House Upon A Rock

Summary: She sort of considers herself the last resort, the one to pull him through; it never really occurs to her that she's the one that could fall. [SasuSakuMonth2017 - Day 4 - Prompt: "Lean On Me"]

Disclaimer: This story utilises characters, situations and premises that are copyright Masashi Kishimoto, Shueisha, Shonen Jump and Viz media. No infringement on their respective copyrights pertaining to episodes, novelisations, comics or short stories is intended by KuriQuinn in any way, shape or form. This fan-oriented story is written solely for the author's own amusement and the entertainment of the readers. It is not for profit. Any resemblance to real organizations, institutions, products or persons, living or dead, is purely coincidental.

All plot and Original Characters except for those introduced in the canon books, manga, video games, novelizations and anime, are the sole creation of KuriQuinn. (© KuriQuinn 2016- )

Rating: K

Warning: Spoilers for pretty much everything the start of Shippuden.

Canon-Compliance: As close to canon as fanfiction can possibly be. With a few personal additions :P Takes place during the Blank Period.

Beta Reader: None at the moment.

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一

The first time it happens is two weeks after Team 7's mission in the Land of Waves.

A C-rank security detail (on a squash-farm of all things!) fast becomes a B-rank when the nearest competitor hires former mercenaries to sabotage their client. It's an easy take-down, Sakura thinks at first, especially compared to what they faced with Zabuza Momochi and Haku. Between Kakashi and Sasuke, it's the work of minutes to quash the saboteurs, and with Naruto's blustery lecture about teamwork and respect, everything seems to go well.

But then Sasuke passes out.

Sakura only just makes it in time to keep his head from hitting the rock-littered terrain. "Sasuke!"

"What's going on? What happened?" Naruto cries, looking around like he expects another attack.

Kakashi remains calm, however.

"It's the strain of his Sharingan," Kakashi explains. "While he gets used to it, Sasuke will experience certain side-effects. He'll wake up soon."

Under normal circumstances, they would stay the night or at least until Sasuke was awake and strong enough to walk again. But it turns out the mercenary captain has information on someone in Kakashi's Bingo Book. He insists he'll only speak to the Hokage, and so they have to get him to Konoha as soon as possible. With Kakashi's hands full, Naruto is the next strongest on their team to act as his back-up; this leaves Sakura caring for the unconscious Sasuke.

Not that she minds—at first she even entertains herself with fantasies of nursing him back to health and him being forever grateful and asking her out as a reward.

But the two-hour trek back to Konoha erases any sense of romance she might imagine.

Sasuke is much heavier than Sakura, and after exerting himself against the mercenaries, he smells, too.

Not that I can talk, she thinks as she strains and sweats in desperation beneath the dead weight on her back. I'm going to need to shower for a week to get the smell of fertiliser off my skin!

But she doesn't complain the entire way back home.

By the time Sasuke wakes up and pulls away from her, she's too exhausted to even care if she looks sweaty and dishevelled in front of him. In fact, for the first time, she experiences a little more annoyance than hurt that he can't even manage a proper thank you before slouching off. He shoves at Naruto when the other boy teases him for passing out.