Title: Before The Dawn
Fandom: Naruto
Pairing: Itachi/Sakura
Genres: AU, Humour, Romance, Travel, Hurt/Comfort, First time, Coming of age
Length: Super!Epic (250,455 words)
Warnings: Gore, attempted rape

Author on LJ: N/A
Author Website: Lady Silvamord @ FF.net

Author's Summary:
Fifteen-year-old Sakura never expected to become a traitor to her village, but in a Konoha ruled by Danzou, she has no other choice. Finding her path entangling with the village's most infamous renegade, though, was another story entirely.

Review:
In an AU Konoha, Danzou takes control, resulting in the capture or escape of many loyal nins, Sakura being one of them. Travelling on her own as a missing-nin for hire, she bumps into Itachi - and then she bumps into him again, again, and again. It's a bit of a meet-cute, but not obnoxious enough to make me scoff. It's for a reason too - I can't think of many ways you could get a character as aloof as Itachi to want strange company without making him completely OOC.

That's a common problem with Itachi romance fics - he's so often OOC. In this fic he's not doting or fluffy or even that protective - and that's actually a good thing. It's great to see a fic wherein Itachi's closer to normal rather than psychotic or saintlike. He isn't here to protect and cherish Sakura (though the cherishing bit does build, never fear!), as she's perfectly capable of protecting herself. That's another reason I like this fic. Sakura is a good mix of scared fifteen year old and badass kunoichi, and she works with Itachi rather than being protected by him.

The romance is of course a slow build as both of them have to work through their issues, and Sakura has to grow up. This is also a coming of age fic, with Sakura torn between her idyllic memories of her Konohan life, and an Itachi who both wants nothing to do with the village that he once belonged to and is still a staunch member of Akatsuki. Though at times I just wanted Sakura to make up her mind, the authors reasons for her dithering were so convincing I had to cut her some slack, and there is a satisfying ending to make up for it.

Before The Dawn