Title: Limitless

Rating: T for my paranoia

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto. I mean honestly, if I did would I be putting this on fanFICTION? Because if I owned Naruto don't you think I'd actually put it in the manga? Yeah. That's what I thought.

Summary: Everyone has moments in life they wish they could change. Just like everyone has their limit. He wouldn't let her do this. He would not let her die. She was his limit.

His life was full of moments he wished he could rewind. His family's assassination, his departure from Konoha, leaving her on a bench, and so many more things he wished he could change. So many regrets for one man. But he was an avenger. He did what he had to do.

He had fought Shino Aburame and escaped without being detected. Or so he had thought. Seconds after he had paused to access his injuries she had appeared. Beautiful, strong, and so full of regret as well.

She had told him she loved him. She had stood across from him, and she had told him once again that she loved him. He had turned from her. What could've been a fatal mistake, save for the fact that he was Sasuke Uchiha and you could never take him by surprise.

"I have always loved you. I always will. Please, come home!" She shouted. He had an urge to bash his head against a tree. Naruto had told him, had warned him that this would happen. That he was sucking the life out of her. Enough was enough.

"Sakura. I hate you." Sasuke said angrily, facing the girl. She would never know how it pained him to say this. But it was for her own good.

"Sa-Sasuke-kun?" Sakura's voice quivered. He watched her emerald eyes tear up in pain and he longed to cross the distance and take her hand. Instead he held himself back. It was plain on her face that she was wearing down quickly, running out of life. He would not destroy her any longer.

"I would never be able to love someone like you. You are weak." Another lie. After her training with Tsunade she was one of the strongest Kunoichi he knew, if not the strongest.

He felt her body tense across the clearing. Her aura radiated anger, sadness, and disappointment. He sighed. He had disappointed her once again. Of course he had. That was all he did.

"You can't just chase me off this time Sasuke-kun. I won't go away anymore. I'm done running back to Naruto and Kakashi and letting them come after you. I'm at least that strong now." She said. That annoying boldness she had coming out. She shouldn't have been confident enough to say that to him. In the past she would've just left crying by now.

"Just go back to Konoha Sakura. Give up on me. I'll never return." In his mind he begged for her to never let go. For one person to keep faith in him, even when he could not. If anyone could do it, it would be her.

"No. I'm not going back Sasuke-kun. Not if you're not with me." She stated. "I won't do it. I've tried living without you. It's just not working for me." She chuckled sadly.

"I'm not going to go back without you." She stated with more confidence in her voice.

His body tensed in preparation for battle. He took his stance, waiting for her to move. Instead she stood absolutely still, a look of peace on her face. Was she waiting for him to kill her? Or was she just that careless?

Sasuke heard the sound of someone running right behind Sakura. Too light to be male, these footsteps were of a woman. She must have had backup.

"I love you Sasuke-kun." Sakura stated the look of peace still there.

"Hn. I already told you Sa-" Wait. He knew those footsteps. Why wasn't she moving? She was just standing there like an open target. Her face was resigned. As if she had come to terms with this long ago.

He opened his mouth to tell her to move, his stoic appearance fading. "Mo-!"

A flash of red hair.

A piercing scream.

A blade pushing its way through Sakura's stomach.

Blood.

Sakura's blood, everywhere.

Sakura falling.

Karin standing, victorious.

Sasuke attacked.

He kicked open the door to the hospital. She was dying fast.

"Sa-Sasuke!" The blonde receptionist screeched in a hushed voice. And then her eyes fell to the pink haired woman in his arms. She was dead. Ino's eyes burned with hatred.

"You killed her?" She hissed. She reached for a kunai.

"No. If I had killed her I wouldn't have come back, let alone have come to a hospital." Sasuke said, ignoring her and heading straight to the emergency room. He kicked open this door as well, his hands being full.

He laid her on a table in front of three medical ninja, including Tsunade. The two unknown medical ninja just stared at him. He glared angrily.

"Help her!" He roared. He himself was covered in blood. A mixture of Sakura's and Karin's. Of course he looked like he had fought and killed her. He had killed the woman who had attacked her. But they would save Sakura before they would ever even look at the traitor.

"Guards!" One of the medical ninja yelled out, while Tsunade and another woman leaned over Sakura, their hands already glowing as they tried to save her.

Footsteps thundered behind him and he felt his arms being pulled behind him, and two men pulling him away. He struggled to stay in the room with Sakura.

"Sasuke get out of here! If she dies I might just kill you right now! And she wouldn't want that!" Tsunade screamed as she pushed back some hair off of Sakura's face. Sasuke tensed. The last thing he saw before allowing himself to be taken from the room was her almost lifeless eyes flutter open to search for him before closing again.

"S-Sasuke…I love you…" Her mouth formed the words as Tsunade struggled to make her student live.

"Is she alive?" Naruto yelled, as he rushed into the waiting room of the hospital, dragging Hinata behind him. Ino looked up from her spot at the desk and rubbed her eyes.

"I don't know…nobodies come to tell me anything…" Ino said quietly. She choked back sobs and Hinata released herself from Naruto's grasp to comfort her friend.

"S-She'll be fine…" Hinata stated in a hushed voice. "She's strong." Naruto placed his head in his hands and fell back on a chair. He started crying, and Hinata rushed to his side. He reached out to her and she fell into his embrace. He just needed somebody to hold right then. He buried his face in her neck and sobbed.

"Why the hell would she do this…?" Naruto asked her. Hinata, who had started crying silently as well, shrugged in defeat. Ino was the one who finally stopped crying long enough to look at the others in the room. Kakashi, Tenten, and Neji had joined the rest silently.

"You said it yourself a long time ago Naruto. What we already knew. She certainly wasn't going to keep living without him…" Ino managed to mumble.

Naruto's hands held Hinata tighter, and balled into fists. His body shook.

"You're sure Sasuke didn't do this Naruto?" Tenten asked. Naruto removed his head from Hinata's neck and shook it violently.

"The teme may be stupid, but it's like he told Ino. He wouldn't have brought her back. He didn't kill her. Honestly I doubt he even laid a hand on her to harm her." Naruto sighed. Sasuke had always been dense towards feelings.

The room turned back to silence as Naruto's head fell back to Hinata. She had been like his sister. And she had reached the point where she had wanted to die. He hadn't been able to do anything to stop it. She may have had the strength of giants, but without Sasuke she was rendered weak. She had loved him and he had destroyed her.

Tsunade walked out into the emergency room waiting area to see over thirty people waiting. All eyes turned to her, and Naruto picked Hinata up off his lap and stood.

"Is she…?"

Tsunade smiled softly, sadly. "She's resting comfortably. She had a lot of damage. If Sasuke hadn't brought her back and got here when he did she would've died." A sigh of relief was heard throughout the room.

"She's going to have to stay in the hospital for awhile while she recuperates. And Naruto, when you see her you are going to have to be quiet. For once." Tsunade said a tad louder. Naruto crossed his arms in mock hurt.

"So when can we see her?" Ino asked. Tsunade glanced over at a clock. "Not for a few more hours at the least. She'll probably be sleeping for awhile."

Tsunade turned to go back to the emergency room. "And Naruto, since you're probably dying to know, I've already decided on how to punish Sasuke. It's also allowing him to make the decision to stay or not." She started. He'll be heavily guarded, and nobody is to tell him anything about Sakura. Let him think she's dead or alive. The least he deserves is to wonder."

"How long?" Naruto asked.

"One year. Then, if he chooses to stay we'll put him on probation. If not he will be executed."

Naruto gaped at the last word. Tsunade shrugged, glancing back at him. "Don't give me that look Naruto. If there was another way we'd choose that. It's up to Sasuke now to choose his fate."

Shizune walked calmly through the emergency room doors. "Tsunade-sama. She's awake and asking for you."

"Alright. We'll see how she is, and then we'll see if she can take any visitors right now." Tsunade said as she walked through the doors. Naruto started pacing as Hinata tried to calm him down.

"They'll both be fine Naruto-kun." Hinata said. Naruto sighed. "They better be…"

Sakura's P.O.V.

"Tsunade-sama, what happened?" I asked quietly. Tsunade sat in a chair across from me silently. "I could ask you the same thing." She glared at me.

My head drooped, and my shoulders sagged in defeat. "Karin attacked me." I mumbled. Tsunade nodded. "Is that all that happened Sakura? I don't enjoy when you lie to me."

My eyes shot up and Tsunade gave me a reprimanding look. "You had no other wounds on your body except for the wound penetrating your stomach. You know better than to let someone come up behind you. Especially somebody you could hear, or so Sasuke says. And seeing as he was farther away from the noise than you I'm sure you heard it. Also Sakura, there were no defensive wounds on your hands. You didn't even defend yourself. Want to explain this to me?"

I stared at my teacher. "S-Sasuke said something? You found him?" I asked.

"No. He found us. Apparently he wasn't ready for you to die yet. He brought you to the hospital from wherever you were."

My face lit up. "Where is he now? He didn't go did he? Is he still here?" I asked quickly. He couldn't have just left could he?

Tsunade sighed. "He's in lock up." I stared at her in confusion. "He allowed himself to be captured Sakura. For you. It's also quite possible he did it because I threatened to kill him if you died. Now, tell me what happened." She demanded angrily. She didn't really care for the subject of Sasuke right then, though I would've talked about him forever.

I shrugged. "If Sasuke already told you why do you need to hear it from me?"

"Because it's not everyday my student tries to get herself killed."

"I didn't try to get myself killed." I said stubbornly. 'I was just ready to die.'

"Sakura. Do not lie to me."

"Sakura-chan! Are you okay? Do you need anything? Do you need an extra pillow? Do you need a kitten?" Naruto crashed into the room, three nurses behind him trying to remove him from my presence.

"I'm so sorry Lady Tsunade! We couldn't get him to wait!" The nurses apologized over and over. I laughed. It hurt a little bit.

"No Naruto. I don't need a kitten." I said with a smile. He suddenly had the best timing.

"Naruto! I thought I told you to wait until I decided if she could have visitors or not!" Tsunade said with a glare. I covered my mouth to laugh. Naruto grinned at me.

"Sorry Tsunade-baa-chan." Naruto said sheepishly. "I was just worried."

In the next moment all of my friends decided that they couldn't wait to see me either and rushed into the room. Tsunade sighed and looked over at me before rising.

"We're not finished with this conversation." She stated and took her leave. I sighed. Well, at least I dodged that bullet for now.

ONE YEAR LATER

One year of not knowing. One year to think about everything I had ever done in my life. One year for my hatred for my brother to grow, and my feelings for Sakura to apparently get stronger as well. 'If only I knew whether or not she was alive…' I thought angrily, punching the wall for about the five hundredth time.

"Teme?"

Naruto walked into the cell and the door slammed shut behind him. He looked around my cell once again. He had been one of the few to visit me. He came almost daily unless he had a mission. No visits from Sakura. And nobody ever said anything about her either. If I asked they just got a look in their eye that I couldn't yet figure out.

"Hn. What do you want dobe?" I asked. Naruto got that stupid smile on his face and held out his hand. I took it and stood.

"Happy anniversary teme!" He shouted. I flinched at the volume and rolled my eyes. "What the hell are you talking about you moron?"

Naruto's smile grew. "It's one year since you came home teme! Which means its time to make your choice!"

I raised an eyebrow in annoyed confusion.

"Choice?" I asked.

Naruto nodded ecstatically. "Are you gonna stay in Konoha on parole, or are you gonna well…well just pick the first one okay?" He said cheerfully. I crossed my arms stubbornly and leaned back against the wall.

"What's my second option." I asked, though it sounded more like a command for him to tell me. Naruto's smile fell.

"You can stay or you can die okay?" He mumbled. I almost didn't catch it, but my hearing, like all my senses, was off the charts.

"And if I just leave again?" I asked. I smirked. Just like them to not think of something like that. Naruto shrugged.

"Then you explode." He stated. My eyes bulged. Was that what made the food here so disgusting? They were poisoning me to explode? Naruto cracked up. I glared. Moron.

"Well, I don't know. That wasn't one of the choices. Think of what Sakura would've wanted if she were here." Naruto said. I stared at him. 'Would've wanted if she were here.' I ran the words through my head again. So I didn't make it in time to save her.

I sighed in resignation. "Hn. Fine dobe. I'll stay."

Naruto smiled his moronic smile again. "Alrighty! Then you're off to house arrest!" He was way too cheery about this.

"Hn."

Naruto laughed. "We're gonna have to fix that speech problem of yours eventually teme."

I rolled my eyes.

"Now if it's just you and me your not gonna try anything stupid are you?" He asked. I rolled my eyes again.

"Hn."

"Well alrighty then!" Naruto shouted and the two of us walked out of the cell and towards my home.

One year to wonder why he saved her. One year to keep loving him. One year to beg Tsunade to let her see him only to be told no. One year was finally up.

"Well teme, I guess I'll go let Tsunade know you're home safe and sound!" Naruto cheerfully said as he walked towards the door. "And don't forget that if you try to leave the ANBU will be on your butt in a matter of seconds!"

My door slammed shut and I grunted. "Dobe." I looked around. Everything looked like I had left it, except it was clean. I smirked. Whoever had been cleaning did a nice job.

I yawned. It was officially time for me to sleep in an actual bed. I flipped off the lights and headed towards my room. I heard light footsteps and I whipped out a kunai and turned to face the intruder.

"Sasuke-kun?"

Her voice was like the tinkling of a thousand bells. Her hair was a little shorter than the last time I saw her, though it was still that annoyingly gorgeous pink. Her emerald eyes held so much life as she looked at me that I could've cried. She was alive. After all this, she was alive.

"Sakura." I acknowledged in amazement. She dropped the laundry she'd apparently been taking to put away and threw herself at me. For once instead of pushing her away I allowed her to rest safely in my arms. I rested my head on hers, her hair smelled like cherries. But there were questions that needed to be answered.

"Sakura. Why?" I asked her. Why had she let herself almost die? I felt her stiffen in my arms.

"I told you…I wasn't going to come back without you. I was done. I had given up, not on you but on myself. I wasn't strong enough to live without you. I was tired…so tired…I wasn't going to keep killing myself trying to fool myself into thinking you'd come home." She said quietly. "I got to tell you I loved you one more time. I was ready to die."

I squeezed her tighter. "Don't say that…please." I said. Please. I hated how it tasted on my tongue. Like vinegar.

"I'm sorry. But it's the truth." She pushed away so she could see my face, though I kept her in my arms. She looked at me, so confused. It was maddeningly cute.

"Now it's my turn Sasuke-kun. Why?" She asked.

"Hn." I grunted in reply. I figured she wanted to know why I was holding her. I tried to hold her tighter but she kept her arms against my chest, holding herself away at arms length. Annoying.

"Why did you bring me back? Why did you let me live?" She asked. I was flabbergasted. Such a moronic question.

"After everything, why wouldn't you just let me die? After you told me you left me on a bench, ignored my feelings, told me you hated me and called me weak, after all you've done to me, why wouldn't you just let me die?" She asked. I flinched at the memories. Things I hated myself for. I had thought it over before, many times while I was in my cell.

Now I just had to word it right.

"Because Sakura. After everything, I had reached my limit. I could tell you I hated you, I could leave you, but I refuse to let you die. You are my limit. You are the one thing for some reason that keeps me grounded. You have always been able to keep faith in me, even when I had lost faith in myself. I would not lose you."

Sakura smiled, and looked down. She looked embarrassed. "Sasuke-kun?" She said innocently.

"Hn." She looked up into my eyes fiercely. "I still love you Sasuke-kun. I always will." She said, and threw herself back at me, her lips crashing boldly into mine. And amazingly, I found that I loved her too. Because even after everything that had happened, she could still love me. In the end she had given up on herself before she had given up on me.

Because her heart was persistent, her faith in me endless, and her love for me was limitless. Because she was Sakura, and she wouldn't give up on me.

"I love you too." I mumbled, unsure of how to say it right. She looked up into my eyes; hers were shining with joy, and uncertainty. I leaned into her. "I love you." I said triumphantly. And my lips crashed back onto hers as the moon rose in the sky.

And there it is folks! I hope you enjoyed it! I enjoyed writing it! Please R&R! No flames please. I'm already getting enough heat from both of my parents for something stupid. Please review!