super tired?"

"Tch," Sasuke scoffed, breaking his silence. "Speak for yourself, Dobe."

Jiraiya turned to the past member of Team 7. "And you, Sakura?" Behind him, Naruto was in a begging position with his hands clasped together, while Sasuke's arms were crossed. They both stared at her. She stared back blankly.

"I do not see why," she replied, causing the blonde to groan and the dark-haired boy to smirk approvingly.

"Sakura-chan, how could you, dattebayo?!"

She still kept the same walking pace as earlier, her green, calculating eyes watching ahead blankly. Since the invasion and Chūnin Exams, Sasuke and Ramen-boy have been more competitive than before. The same for the Misson with Tazuna. She unconsciously touched her ear. It seems whenever we are put in a life-threatening situation, they compete seriously, and the results from that event spur the anticipation for the next time.

:::

"We'll stop at this village," Jiraiya announced the morning after camping in the woods.

"Finally!" Naruto cheered excitedly, ready to sleep on an actual bed. Then he froze. "Wait...are you going to flirt with girls and stuff, dattebayo?"

Sasuke sighed and shoved his hands into his pockets. Sakura continued walking into the town.

"Of course," Jiraiya answered with a wily smile. "It would be an insult to not appreciate the beautiful women here! Also," he leaned in so all three genin could listen, "Tsunade should be here. This town is notorious for gambling and having bars." He stood back up straight. "Too bad you're underage. You could come back in a few years, I suppose."

"No way in hell, dattebayo!" Naruto protested and shook his head. "I'm not going to do any of that stuff!"

Sakura nodded in agreement. "Rule number eight of the Shinobi Code states 'a shinobi must abstain from overindulging in the three vices: sex, alcohol and money'. I do not wish to overindulge in sex, alcohol, or money."

Jiraiya grinned, then ruffled her hair. "Define overindulge," he said in a joking matter.

Sakura, however, took it literally and began reciting what popped up in her head. "Having too much of something in an unhealthy manner."

The Sannin shook his head and lead the three genin to a hotel. Sometimes I forget how much Orochimaru has influenced you, Sakura.

:::

After a few hours of Jiraiya scoping out the area, with the genin still waiting at the hotel, he returned. His face was tinted a light pink and he stumbled making his way into the doorway. He beckoned all three to come over to where he was, only for him to belch in their face. Then, Jiraiya put out a fistful of money and handed it to Sakura. "Hey, Sakura, could you go get dinner? Sasuke, go with her so she doesn't get into trouble, okay?"

The pinkette nodded and accepted the money from the man, her teammate following closely behind.

When they were both on the street, Sakura turned to Sasuke, who still refused to make eye contact with her. Feeling slightly frustrated but quickly squashing the feeling, she snatched his wrist, causing him to snap his head up. "Sasuke," she said monotonously, "the Shinobi Code states, 'a shinobi must always put the mission first'. Will your emotions interfere with this mission?"

She watched his face contort from confusion to anger. "Is that all you care about, Sakura? You risked your life for mine and treat yours like it's worth saving mine. My entire life will be dedicated to revenge, which is something you're against, since you think emotions aren't important. Nothing in my life is important but revenge, and it definitely isn't something worth you losing your life over. Don't ever risk your life in the slightest for mine. Do you understand?" Just like the mission when you nearly were strangled to death, yet you didn't show concern for yourself...

Sakura nodded, then said, "Again, the mission was to stop Gaara of Sunagakure. If you were killed, we would not have succeeded—" If you were killed or your dōjutsu was injured, Orochimaru would not be able to accomplish a part of his goal.

Is that the only reason why? This was the first time Hashirama had spoken to her in months. Sakura didn't answer to the voice in her head.

"Sakura." Finally, his eyes stared into hers. "Don't risk your life for mine ever again. Ever."

They stayed in that position, Sakura still holding his wrist, the stream of people pushing against them. As if realising what they were doing, Sasuke shrugged her off and began walking again. "Let's go. They'll be wondering where we are." Sakura nodded. I did not promise to never risk my life again.

A woman with two long blonde ponytails outside of the restaurant they had stopped at smirked. "Nothing like good old teenage angst," she cackled to herself, then poured another cup of cheap saké for herself.

:::

On the way up the stairs, both paused, the awkward tension dissolved for now. "Do you hear that? It sounds like shouting. Naruto's shouting." Sasuke and Sakura looked at each other before simultaneously rushing upstairs, where Sasuke threw aside the takeout bag as he spotted the unmistakable black flames. "Itachi," he snarled. Suddenly, he remembered what Orochimaru had talked about during the Forest of Death.

"I wouldn't say it will be too long, Sasuke-kun, until you meet your dear brother again..."

He rushed to the end of the hallway, only to see his older brother and a man resembling a shark disappear. Sakura followed closely behind.

Sasuke breathed heavily, thinking things over. Orochimaru had known. He had known Itachi would be there. Again, power. What was the matter with him? Why would Itachi be there, where Naruto and Jiraiya were, instead of hunting down him and Sakura? Because Naruto contained some sort of power he couldn't possibly rival.

"Sasuke." He had just remembered Sakura next to him. "Let us search for Ramen-boy and Stalker."

Sasuke nodded, not trusting himself to talk. His hands shook visibly as he reached the end of the hall, seeing Naruto and Jiraiya still surprised. "Jiraiya," he called out quietly, "why was my brother here?"

They both turned in surprise. "That was your brother, dattebayo?!"

He nodded solemnly. In the corner of his eye, he saw Sakura make a motion. She moved past him and began speaking with the Sannin, who, for once, had a serious look on his face. When they were done, she turned and looked into his red eyes with an unreadable expression. Disappointment? Smugness? Either way, he knew what she was thinking: I told you you couldn't control your emotions.

He hasn't even realized he had additional tomoes in his blazing set of Sharingan after a specific event in the Chūnin Exams.

There's some tension between SasuSaku! What will happen?