Chapter 24

He heard her lay the clipboard on her lap and sigh faintly, "Yesterday your curse mark went out of control. Tsunade-sama said that curses become sensitive over time, and they react to the smallest jump in emotion. Understandably, you were probably a little more than irritated with me for what I put you through, and that triggered the mark."

Sasuke clenched his fist slightly—he shouldn't have let that happen. After being abandoned by Orochimaru, using the curse would only cause him to become more reliant on that power given to him, and thus binding him to his old sensei. A bond would cause him to again be drawn to the sannin…and because of his condition he was nothing but an annoyance. He would most likely be killed. That was why he had promised himself, as he was tortured by Kabuto and other Sound ninja, to never to use it again, save for one task, and that task only—to kill his brother.

"What happened after that?" he asked, not liking the feeling of having to be dependant on Sakura for anything—information included.

"I knocked you out, and you were taken to a room on the fourth floor which is specifically used for binding jutsu-caused side-effects and curses. There the Hokage and four other medical ninja spent the rest of the day binding that mark on your neck," Sakura replied, "permanently."

"Sakura?"

"Yes, Sasuke?"

"Please leave," he stated, his fist clenching and unclenching under the sheets, "I'm still tired."

Sakura stood up from his bed, "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have kept you awake. Just ask the nurse for me when you are rested."

There was rustling as Sakura put away the objects she had been holding, before there were the footsteps of her walking across the room, opening the door and shutting it quietly behind her. It was after her footsteps were completely gone from earshot that his hand lashed out and grabbed the aluminum frame of the bed, crushing the bar tightly in his hand. Fury seethed in his mind as he continued to apply pressure to the bar; the curse mark had been sealed permanently, and the power was gone—along with any chance that he had in defeating Itachi.

Sakura knew that even though Sasuke said he wanted to rest, she knew he just wanted to be alone for a while. Losing the curse mark must have been a blow because she knew it probably had been a reliable source of power for him, and no longer having that power was almost as bad as losing the Sharingan.

Sakura pushed the down button on the elevator and waited patiently, casting a glance in the direction of Sasuke's room. She figured it would be a while before he was cooled down again, so she might as well run some errands while she waited. She entered the open elevator door after casting a last look at Sasuke's room; he'd get over it.

She stepped off on the main floor and walked over to the reception desk, adjusting the bag that was slung over her shoulder.

"Sakura," the receptionist, Maeko, smiled, "What can I do for you?"

"I'm going out for a bit while my patient is resting, I need a phone just in case he wakes and needs me while I'm gone," Sakura explained opening her bag, pulling out the notes she took earlier, "Give these to Tsunade-sama when she arrives today, will you?"

"Certainly," the receptionist smiled, exchanging an on-call cell phone for the papers, "Have a good time, Sakura."

Ino stood outside the flower shop, setting up the exterior display of flowers, arranging them neatly into place. It was still early in the day but she had been late in setting out the flowers—her mother would not be pleased. Ino hurried back indoors and grabbed another bouquet of flowers from a tub of water where they were kept, trying to keep the water from dripping on her. She carefully carried them outside, being cautious with the delicate petals, not wanting to squash them. Gently she set them in the stand outside, making sure the colours complemented the ones of the flowers around them. She stepped back and admired her work—one of the best arrangements yet.

It was then that out of the corner of her eye that Ino saw Sakura walking down the road, carrying a shoulder bag that seemed to be weighed heavily down. What was Sakura up to? She hadn't seen her in days—she had been up at the hospital, so busy lately that Ino hadn't seen her walk home everyday like she used to. The heavy shoulder bag was suspicious too…normally it didn't weigh down so much on Sakura's shoulder; it was like she was carrying bricks or something in there. Dashing quickly into the shop so that Sakura didn't notice her presence, Ino watched Sakura from the shop window with curiosity, hiding low amongst the flowers. Sakura passed the shop without casting a glance over and continued up the street, seeming preoccupied.

"Mom! I'm going out for a bit! I'll be back later!" Ino shouted into the back of the store after she had watched Sakura disappear around the corner of the block.

Rushing outside, she headed ran up the street to where she had seen Sakura go around the corner. Placing her hand on the side of the building, Ino peered around the corner and spotted Sakura's bright petal-pink hair among the crowds. She was no longer wearing black, she noted with interest, but wearing her regular red dress and green shorts. A frown marred Ino's face, and she narrowed her blue eyes—surely she was not finished mourning Sasuke so soon.

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