Chapter 1, Sasuke returns – team Gai to the rescue

(Neji POV)

We had just finished a rather stressful mission. Easy! Yes, but stressful.

A very wealthy business man had paid for an A rank mission to accompany his daughter back home after her visit to the land of fire, he was so sure that somebody wanted to kidnap her because of her immense beauty.

'Yea right' I thought Tenten was more beautiful when she was having a bad hair day.

So naturally he wanted the best protection that money could buy. He got team Gai. Although there were those who didn't think us the best team I still felt confident in MY abilities.

Our team was one of the most interesting combinations…

Our sensei Matio Gai, aka the Beautiful Green Beast of Konoha! This of course is a self awarded name and other than his young protégé, no one refers to him as such. The ladies have often referred to him as a beast, but I'm not quite sure that the nick names have quite the same connotations.

Then there was always Gai's bowl hair cut, bushy browed, spring time of youth obsessed, look-a-like, protégé, Rock Lee! He isn't at all related to Gai, but takes after him in so many ways that it scares people, even me! Luckily their slightly more ordinary team mates, Tenten and I were used to all their oddities, everything from the bad hair and bushy brows, to the long speeches regarding the spring time of youth.

The only normal person on the team other than myself is Tenten, a fearless weapons specializing Kunoichi. She is a feared enemy, as she has an immense knowledge of any weapon that may be used against her, and her impressive and creative ability leave enemy Shinobi stunned.

Then there's me, Neji, the Hyuuga genius, or so I'm told, I'm a master of the Byakugan, and the techniques that go with it, such as the gentle fist, eight tri-grams palms heavenly spin and eight tri-grams sixty four palms. I try to stay cool and collected, unlike my other team mates; it's surprising I pull it off. My Byakugan enables me to see things that my team mates would not or could not see; I have an amazing 360 degrees vision and can sense anything within a 50 meter radius, on a bad day. Not to sound too cocky but I am that good!

It was during our lunch break that it happened.

I felt a presence of chakra as I prepared myself to activate my Byakugan; I quickly realized that I defiantly didn't need it.

There before us was none other than Uchiha Sasuke I was so ready to murder that bastard.

Sasuke was a feared adversary for any ninja, a former ninja of Konoha. I had always hated him but at the time I at least had some respect for him. He was once friends with us, well sort of. He was closer to Sakura Haruno and Naruto Uzamaki than any of us. Sakura had even professed her love for him and yet he chose power of her and left her beaten on a bench.

Now I never much cared for her but the fact that any man could do that was so beyond me, and I hated him for it. At one point he was lee's chosen rival, instead of me, another reason I hated him for leaving!! He thrust this fate upon me!

And once a long time ago both lee and I had fought to our very limits to bring him back from the darkness. My team mates and I had fought to the point of death to rescue him, who had committed treason!

I hate him with such and intensity it's unreal. He had tried to kill the one who had saved me from the darkness and couldn't care less for the comrades that risked their lives to help him. To me and most of Konoha he is scum. Not was ... IS!

This, I think, clearly explains why my blood began to boil at the mere sight of it, I really can't see him as a person anymore, the fact that he left to join Orochimaru, also an ex-Konoha Shinobi, the man who killed the third Hokage, attempted to bring Konoha to the ground, the sick and twisted ninja that kidnapped Shinobi and performed experiments on them for his own grandeur and gain, it makes me seethe with anger!

Activating my Byakugan I begin to attack him, full force, holding nothing back, and pure hatred flowing through my body as my not so soft fists knocked him into a nearby tree, it burst into splinters on impact.

He picked himself up and approached me in his white and blue kimono with the Uchiha clan insignia on the back.

I notice his stance, not one of attacking but defending, At first it bothered me that he did nothing but I quickly over came that and resumed my attack.

Both Ten-ten and lee following my queue and stand up and take on their own aggressive stance. Lee slowly bent down and removed the weights on his legs.

I noted the look on his face; he's petrified, I could see it! How very amusing; I allowed a rare smirk to grace my lips.

Lee sprang forward as Sasuke struggled to dodge all his hits and quickly activated his Sharingan; his red eyes gleaming in the noon sun, dodging each hit. I had to say that it was quite impressive.

He just managed to avoid a well aimed kunai from Tenten. She was creative, and this just proved it! It's very hard to hide anything from the Sharingan, but our captain, Gai, had us train against Kakashi, also a Sharingan user, this enabled Tenten to develop a Jutsu that would mask the chakra signature attached to her kunai, rendering poor Sasuke useless, he noticed it at the last minute and dodged the fatal hit.

'Black eye, broken nose, broken ribs, ruptured spleen.' I counted the injuries that we had caused the Sharingan user. But he gave as good as he got.

As I was striking his chakra points he was eventually unable to use his Sharingan. I jumped forward to attack.

"It can't be this easy to beat Uchiha Sasuke?!" I heard our sensei mumble to himself.

"What?!" I said in disbelief "I don't care I'm going to kill him" I yelled in my anger. I wanted him dead…he deserved it after all right?

As my concentration was disrupted for a moment Sasuke got in one swift kick to the face, I go flying across the ground.

"This could be a trap Neji! Don't let your emotions cloud your judgement!" he pointed out what really was obvious, but at this point I didn't care, I wanted to beat him black and blue! So I jumped up and resumed my attack.

'Ok so my judgement is clouded, but I don't really care right now!' Why couldn't he see that the guy deserved to die? However eventually I knew that my better judgement would cause me to give in, so he has his way, as it was the correct thing to do!

It took some time to restrain the Uchiha, but eventually we had him weapon less and tied securely. Tenten made sure she got all the weapons! I think that they are added to her private collection, we began to escort him back to Konoha! Well I say escort... I mean drag!

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Genma looked drowsy at his post as we approached the Konoha gate.

He looked like he was just getting comfortable when we came into view. According to his records it had been a simple escort mission. But I could see the confusion on his face when he noticed a prisoner

As we got closer he could tell it was Uchiha Sasuke that was bound at the hands and weapon less, the look on his face was priceless, shock, then rage and then frustration at the amount of paper work that this would indefinitely cause him! I laughed on the inside, for once it wasn't me!

"This is so troublesome" I heard him mutter the Shikamaru's catchphrase "All because he can't get to a bloody shift on time" He continued to moan. I guessed that either Kakashi or Shikamaru were due to start their watch.

"Team Gai" Genma addressed us, obviously quite aggravated at the extra work he now had.

"I suppose I'll need to escort you to the Hokage?" he drawled not hiding his annoyance in the slightest. It wasn't our fault but I guess he was tired and cranky!

"When did your shift end?" I asked with amusement

"2 hours ago" he replied irritably

"Is it Shikamaru or Kakashi who's late?" I continued amused.

"Shikamaru san! … I swear he's becoming more and more like Kakashi every day" Genma stressed "he's even started with those Icha Icha novels, not that Ino is impressed"

He was slightly smirking now just the thought of Ino harassing him about his literature of choice amused him. I think it amused everyone in the village; Sakura recounted numerous stories of Ino scolding him for one thing or another!

Getting back to business he got out the mission report sheets and some other documents, probably to document the capture of an S rank criminal.

Tenten offered to cover till Shikamaru turned up so that Genma could deal with the Hokage and then head straight home to bed.

The streets of Konoha were deserted this early in the morning 'it was probably for the best' I thought 'the uproar from the Uchiha's Return would be huge'

We walked straight to the Hokage's office and waited as Genma explained the situation to a very tired and very angry Tsunade.

She won't be happy to have been woken up this early! Not that you could blame her 3:00 am was very early! Hell I bet she didn't even know 3 had an am! After 10 minutes of waiting and listening to a very unimpressed Hokage, we were escorted into the office; she sat there staring at the Uchiha before her, her blank expression unreadable.

"Gai, Lee, Neji, your free to go, hand in a report for your mission tomorrow each of you and on the capture of the Uchiha" she said not even giving him his name

"And…This is top secret, if I find any of you spills the beans on Uchiha's return you all get kindergarten duty for a week and the only missions you will ever receive if your lucky will be D rank for the rest of your miserable lives."

There was finality in her tone that said leave, leave now … and quickly! So we did! I wasn't going to question her, last time Naruto did that he ended up with kindergarten duty for a week, which might not seem that long, but it is!! Kids are...So...energetic not to mention annoying and needy! Do you know how awkward I felt when a little girl ran up to me crying her eyes out cause someone pulled her hair... she HUGGED me!!!

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(Sasuke POV)

I stood in front of the Hokage of the hidden leaf village, despite the early hour she certainly looked awake now. I knew I was going to have a hard time convincing her that I was trust worthy. Her steely glare never left my face. I knew exactly what she was thinking.

'How could he have let his friends risk everything over and over to bring him back, and then just turn up out of the blue like this?' she would be rambling in her head. She would be a hard nut to crack

Then there were the emotional wounds that I had caused those closest to me! They were not that easy to forgive. Sakura had offered me everything to keep me in Konoha,. and considering I heard that Tsunade became Sakura's sensei I don't think it would go down well that I threw it in her face and the fact that I had disregarded the sacrifices of my friends, well that wouldn't be too popular either.

Over and over again I did this to Naruto and Sakura when they tried to rescue me from the clutches of Orochimaru; I went there voluntarily, why would I need rescuing? The fact that I had continued this after I left Orochimaru wasn't going to help my case either. Suddenly gaining the forgiveness of the Hokage didn't seem like the best idea in the world.

They had never changed, their goal remained the same; They fought for me like I was captive, not like I had willingly left the village and committed treason and attempted to murder them over and over, just for good measure. Just as I never changed, always striving to be better than Naruto and continuing to thwart their rescue missions.

"So," Tsunade broke off my thoughts.

"Why is it your back in Konoha?" she glared at me as she spoke her features didn't soften even for a second.

'Why?' I Thought, there were many reasons that I could give, 'Best to keep it simple' I concluded to myself.

"I only ever left for my revenge," I answered, no sign of emotion, I was calm and collected. "And I have that now."

'There it is in a nutshell' I thought to myself casually.

"I -" I began and stopped suddenly thinking of how to word such an awkward statement.

"I… I remember Kakashi sensei talking to me about my revenge." I stopped expecting this to be enough of an explanation. But she of course had no idea what it was that Kakashi had said to me. I of course had to elaborate. A crease grew between my brows as I tried to find the right words; I bowed my head as if in shame.

"He told me that revenge won't change anything. That it would leave me feeling empty; it doesn't make anything any better." I stopped again just as suddenly as before, my eyelids pressed tightly closed, my face intense as I finished what it was I had to say,

"As he died, nothing changed, just like Kakashi had said, the pain I had felt all my life didn't go away, and that's all I ever wanted… Kakashi was right… My revenge was meaningless."

I stopped, hoping that his small emotional revelation would be sufficed for the Hokage. Unfortunately, it was not. She wasn't buying it. I could tell she saw a flaw in my story.

"If my knowledge is correct Sasuke; you killed Itatchi two years ago, if this emotional revelation of yours drove you back here, to the ones you care about." She paused trying to catch my eye. I wouldn't let her catch the shocked expression on my face.

"Why did it take you so long?" She spat the words out like venom.

"Did you get lost?" She mocked me.

"Pride." I bowed my head not wanting to show my face.

"To admit to my friends that I had shunned them for nothing and that they had been right all along." I finished, thinking 'Was that enough? Well male pride isn't exactly the best excuse for treason was it but I had nothing else.'

"I…I didn't want to let Kakashi know that he had been right."

I finally lifted me head to hers our eyes finally meeting. "It's not the best excuse, I know, but it's the truth. Now I can admit that I was wrong and except any and all consequences for my actions." I fell to my knees bowing before the Hokage my face flat to the floor. That should help me out slightly!

A smile played across her lips.

She opened a draw at her side and rummaged through apparently trying to locate a specific file or document. Slightly confused wondering if she had accepted my words, or if it was seppuku for me.

"This is Naruto's complete missions file," She looked at me, who was still feeling rather puzzled.

'What does this have to do with anything?' I thought.

"As he was assigned or hijacked any mission that involved you, his missions reports are the most reliable record of your crimes against Konoha." She explained herself

She opened the file and flicked through to a divider labelled: 'Missions involving Uchiha Sasuke.' This section was rather large. There was a certain amount of pride that just swelled up when I saw that file devoted to my actions. I understood the importance of the file now and waited patiently for a response from Tsunade.

"From the first mission, I can see that you had reasons for leaving Konoha, to gain power from Orochimaru with the sole purpose of surpassing your brother Itatchi Uchiha and avenging your family."

Tsunade paused not letting her expression reveal any of the thoughts she was having. "I can also see that despite your tough talk, you had the opportunity to kill Naruto. But you didn't."

Her expression didn't give anything away she didn't expand on her thoughts; she just left it at pure fact as she leafed through the various reports. I didn't know what to think, was it good news? Or bad?

"Looking at these reports, despite the fact that you joined forces with Orochimaru, you never actually participated in any of the crimes that he committed. You just watched them, you didn't actually commit them. Although, I still believe this to be as bad as the act itself, the only charge we have against you is treason and attempted murder."

Tsunade was clearly baffled by her discovery. The pride I felt earlier deflated!

"Luckily for you, this will reflect in your sentence. However, you will be rigorously interrogated about your actions before and after you left Konoha."

Tsunade sat there; considering the situation that she was in, unlucky for me, she would have to make a decision herself, as Shizune and Sakura were not here to keep her in check. She could be as outrageous as she wanted and there was no one to stop her!

"Sasuke, Ideally, what would you like to do with your life now?" She posed the question

I couldn't believe what I was hearing. I had not expected Tsunade to offer me my freedom on a plate. Was this some sort of test?

"I would work for Konoha as a Shinobi." I was worried as I could see the cogs working overdrive.

She got up from her desk with a slight smirk.

I was very worried as the Hokage wasn't exactly known for being reasonable or responsible.

Tsunade left the room for a few moments and talked to one of the guards.

I thought that I heard the guard walk off just before she entered the room again, the same smirk in place.

"Your punishment will be unique to you Sasuke. I have thought hard about it. What would teach you a real lesson? It will be in two parts; the first is merely to ensure that you can actually be trusted; the second is what will teach you a lesson. I mean really teach you a lesson." The smirk reappeared.

"If you survive the first part we'll talk about the second." She added coldly. I didn't want to know what it is that she had in mind.

Authors note- this story has been posted before, but it was by me, I just felt it needed a lot of improvements so here it is chapter 1

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