Title: Half Without Another One: Chapter Nine
Author: branchandroot
Genre: Drama, Angst, Fluff
Rating: PG-13 for angst
Pairing/Characters: Sakura, Kakashi, Tsunade, Sasuke, Naruto, Danzou
Word Count: 8428
Notes/Warnings: Intense debrief about the previous headgames.

Summary: Sakura has to debrief and deal with the backlash of her time at Orochimaru's side. Fortunately, Naruto and Sasuke are there for her. Once that settles, though, Tsunade has to deal with the resistance of the Elders to promoting the three of them.

"He didn't call me by name, for a long time. It was always 'kunoichi'. But when..." she had to swallow, "when I demanded more tests on the last version of the seal, more tests on other people, because I knew it would give me more time to gather intelligence on the bases, then he called me by name."

"And if he thought all along you were a plant," Miuhara completed her logic coolly, "it follows that he was seeking to draw you into just that position, where you would be complicit with his atrocities. And he rewarded you for it."

"Yes," Sakura whispered, arms curling tighter. "And it worked."