A/N: spoilers ahead! swim with caution.
Summary: When Sasuke unleashes an army upon Konoha, Sakura is the beacon in the night.
Pairing: SasuSaku squint
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Apathy
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Sasuke watched from the top of the Konoha gates as his large army of Sound, Rain, Cloud, and Missing Nin attacked the city below him.
He watched the Konoha shinobi, hardened looks in their eyes, attack his. They were no match for his army.
Their bonds were too strong. They felt too much.
Only those who had broken bonds would survive.
He saw the city that he once called home burst into a thousand flames. Villagers screamed and mothers clasped onto their kids, as if their bodies could protect their children from the assault of enemy ninja.
He couldn't bring himself to kill them though, they presented no threat to his intentions.
The flames grew, feeding off of the fear and tension in the air and the wood of places that kept memories.
The golden sparkle of the fire cast an evil reflection in Sasuke's eyes.
Fire ninjutsu, after all, was one of his specialties.
Operation Destroy Konoha had commenced.
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Sakura watched in horror as jounin, and even ANBU, fell to the ground all around her. She herself was busy fending off a large group of Rain nin who had her completely surrounded.
She cast a quick genjustsu over the group, and before they could utter 'kai', shuriken were lodged in their hearts.
She lept over the fallen bodies in search for wounded that weren't in too terrible of condition. She had healed a few fractured bones and torn muscles before she actually saw him.
Uchiha Sasuke. The cause of the dying all around her, and the destruction of her one and only true home. And she had thought that he had seen enough death.
He stood directly above her on the wall surrounding Konoha. The wall that was now in desolate ruins thanks to countless exploding tags and blunt body force. Blood was splattered all over, the crimson red mixing in with the dust from the air.
She wondered how he could stand so obliviously in the midst of such a bloodbath.
You did come back. But not like I dreamed you would. Never would I have dreamt this, never in a million years.
In all her years as a shinobi. All the years of crossing paths with liars, murderers, rapists, and betrayers, she never felt such utter disdain for a person then she did now.
In fact, as she was healing an unconscious jounin's arm, she was disgusted that she had ever even made eye contact with this…monster.
Suddenly, she felt a chakra force advancing towards her with lightning speed, and lept away with the jounin still in her arms. A girl with wild, red hair and a pair of black frame glasses.
She bit out her words, "Karin." And landed a solid, chakra-enforced kick to the red-head's abdomen. She would be out for another two days.
Sakura quickly healed the jounin and jumped off in search of Naruto. The Akatsuki was also here, she had to help him.
Sasuke watched as Karin crumpled to the ground, and felt a blow to his pride. The girl he had admonished as weak in his chuunin days had managed to knock-out one of his team with her hands, basically, behind her back.
But Sasuke didn't move a fraction to help her. He instead lept over to his main target, the Fifth Hokage, Tsunade.
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While she was running, Sakura heard a piercing scream emitting from the center of the village.
Shizune.
She hurriedly stabbed a kunai into her enemies neck and hurried towards the tower. Tsunade was in trouble. The Hokage was in trouble!
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Sakura burst through the door as soon as he pulled a kunai out from a heart. A palpating, real person's heart. She was too late. She was always too late. She was always one step behind.
Her forehead crinkled in frustration and sadness coursed through her veins. It was over. Tsunade was…she couldn't bring herself to say the word.
She whipped her head around to the culprit. His obsidian eyes showed no regret, no victory, no nothing. It hurt. His blood had really turned cold.
She bit back her emotions, and buried the side of her that wanted to beat him to a bloody pulp.
"Why don't you kill me right here and now. What's one more death to add to thousands?" She hadn't realized that she had spoken until Sasuke responded.
"It is unnecessary for me to kill you. I won't kill you."
"You underestimate me. Sa—" She couldn't bring herself to say his name. It left a terrible taste in her mouth.
"Our objective is already complete. You are of no importance anymore."
Sakura felt empowered. She walked towards the still body of her mentor, her second mother, her guardian and knelt before her.
"Then leave." She said with her head bowed down. She saw that the little diamond marking from Tsunade's forehead was no longer there. So she had used everything she had. Anger burned Sakura's cheeks.
"No. We still have to pay Akatsuki their price." Akatsuki. That's who had helped them.
"Naruto." Her voice seemed foreign to him. It was too cold, too void of emotion coming from someone like Sakura. "Hn."
There was a long stretch of silence. Neither parties moved an inch.
"For someone with eyes like you, Sasuke, you're just so blind."
Her words caught him off guard. They were so cryptic and yet straight to the point. He had never heard her insult him. Never. He let her continue.
"Don't you get it, Sasuke? Don't tell me you haven't even seen through this entire thing. The Uchiha Massacre, Itachi, Orochimaru, it was all Madara. Uchiha Madara."
Sasuke at least had the decency to look confused. Sakura wanted desperately to make him see. Make him see what apathy did to people. Make him see what his sheer ignorance towards others had done.
"You are a pawn, Sasuke. Itachi was a pawn, Orochimaru was a pawn, even the Akatsuki was a pawn in Madara's sick and twisted game. He used you, Sasuke, just like he used the others. Don't you see? Madara wants Konoha. He wants to rule it with a deep, burning, fire red passion. The Third tried to stop Madara by ordering Itachi to assassinate Madara. But Madara was able to intercede the message and make it seem like instead of attacking an Uchiha, he was supposed to kill all. Then Itachi would escape and Madara would be the strongest Uchiha in the village. But Madara had to escape. He was supposed to be dead after all. He joined Akatsuki. He met Orochimaru. Again, he made someone else do the dirty work for him. "
"The Chuunin exams, Sasuke. Remember those? Madara had Orochimaru take you as an apprentice. He knew that you would soon surpass Orochimaru in strength, and you would continue the task that he, Itachi, and Orochimaru had failed at, bringing down Konoha. What good does the destruction of Konoha bring to you, Sasuke? Nothing. Just the little voice in the back of your head will stop crying for revenge. And the deaths of these shinobi? Will it irk you more than that little voice? Will the death of your classmates haunt you at night?"
Sakura paused.
"No," she murmured, "It won't. Bonds, to you, are petty little things."
She finally turned around, and reeled back. Sasuke was shaking. His hands were clenched at his sides, his sharingan blazing out of control. Fury seemed to emanate from every pore in his body.
"How did I not KNOW!" he suddenly burst out.
"Revenge has made you blind. Maybe you should try feeling once in a while." Sakura's words were like a knife cutting away at his insides. When did she learn cruelty? But he had no chance to ask, for Sakura wove a hand seal and both she and Tsunade poofed away.
Not since he was twelve had Sasuke felt this weak. He felt so confused, so helpless, so utterly stupid. It was all Madara after all. WHY HADN'T HE SEEN IT?! Of course, it all made sense.
Madara had founded Konoha along with the First Hokage. But he had not been given leadership over it. Sasuke knew he was greedy and hungered for power. Madara had even unleashed the best inside of Naruto on the village. But Madara was too old now, with too many enemies. He needed someone else to do his dirty work. He had caused the death of Sasuke's parents, the whole clan, in order to seek power.
"CHIKUSO!" He screamed into the air. (a/n: DAMNIT!)
In a secret passageway under Konoha, Sakura heard and smiled. He had finally understood.
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A/N: This is my prediction to what will happen, but I'm not a future see-er. Sorry for the extreme open endedness. If you guys are nice, I may add a second chapter.
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