REDEMPTION OF THE HEART AND SOUL
While Sasuke continued with his redemption journey, he came upon a small village. As he walked down the center of the village, he thought he caught a glimpse of pink out of the corner of his eye. He turned and sure enough there stood his old teammate talking to a well-worn old woman. It looked like the kunoichi was trying to offer comfort to the old woman. Sasuke turned away and started walking in a different direction hoping his teammate had not noticed him.
After walking a while, he found a comfortable spot outside the village near some trees and sat down for a rest. Sasuke, the feared Uchia, would investigate the village later to see if there was anything he could do to help. He also hoped that his teammate, Sakura, would be gone by then. He was still on his redemption journey and she was not a part of his plans.
A couple of hours later found the young ninja asleep amongst the tall elms. Sasuke started to wake up when he felt a familiar chakra wash over him. When he opened his eyes and looked up, they looked into deep verdant eyes. He quickly looked away and gave an annoyed 'tch' at the girl.
"What are you doing here, Sakura? Are you following me?" he asked, meaning for it to sound as harsh as it did.
Sakura just rolled her eyes at him. The nerve of him - thinking that she had left Konoha to follow after him. He was the one that told her that his sins had nothing to do with her. She crossed her arms over her chest and gave Sasuke one of her most annoyed looks and said, "No, I am not following you. I just happen to be on a mission here in this village. It's just a coincidence that we ran into each other."
Sasuke just looked at her. This time he really looked at her. This was not the first time she had spoken to him like that. Her cheeks were all puffed up and she had a hard look in her eyes. Sasuke did remember the one time she had called him a jerk. It had taken him aback when she did it though. She had never been angry with him in the past and after today he didn't think it would be the last time. Good, he thought to himself. He deserved her anger. He didn't deserve her love or so he thought until a memory arose in his mind.
The memory took him back to a few months ago when he ran across an old couple that needed help repairing the roof of their barn. Sasuke offered to help repair the roof in exchange for a place to sleep and some food to eat. The old couple quickly accepted his offer.
While Sasuke was helping thatch the roof of the old man's barn, he looked over and saw him looking down at his wife. The old man was watching his wife hanging their laundry to dry. He grunted and then turned to Sasuke and said, "Foolish old woman. She could've waited for me to come down and help her hang that laundry."
Sasuke just looked at the old man with curious eyes. The old man just chuckled at the young man in front of him and decided to share his life's tale.
When I was a young lad, there was a snippet of a young girl that always followed me around. I tried everything to lose her. I even tried to avoid her, but to no avail. I just couldn't get rid of her; foolish young girl.
When I got older, I decided it was time that I saw the world. I was tired of living the village life. So, I got up one day and I left. I traveled for a time and then I settled in a small village, but I fell in with a bad lot. I worked for an evil man and was taught how to steal. I would hurt innocent people who owed money to my boss. Then I was caught and put into prison for my crimes. While I was there, I made friends with even worse people. When I was released from prison, I went back to work for my old boss; committing even worse crimes. But then I was getting bored with my life.
One day my boss ordered me to hunt down a guy who owed him an exorbitant amount of money and to take care of him. I found the guy and beat him to within an inch of his life. After I left the man, with blood on my hands, I became angry with myself. I couldn't believe what I had become. I remembered the good times from when I was a youth and lived in my home village. I decided it was time to return back to my roots.
When I returned to my home village, the first person to greet me was the young girl from my childhood. She didn't ask any questions. She just hugged me and then dragged me to her home. She gave me something to eat and drink and then introduced me to her parents. I learned that they were millers. They took me in and gave me a place to stay and food to eat. They even taught me their trade.
As the days went by, I saw many men come and bring baubles and gifts to the young woman. They offered to take her to dinner, but only if she allowed them to court her. Her answer was always no. I never understood why she turned them away. Foolish young woman.
The old man paused to make sure that the young man was still listening. When he saw that Sasuke was still caught up in his story, he continued.
It was five years since I started staying with her family that her parents passed away. She lost her father first and then six months later, she lost her mother. I stayed through it all even though I didn't have to. A year later, I found myself in love with the girl. I looked back at everything I had done. I never told her of my sordid past and she never asked. She just kept loving me no matter what. It was then that I learned that redemption could be found in the love of a good woman. I married the girl and now she is my foolish old wife.
The old man laughed at himself when he finished his story. He then got up and started to climb down the ladder to go help his wife with the laundry.
Sasuke just sat there while the words bounced around his head. Redemption could be found in the love a good woman. He climbed down from the roof and decided to take a walk.
As the memory faded in his mind, he looked back up at Sakura. She was still perturbed with him. He stood up and thought back to when he was young and Sakura would chase him asking him to go on dates with her and then, to when she confessed her love to him before he left the village. Foolish young girl. He remembered the first time he saw her at Orochimaru's hideout and then during the war when she confessed again. Foolish young woman.
Could he find redemption in Sakura's love, Sasuke wondered. His body stiffened and his lone arm reached out and caught Sakura's arm tightly. Without thinking, he looked at her and voiced out "Come with me."
Surprised, Sakura looked at Sasuke in the eyes. They looked full of panic and fear. He looked as if his whole world would shatter if she didn't give him the right answer. She started to tremble and then answered, "Alright, as soon as I am finished here, I'll go with you."
He saw the smile on her face and let go of her arm. He then wrapped his lone arm around her waist and let his head drop into the crook of her neck.
Sakura was so taken aback by his gesture that she didn't know what to do. She thought she felt wetness on the back of her neck and then she heard a whispered "thank you." She took the words and she placed them next to the others along with the apology he had given her and let them settle in her heart while they also branded her soul. She returned his hug and fell even more in love with him.
After a few minutes, Sasuke ended the hug. He looked at his teammate in the eyes and then started to walk away. He would need to find a place to stay for awhile until her mission was over. As he walked away, he thought to himself that yes - he could find redemption in the love of a good woman and that was what Sakura was. A good, foolish woman.
Author's Note
I hope you liked this one shot. This story woke me up on a Saturday morning demanding to be written. I wrote them down in my notebook and the words just flew from my pen. My poor hand could not keep up and tried to protest by cramping, but here she is. I talked to my husband about this story and he thought I should have added the old woman laughing at the story her husband was telling Sasuke and that she should call him a stubborn ox. I just thought that was too much for this story, but I agreed that that was what type of couple they were.
The old man's story is supposed to help Sasuke see that he can find redemption for his heart and soul by the love and forgiveness of others. He doesn't have to primarily find redemption on his own.
Again, I hope you enjoyed this and I hope I didn't make Sasuke too OOC. This is supposed to be where Sasuke starts to open up and accept Sakura into his life more. Well, gotta go. TA TA for now.