My first chapter of my first fanfiction, 'Born Again'! Wooo! I really hope you enjoy this guys; sasusaku is one of my favourite pairings and I've been so desperate to write my own fanfiction for them! This chapter will be from Sakura's point of view; the following chapters to come through will be from Sasuke's. I've posted this chapter early because I'm away on a camp this weekend. Long story, I'm an Army Cadet, blah blah, and I hope you enjoy this!

Lav ya!

Freskalalina x

PS- Oh yeah by the way, this isn't set in an alternate universe, it's the regular ninja-verse (if you could call that regular… -_-).

XxXxX

Born Again

Chapter 1- The Trail

The prison cell was dark, but even darker was the lost soul in chains that I had once called my true love.

"I need you to promise me something, Uchiha."

"Heh heh… So now I'm 'Uchiha'?"

The blinding lights of the Konoha courtroom beat down on me. Sweat was dripping at my brow, thanks to the intense heat in this huge, serious room. The shaking, hating presence in chains behind me trying not to burst into a killing spree, combined with the stony-faced jury and judge glaring down at me didn't help.

"Just shut up and listen!" I snapped at his smug, crazed face.

"I don't owe you or anyone any favours, Sakura."

The room was taller than it was wider, I couldn't make out the ceiling; it disappeared into the shadows above us. The judge sat on a high marble podium; the jury perched on slightly lower podiums to the left and right of him. They all stared down their noses at us, like we were ants. I see now why Sasuke hated them so much; we were nothing but a hindrance, and they were on top.

"You don't? Uchiha, with the amount of people you've slaughtered you owe your life! But this isn't a favour for me or anyone else, it's a favour for yourself."

"Oh?"

Sasuke Uchiha was the seething insanity behind me, bound with chakra chains to the cold stone floor. I was his defence lawyer, the only idiot in Konoha who couldn't find it in her weak heart not to be. After the death of one of my best friends and the prodigy child of Konoha, Naruto Uzumaki, not even my closest friends would stand by my side while I defended his murderer. I wasn't surprised, why should they defend him? Naruto had fought to the death to save Sasuke from himself, only to be cut down by said rogue ninja. What was worse was that Sasuke was grinning like a mad man whilst he sliced Naruto up.

"I need you to… I know it will be difficult for you but…"

I turned towards Sasuke, he was draped in rags, covered in wounds, and his eyes burnt into mine as an excited grin curled his lips. He was the true definition of insanity.

"… In an hour from now your court martial will begin, and want you to try… Just try and keep your mouth shut, you're damn lucky the Hokage's second in command is defending you in this cruel court. An outburst will only darken the jury's already low opinion of you."

"Against the fascist elders of this pathetic city, I can't promise."

"Uchi-"

"But I'll try, Sakura."

He was sincere, when he said it. Sasuke's face was still twisted into a mocking leer but his eyes held truth, and so far he had not made a sound. Even when the judge started to prattle on about the "disgusting Uchiha monsters" and how the misunderstood Itachi deserved the long and painful life he was cursed with. Sasuke trembled with rage, yes, but of course he did! No matter how many layers of ice he tries to put on his heart he will always have something that gets to him. I stood in front of Sasuke, who was knelt, breathing heavily and had his head hanging to the floor, his long black bangs falling over his face. I wasn't allowed to bring any documents or notes to help me in this trial, as unfair as it sounds I had to memorise my defence for Sasuke in one night, and I felt an annoying migraine coming on.

This painfully long court session was almost over. As Sasuke's only means of defence I had to work agonisingly hard to even convince the judge that Sasuke should be given a trial. There's an ancient rule in the world of law- everyone, even if you are a disgusting specimen of humanity in favour of genocide, has the right to be a given a fair trial. Even if the odds against you are astronomical, everyone must have a voice in court. I had been debating –no, arguing- with the judge for over an hour, and against my will I found my voice rising angrily whenever the old windbag contradicted me like I was stupid. This room was making me angry, this nasty judge and his brainwashed jury who refused to listen was making me angry. Sasuke, the arrogant, despicable murderer who slaughtered half of the Konoha population and stepped on my heart more times than I can remember, was making me angry! The jury had one fate for Sasuke burnt into their minds- death.

A full on extravagant execution in front of the entire Allied Shinobi Forces, I fought so hard against this. Naruto wouldn't have wanted this fate for Sasuke, and I wasn't going to let him down. I had been trying to keep my voice firm and strong whilst I spoke, it was hard though, because if I made the wrong move Sasuke life ended tomorrow. And now my voice was hoarse, and my pale pink hair stuck to my forehead. I was ready to give up.

"Sakura Haruno," The judge boomed, "You will have to elaborate- are you suggesting that Sasuke Uchiha is an innocent man?"

"No, your honour," I replied, my head raised so I could look up at him,

"I am merely asking you that as respect for the Uchihas, you should keep the only surviving member of their clan alive!"

"Respect!" A member of the jury snorted, "Young lady, I've never heard such rubbish! The entire Uchiha clan should be dead already, but that fool Itachi missed one out! And now we've finally caught the last member of that traitorous clan, we can finally bring this tedious mission of eradicating the Uchiha clan to a close!"

I could practically feel Sasuke's aura convulsing angrily, and even I to had to clench my fists to stop myself from attacking the ignorant jury member.

"Please," I inwardly pleaded with Sasuke, "You promised, just ignore them! Please, just… ignore them."

I addressed the jury member with an icy glare,

"Sir, I believe that an important rule for the jury of the Konoha Court is to ask the judge for permission before speaking."

The jury member huffed and I heard Sasuke chuckle quietly, as I turned and spoke to the judge.

"Your honour…" I spoke softly, but loud enough so he could hear me,

"Would you really desecrate the memory and honour of a fallen clan by executing its last hope of a fresh start? Generations will seise to exist if you kill this man behind me."

I don't know where that came from, but it left the judge in thought. Sasuke was still now; he seemed intently focused on what I just said. I turned to look at him, to see his expression, but he was still slumped to the floor.

"Sakura Haruno," The judge boomed yet again, he seemed to love addressing people by their full name,

"Though I cannot deny you have a valid argument and strong evidence backing it up, Sasuke Uchiha is responsible for the death of hundreds, unless you wish to plead insanity there is just no way I can allow him to walk free of charges."

"Your honour, I am not suggesting we free Uchiha of his charges, just keep him alive! Lock him up for the rest of his life, but let him die naturally, for the honour of the Uchiha clan."

The judge shot me a cold scowl,

"Miss Haruno at the mature age of eighteen, I really did not think you would say something so childish and naïve."

I growled under my breath, childish? Naïve?

"There is no honour left for the Uchiha clan, they washed their honour away when they went up against us. You are young, you don't understand. In fact," The judge's face suddenly split into a nasty grin, "I'd say the only reason you have for defending this criminal is because you love him! Eh, little girl?"

Now I was angry, I could feel rage bubbling up inside me, as the judge and jury's laugh chorused in my head. I could tell Sasuke had raised his head now, he was waiting for me to yell out denial; his eyes were burning holes through my back. The judge was still mocking me, laughing at me; I had to shut him up!

"HOW DARE YOU!" My voice echoed through the courtroom, followed by a stone-cold silence. I didn't lower my eyes when the judge's beetled eyed glare snapped down to me; I opened my mouth to warn him.

"You may be in charge of this court and I may look small to you from up there, but as a defending position you have no right to mock me, your honour. And as the Hokage's second in command, I could very well have you knocked down from that high position you hold in court."

A flash of realisation went through the judge's eyes, he obviously had not known how high ranked I was. I hid a smirk once I realised he was now extremely nervous.

"I uh- apologise M-Miss Haruno, I was not aware you were our beloved Hokage's second in command. Please forgive my rudeness."

And he didn't stop blathering kiss-ass apologies there; before I could open my mouth he was already knocking Sasuke's charges in my favour.

"And furthermore, I have weighed up your evidence fully and herby I find the accused, inno-"

"Wait!" A member of the jury interrupted the judge's quick stammering, the same member who was rude to me earlier. That bastard! Sasuke was about a syllable away from being cleared of all charges, and he had to ruin it. I made sure to send him the deadliest death glare I could muster while the jury member spoke.

"Before you make a decision for Sasuke Uchiha, we have a witness to testify against him."

A witness?

I glanced worriedly at Sasuke, who looked distant, staring of into space. How can he be so casual when the higher ups were mulling over whether they should kill him or not?

The judge looked at me doubtfully before addressing the jury,

"Very well, I will allow you to present your witness."

There were ten members of the jury, five on each side of the judge. They each formed a summoning jutsu hand sign, before slamming their hands simultaneously down onto the podium. A light began to form directly in front of me, it flashed vividly and I had to shut my eyes; flinching away from the brightness. When I opened them again, the most unexpected person was standing in front of me.

"Shizune?"

A fellow student of the legendary Sannin Tsunade, and a close friend for years, was testifying against me? Shizune stared at me with nothing but disappointment in her dark chocolate orbs; I spoke with utter confusion,

"S-Shizune, I- I don't, what are you doing?"

"I could ask the same thing…" Shizune muttered sadly, "What are you doing, Sakura?"

"Shizune, you have to understand! I'm not doing this for him," I pointed at Sasuke, forcing myself not to let his name leave my lips,

"I'm doing this for the memory and honour of the Uchiha clan! If that man is killed, the Uchiha clan will never exist again! An entire culture, Shizune, extinguished from history!"

"Forget the Uchiha clan, Sakura." Shizune was talking to me as a friend, but the despondency in her voice made my heart ache.

"Are you forgetting what your 'Sasuke-kun'…"

I flinched as Shizune pointed towards a seemingly bored Sasuke,

"Did to our mentor?"

My voice had failed me. But of course I remember. I will never forget the day that Sasuke murdered Lady Tsunade, he burnt her alive with his infamous Ameratsu. Shizune had brought back the itching doubt I had in the back of my head for defending Sasuke; she had reminded me if all the reasons I shouldn't.

"Shizune I-"

"And what about Naruto then? But I guess you always loved Sasuke more."

"No, I-"

"And the countless others? Whether they be your friends or not, the amount of lives that monster has taken, is beyond evil!"

"Shizune, please-"

"Your honour," Shizune turned her back to me, ignoring my pleas as she spoke to the judge,

"I watched the murder of my mentor and others by the hand of Sasuke Uchiha, and as the Head of the Konoha Hospital and the deceased Hokage Tsunade's Second in Command; I promise no harm will come to you or your status if you condemn Sasuke Uchiha to death."

The judge had made up his mind, and there was nothing I could do. He only hesitated before because his courier was being threatened by me, but now that Shizune had promised the judge safety he… He will…

"I have reached a final verdict,"

… He will surely find Sasuke guilty!

"I, the eleventh judge of the Konoha court,"

No! There has to be something I can do!

"Find Sasuke Uchiha…"

Not guilty, not guilty! Please!

"Guilt-"

"WAIT!" I screamed at the top of my lungs, a second ticked, and then… uproar. The jury were yelling and protesting, the judge was turning red in anger because of the second interruption, and Shizune was staring at me with disappoint yet again, clear in her eyes.

A fuming judge bellowed with frustration,

"Sakura Haruno! I will not tolerate any further interruptions! My decision is final! This trial is over!"

"Please, your honour! Hear me out! You need to hear what I have to say!"

The judge narrowed his eyebrows at me, but nether the less raised a hand to quieten the jury. He sighed, and muttered,

"I'll allow one last statement or plea. What do you have to say?"

"Yes, I'd like to hear this." Shizune murmured.

"Me too." An oh-so familiar, smooth, seductive voice sounded from behind me, sending a small chill down my spine. That was first time Sasuke had said anything in this trial; he was clearly alert now.

I had a plan. You see, as the judge's thin lips began to form the dreaded word "guilty", his earlier words from before came into my head.

"Unless you wish to plead insanity there is just no way I can allow him to walk free of charges."

Insanity! That was it, if I pleaded insanity for Sasuke, and I succeeded in convincing the judge, Sasuke would not be executed. Everyone's eyes were on me now, and though my plan was risky, I had to try.

"Your honour, there is an ancient law permitting that those of the insane who have committed crimes cannot be punished, since they were not in the right state of mind."

"I'm well aware of this!" The judge snapped impatiently, "What are you getting at young lady?"

Shizune knew what I was asking for; I could tell by the doubtful way she was looking at me, and the now deathly quiet Sasuke knew too. It was not lie, what I was about to say. Sasuke was many things, but he definitely not sane.

"I would like to plead for insanity, your honour."

The jury started murmuring to each other, and judge raised an eyebrow. Thank God! He was going to listen!

"And…" The judge began slowly, "What is your evidence, to support your statement that Sasuke Uchiha is insane?"

I chuckled lowly,

"Your honour, you already have the evidence of insanity. But then again, you weren't there to see the insane look in Uchiha's eyes, as he slaughtered his ex-comrades. You weren't there, to see the insane smile on Uchiha's face, as he created havoc around the entire world. And you weren't there, your honour, to see this insane creature…"

I turned slightly to look Sasuke dead in his dark eyes,

"… When he tried to kill me."

The courtroom was silent, too silent. Sasuke and I were staring at each other intently. Vivid emerald clashing with bottomless black. That was when Shizune spoke up, her careful eyes never leaving my face,

"Your honour, I support Sakura in her plea for insanity." I snapped my head around to stare at Shizune, in gratefulness and in confusion. Shizune was smiling at me gently.

"For you see, I was there to. I too saw Sasuke Uchiha, and I know as a medic, that physiologically he was not in a stable state."

Thank you Shizune, thank you.

"Your honour," A female member of the jury said sourly to the judge, who was deep in thought,

"Although now even our own witness is supporting the defendant, we still cannot let Sasuke Uchiha's crimes against humanity go unheeded! He must be executed, or God help us the other cities will think of the people of Konoha as soft-hearted cowards!"

"I suppose… your right." The judge murmured, giving a long, weary sigh.

No way in hell was I about to lose this trial!

"Your honour I have a proposal!" I stated firmly. Sasuke would hate me for this, but I didn't care. He's the one who roped himself into this mess, and besides this was better than having to watch him die.

"Sasuke Uchiha should not be executed- but, go under the operation of a lobotomy."

A single heartbeat thumped in my ears, followed by Sasuke's hell-raising roar ripping through the room.

"NO! SAKURA YOU TRAITOROUS BITCH! I'D RATHER FUCKING DIE!" Sasuke screamed, yelled, and shrieked, his agonisingly angry voice sent tears I refused to shed to my eyes.

"NO WAY IN FUCKING HELL I'M BECOMING A SLAVE TO THESE FUCKING BASTARDS! NO!"

The judge acted oblivious to Sasuke hateful protests, as if he were a mere bug on the floor, and focused solely on me. Shizune had her hands covering her ears; poor thing, I honestly couldn't blame her.

"Sakura Haruno, I accept your proposal, on one condition. You perform the lobotomy yourself."

I took a deep, shaky breath. Sasuke's demonic roar seemed to fade from my senses as I spoke clearly,

"I wouldn't have it any other way, your honour."

XxXxX

I had decided that I would not perform the usual lobotomy; I was not going to turn Sasuke into some mindless over-patriotic drone. I was going to cut the hate and evil out of him; I was going to make him mentally the sweet, innocent little boy he was before his life was twisted and ruined by a barbaric dictatorship.

Sasuke lay bare on an operating table; he was hooked up to morphine gas, he wasn't asleep yet, but he nearing unconsciousness. Right now he was glaring sluggishly at me as I prepared my chakra for the operation. Sasuke was naked, and if I was the shallow little girl I used to be I would have been giggling and blushing. But this was serious; I was going to change Sasuke's life.

"I… can't believe… you're doing this to me…" Sasuke wheezed, his voice strained and heavy.

"It's either this or death, Uchiha."

"I'd prefer… death…"

"Shut up!" Geez, he was barely conscious and he was still angering me!

"No you wouldn't, trust me when this over you'll be grateful."

Sasuke coughed out a weak laugh,

"How can I be grateful? I won't be me any more."

I sighed; Sasuke had point. I walked over to him, and brushed some lank black hair from his face. Sasuke didn't say anything; he just stared curiously at my face.

"Uchiha-"

"Please… Just call me by first name."

I blinked, that had to be the first time I had ever heard Sasuke say please. I smiled at him, I'll humour him just this once. After all he didn't have long before he passed out.

"Sasuke." Sasuke smiled gently, as if he had been waiting a century to hear me speak his name. He reached up a shaky hand, and stroked my face. Maybe it was the morphine, but I had never seen Sasuke look so peaceful. It almost made me feel… Guilty.

"Sakura… you didn't deny…"

"Hm?" I stared at Sasuke in confusion, what was he talking about?

Sasuke eyes were becoming very lidded as he spoke,

"When the judge mocked you… He said you were only helping me because… You loved me, and you didn't deny." Sasuke gave me a tired, but still surprisingly sexy grin,

"That meant something… You know?"

"Sasuke," I murmured softly, chuckling as I leant down to his face, "I probably won't do this again, so as a parting gift before you sleep, here…"

I softly pressed my lips on his, warmth spread through my body as I felt a connection run through us. Sasuke lips were smiling against mine, and as I pulled away, he whispered,

"You can cut up my brain until I don't even know who I am… But I will never forget this, Sakura-chan."

I watched with a sad smile as Sasuke's stoic eyes slid shut. And I knew, that when they opened again he would no longer be a broken man with a twisted heart.

But an innocent little boy waiting for the unknown future ahead.

XxXxX

Soooo? Did you like it? Well I hope you did! Please review if you liked it, or if you have CONSTRUCTIVE criticism. Please don't just trash a piece of writing I spent ages on, just because I'm a stranger on the Internet or you're on your period or something. It's not nice or cool, and I'm sure many will agree. So unless it's a helpful or nice opinion, keep it to yourself.

Okay thanks! Next chapter is called "The Tall Little Boy". I know, I'm crap at title names ;) And it will be out next Sunday… Or earlier… I dunno.

Buh-bye!

Freskalalina x