Hello, minna! Before you kill me I swear I have a good excuse!!!! I have had so much homework its ridiculous. Plus volleyball and preparing this speech I had to do yesterday which I felt I was having a heart attack during, its been tough. I will try to get back on a regular updating schedule as soon as possible, so just bear with me. Also, I'm in english class right now, so this will have to be short. I hope you enjoy this chapter, so here is chapter 5!

            Sakura had felt more than known when she saw him that he was somehow of great importance to her. As soon as she had laid eyes on his beautifully carved pale face, his onyx eyes, and his raven hair with the duck butt at the back that she found adorable, her heart had begun to pound painfully inside her chest. She had felt a small burning sensation on the inside of her wrist, but hadn't bothered to look at it because she hadn't been able to tear her gaze away from the beautiful person in front of her. She had been surprised by his fangs and equally surprised when he hadn't stabbed her; instead his sword had stopped right above her heart. She had taken the opportunity to kick him even though very fiber of her being was telling her not to hurt this person. When she heard that he was Naruto's friend, she had been relieved that this person wouldn't be her enemy, and when she had first heard his name, it had echoed in her brain, as familiar as her own: Sasuke.

            She was so preoccupied with helping Naruto that she hadn't bothered thinking if Sasuke was hurt. Naruto had suddenly perked up, however, and his dazed eyes had focused suddenly on Sasuke as his nose twitched, and then he had said, "Sasuke, you smell like blood."

            Her entire body had frozen in shock momentarily. Sasuke had tried to brush it off, but Sakura hadn't even been listening to what he had been saying and had stalked towards him and ripped open the black cloak he was wearing. His entire shirt was soaked with blood and it was dripping, having already created a small pool beneath him. There was a deep wound that Sakura immediately identified as a stab wound in his abdomen. Sasuke had looked down as well and had suddenly gone limp and his eyes had rolled back into his head. Naruto had yelled out his name and Sakura had gone down on her knees beside him, touching his face once before immediately going into doctor mode. She had been surprised to find that his skin was cold.

            Now she was tearing his shirt open as Naruto was kneeling beside her, watching her work worriedly. She pushed the observation that he had beautiful abs to the back of her mind and focused on treating the wound. She hurriedly gave Naruto a rag and told him to press it against Sasuke's wound to stop the bleeding. He complied immediately while she got her things ready. She lit the fire again and placed the same rod she had used earlier in the middle of it. She then started preparing the herbs, making the same salve she had applied to Naruto's wound and preparing a quick painkiller as well for later. She turned back to Naruto, grabbing the rod and her stitching equipment in the process.

            "Okay, take it off," she ordered.

            He complied immediately, removing the now completely red rag. It had stopped bleeding for the time being, but Sakura knew it wouldn't last long. Judging from the amount of blood on his shirt and the wound itself, Sasuke had probably sustained this wound a bit more than an hour ago, and yet it had not stopped bleeding. Whatever had happened, it was obviously the same thing that had happened to Naruto.

            "You should probably hold him down," Sakura suggested.

            "Right," Naruto said, moving nimbly to where Sasuke's head was and holding his arms down. Apparently a rush of adrenaline had burned the effects of Sakura's painkiller away.

            Sakura touched the burning rod to Sasuke's skin. He jerked but did not wake. Naruto tightened his hold on Sasuke and nodded at her to continue. She did so as quickly as possible, and then went to work on the stitches. Sasuke moved or groaned occasionally, but otherwise did not wake; he must have been exhausted. Who knew how long he had been searching for Naruto?

            She finished the stitches quickly with the ease of a practiced surgeon, and moved on to applying the salve she had prepared, shivering slightly from the contact of her hand against his bare skin, sparks flying up her arm. She didn't find them unpleasant though. She then bandaged him up expertly and sat back with a huff, wiping her arm across her brow. She looked to Naruto who was looking at her as if she were a goddess.

            "That was amazing, Sakura-chan!" Naruto exclaimed.

            She blinked, taken aback.

            "R-Really, it was nothing special, Naruto," she stuttered, not used to receiving praise from anyone but Shizune.

            "It looked like your hands were flying while you were doing it, dattebayo!" he said, eyes sparkling.

             "O-Oh," she said. She wondered briefly what she looked like while working, and if it was truly as Naruto said. "Well, anyway, we should place him in a more comfortable position, no?"

            "Right!"

            Naruto helped Sakura move Sasuke to where he had previously been lying, and lay him there, his head resting against the same rag. Sakura was hit by the lack of comfort he and Naruto had. She would have to somehow sneak supplies here: blankets, more bandages, food, and some clothes apparently since both of them were now shirtless. She flushed just thinking about it. She slapped her cheeks lightly before turning back to Naruto, who was sitting next to Sasuke, watching him with a worried and sad expression. She opened her mouth to tell him to rest, but he beat her to it.

            "Arigatou, Sakura-chan," he said, not turning to look at her.

            She stayed silent, getting the sense that he wanted to say more.

            "You know, he doesn't take care of himself very much," he continued. "He's always leaving for days on end without taking anything to eat with him or anything when he gets in one of his moods. I try my best to help him out, but I feel like sometimes he's drowning and I don't know what to do to help him, dattebayo."

            Sakura felt a pang of empathy for Naruto just then. He obviously cared a lot about Sasuke and they must be pretty close for Sasuke to come all this way just to look for Naruto.

            "Well, you're obviously doing something right," she said, just letting the words flow out of her. "He came all this way just to look for you, alone, so you're obviously someone he cares about. So maybe he's not drowning as much as you think."

            Naruto stared at her before a smile made its way across his face.

            "Arigatou, Sakura-chan," he said in the most sincere voice ever.

            For some reason, receiving praise always made her uncomfortable, no matter who it was from.

            "Don't worry about it," she said, blushing from embarrassment. "Anyway, you should probably get some rest. I'll watch over you guys for a bit. I don't have to leave just yet.

             Naruto looked reluctant, but finally agreed and laid down next to Sasuke, and in only a couple minutes he was sleeping soundly.

             "Mmm, Hinata," Naruto muttered in his sleep.

            Sakura was confused but smiled anyway, continuing to watch over the two boys. Boy had her life drastically changed in two days, but she didn't really regret it. After all, it had brought her best friend back and Sasuke. She didn't know what Sasuke was to her just yet, but she got the sense that he was important, and as she watched his sleeping face, completely devoid of stress or harshness, she couldn't help but bend down and place a fluttering kiss on his forehead.

Well, I hope you guys enjoyed that. Poor Naruto! My heart broke for him just writing this. Again, THE SASUNARU BROMANCE IS REAL! So keep reading, and I will see you next time! Ja ne!