SasuSaku OneShots

🌸Swimming Freestyle - Part 4🌸

[swimming AU, funny, angst]

Sakura walked down the dark, moonlit hallway until the familiar hospital room was in sight. She politely knocked on the door until a voice beckoned her to come in.

"Sakura, right?" Itachi smiled as the girl sheepishly grinned and walked in, shutting the door behind her, "no Sasuke today? Hold on, shouldn't you be out swimming? The Olympics are coming up pretty quick."

"Well..." She moved to sit in the chair that Sasuke sat in just the other day, "no one knows I'm here. And I just came back from practice. I stayed after longer so no one could follow me here."

"Ooh, you're also the rebellious type." Itachi nodded in approval, "you and Sasuke would be--"

"Aha, ah, no that's not what I came to talk about. I doubt the two of us would ever happen." Sakura muttered, "but I did mean to ask what's been going on with him. I mean, what'd you say to him? He was so uncertain of himself at practice yesterday and today, after visiting with you. What'd you tell him? It couldn't have been about me, could it?"

"No, no, not at all." Itachi grinned, "though, I did tell him that you two would--"

"Yeah, yeah, besides that."

Itachi leaned his head back onto his pillow and stared at the ceiling, as if the answer to her question was written there. Then he chuckled, "don't worry about it. Sasuke's just being a sore loser. You see, we placed bets and all. Nothing for you to worry about. I mean, you could go talk to him. I don't know how much good that'll do ya."

"Yeah..." Sakura picked at her finger nails, "did you ever know why he's swimming? Why he's competing?"

"Yup. He's told me endless times. In fact, he'd always come to tell me how his swimming's going, how he's ready to bring home the gold and bring me the money. Ha, I told him not to waste it on me, but the boy's so selfless." Itachi laughed loudly.

"Heh..." Sakura rolled her eyes, "I always thought it was the other way... Selfish sounds more like it."

Itachi toned down his laughter and inhaled, "Sasuke's told me about you, before you met me. Hell, before you two even met."

"What?"

"He's known you. I mean, as 'Sakura Haruno, Kakashi Hatake's number one and most devoted student'. I think that's what he said." Itachi stroked his non-existent beard wisely, "he really admires you, to be honest."

"Sasuke  does? That's almost impossible to believe..."

"Not really." Itachi held back a laugh, "you're the one that hated him, not the other way around. You were actually who mainly inspired him to start swimming. It wasn't entirely me. And he always raved to me that he hopes someday, he could 'get in the same water as you'. I don't know if he meant that metaphorically or literally, but I think it's happened only literally."

"Heh. Wow." Sakura smiled, "I had no idea how much he's suffered in his childhood. You know, I was kinda the same. My parents abandoned me when I was little, and so I had to live with my aunt and uncle, who really didn't have much. There were very few things I loved in life, and since then, even today, swimming is my life. I have no idea where I'd be without it. And I didn't even know I really was that popular. Popularity was never really a number on priority for me. It's just winning the gold that matters to me."

"Well." Itachi smirked, "you've definitely caught the attention of a certain Uchiha that isn't me."

"I guess so." Sakura stood up, "well, I gotta go. I need to go talk to a certain Uchiha that isn't you and apologize."