It was obvious Sakura had a lot on her mind, but Karin didn't want to pry, so instead she just silently followed Sakura as she led them into a shop called "Yui's Tea". A waiter came to lead them to their mats. Karin ordered gyokuro; Sakura ordered matcha.

"When did you start drinking matcha?" Karin asked. "I thought you only drank sencha and all."

"Hm, Lee is the one who got me into it. Besides, matcha has so many medicinal qualities."

"You've been talking about Lee quite a lot lately." She wiggled her eyebrows. "Is something going on perhaps?"

Sakura wished she could just laugh it off, but today wasn't the best day for her. "I haven't thought about that. Guess I'm still not over Sasuke." 'And I probably never will be.'

"Oh..."

"Yeah."

Saved by the bell, the waiter interrupted their awkward conversation by placing their tea on the low table, bowing and leaving just as swiftly. Karin picked up the cup gingerly and took a sip, observing the woman opposite her from the corner of her eye.

Sakura placed her teacup on the table and sighed in content after drinking, but Karin saw that the tiny cup wasn't even half empty. "So, tell me everything's that's been going on? How's Suigetsu and Juugo?"

Karin shrugged, "Last time I saw them they were fine. Crazy, but still fine." This earned a giggle from Sakura. "We have a new scientist though."

"Really?" Now this piqued Sakura's interest. Scientists were hard to find, mostly because everyone wanted to be shinobi like Naruto. "How did you find them?"

The conversation had moved to a better route, and Karin's tense shoulders relaxed as she narrated.

"Suigetsu was looking for a sword and we ended up going to this barren land where a bunch of people were calling themselves 'The Wind' or whatever." Karin began. "That's where we met Sachiki and brought her to my lab for experimentation–relax, it wasn't anything harmful." She explained when Sakura's expression turned sour. "And afterwards she said she wanted to stay."

"Is she like, an experienced scientist?"

"No, but she knows more than a lot of other people."

"Oh, so you're her mentor?" A big smile spread across Sakura's face, and she clapped her hands together. "You have a student!"

"Eh...I guess..." Karin awkwardly smiled. Sachiki was less of a student and more of someone she wanted to keep from self destructing, but potayto potahto.

"That's so cool!" Sakura gushed. "I'm happy you're keeping yourself busy at the hideout."

"Me too."

And on that awkward reply the conversation died down, an silence stretched between the two women. The redhead tapped her fingers against the hardwood as a distraction from the elephant in the room.

Karin knew what Sakura wanted to ask, and she didn't know how she'd answer her questions.

After what felt like an eternity, Sakura finally brought it up.

"I see you and Sasuke have been getting close."

Karin swallowed. It wasn't a question or an accusation–she was just making an observation, and the fact that Sakura already knew bits of what was going on made Karin hate herself.

'Use it to your advantage' Juugo had once said, and that was what Karin always reminded herself with. This world, whatever Juugo had created, was nothing but an advantage.

Sasuke never chose her. He never chose Team Taka. Juugo did.

Sakura's suffering in this world was unfair and all Karin could think of is 'it's my fault'.

"Ah, we just talked that's all..." Karin trailed off, and Sakura nodded.

How could she be happy when Sakura was still in love with Sasuke?

"I see."

Silence again.

"It's just strange," Karin jumped when Sakura spoke up again. "Sasuke acts differently when he's with you."

Karin piped up, "How so?"

If Sakura saw the interest in Karin's eyes, she didn't let it affect her.

"He's more...observant of you, like he does these little things that he normally wouldn't do for a gi–for many people really." Sakura gripped both sides of her teacup. "Or things that he never did for me, I guess."

"Oh."

What was she supposed to say? Sorry? How could she apologize when a part of her still wanted to be selfish, and chase after Sasuke?

Afterwards Sakura called the waiter for the bill, and the two women went their separate ways.

: :

"Since when did you care about romance?" 'Did I miss something? What is happening? Is this actually Sasuke?' "Are you a spy?"

Sasuke's eyebrows furrowed. "No."

The older man took a long hard look at the other, then shook his head. "Nope, I don't believe you anymore. You're a spy, I'm calling in ANBU–"

"When we were genin and on missions you'd sneak out in the middle of the night to go pick up women as a woman."

"Oh. Okay. It really is you then."

Sasuke scowled, getting a bit annoyed that Kakashi was making such a huge deal about it. Was it so hard to believe he was probably infatuated?

"I came to you for advice because I don't trust anyone else."

"Aw, you trust me?"

"Not in that sense," Sasuke's scowl deepened. "I trust you to know a thing or two about women."

"Either way I'll take it." Kakashi gave his trademark lazy smile, but Sasuke's expression remained more poker than usual, making Kakashi straighten up.

"You see, infatuation differs from person to person, but from my experience..." He thought of the first time he met Kurenai; the woman who he had kissed before she got stabbed by a kunai; Rin when she smiled at him. "... infatuation is like a disease."

Sasuke blinked. "Wh–a disease?"

"Yes, a disease. It makes you dizzy and lightheaded, gives you a stomachache, and your body feels hot all the time you're around that person." Kakashi leaned back on his chair like he was some sort of god playboy.

(He was a god playboy. He just didn't know shit about romance.)

"I see." He was experiencing those symptoms...

"If I may ask, why do you want to know?" Kakashi raised a brow. "Finally going to confess to Sakura?"

"No." If he had a kyo for every time someone assumed he was in love with Sakura... "But who it is isn't important. What do I do with these emotions?"

Kakashi wasn't sure what was more shocking, the fact that he outright rejected Sakura, or the fact that there was someone else he was infatuated with.

He decided not to comment. "Depends on the situation, but the best bet is to stimulate yourself."

"What?"

"Get some action, test the waters–I don't know how to explain it to your innocent mind, Sasuke."

"Wait." Sasuke's eyes turned to slits. "Are you telling me to have sex?"

"Yes!" Kakashi clapped his hands together, glad that Sasuke caught his drift. "That's exactly it. It doesn't even have to be sex, a kiss and a grope can go a long way–"

"Absolutely not. I'm leaving."

: :

"I don't get why I have to come to this BBQ thing." Karin groaned. "I was really looking forward to staying in bed and doing nothing."

The sun had set and the evening light shone. Sasuke and Karin walked through the village, with Karin clutching his arm tighly, looking around at the villagers that wouldn't stop staring and whispering.

Sasuke glanced at her, eyes softening ever slightly when he noticed just how apprehensive she was. "It's part of our deal."

"Our deal never said you were going to force me to do stuff."

"It was heavily implied."

Karin rolled her eyes playfully, and from the corner of her eye she could see Sasuke's mouth twitch.

She had noticed a change in his attitude towards her since they got to Konoha yesterday, and she wasn't quite sure why. In the morning he stole quick glances at her when they ate breakfast, and he whispered an almost inaudible "bye" when she announced she was going out for some tea with Sakura–and even now as she clutched his arm for emotional support, she could feel the way he leaned towards her too.

She didn't want to ask, because if she did, she was afraid it would shatter the fantasy and throw her back into her old world where Sasuke was cold and detached.

Sasuke's movements came to a halt once they reached the BBQ, and Karin could tell it was from the mouth watering smell of meat that filled up her nostrils with one inhale.

It was then she realised she was starving.

"SASUKE'S FINALLY HERE!" Naruto's voice scared the pidgins off the roof, and he ran towards Sasuke to give him a slap on his armless shoulder.

Sasuke slipped out of Karin's grip discreetly, making her frown, until she saw Sakura standing just outside the BBQ with an unreadable expression.

"Let me introduce ya to the gang, Karin chan!" The redhead tore her gaze away from Sakura, blinking rapidly when Naruto grabbed her hand and dragged her into the restaurant.

"This is Hinata chan, my girlfriend." Said girl had a blush on her face as she greeted Karin with a bow of her head.

'White eyes.' Karin observed. 'A Hyuuga.'

"That idiot sleeping over there is Shikamaru–you know Shikamaru dontchya?"

"Yeah." Karin shrugged. She didn't really care about getting to know them, she just wanted to eat.

"This is Ino, that's Chouji, that's Kiba and Akamaru, then Lee and Tenten, and that's Sakura but she's your best friend so I don't know why I'm even introducing her. And I'm Naruto! Dattebayo!"

"Yeah." 'I'm so hungry...'

"You forgot me." A voice whispered from the shadows, startling Naruto and Karin as they both searched for the source.

"Neji, is that you?"

"Wha–no, it's me, Shino."

"I think I heard the voice again?" Naruto cleaned his ear with his pinky, and Karin shook her head.

"I don't hear anything Naruto, maybe it's just the sound of the grill."

Shino deadpanned. "Seriou–"

"Anyways! Now that we're all acquainted, let's eat!"

Karin sat next to Sakura, both girls giving each other awkward smiles as a greeting. Sasuke came into the restaurant not so long after and sat next to Karin.

"Yo teme, where'dya go?"

"Had to take care of a few things," he shrugged, but Karin saw how tense his shoulders were. She decided she'd ask him later when she wasn't hungry enough to swallow a tailed beast.

Chouji was the first to dig in, Karin following shortly after, but just as she was about to shove a whole piece of beef into her mouth–

"What the hell is that on your arm?" Before she could blink her arm was in Kiba's strong grip, and it didn't take long for her to realise what he was glaring at so intensely.

The bite marks.