It's funny the way things change. Just a couple of years ago she would have been overjoyed to see the figure that was slowly walking through the gates of Konoha with her best friend beside him. The little girl inside her, the one who has followed his steps throughout the years, the one who has cried endless tears for his sake, is stirring with a feeling akin to happiness. She mercilessly crushes it into oblivion. The shrine she had built him, the sullen god of her childhood, had been trampled by his desire for revenge. She will no longer worship another.
The crowd is silent. Beside her people are watching, hoping, praying that the war is over, that their heroes have returned home. She no longer has time for hope. Fighting the feeling of anxiety pooling in her stomach she swiftly intercepts the group that was now steadily making its way towards the city.
"The Hokage is expecting you" she announces, her eyes never leaving Naruto's face.
"Sakura! Sasuke is back!" the blonde ninja happily shouts. "Team 7 is together again!"
Sakura didn't have the heart to tell him the truth. Team 7 will never be together again. Too much time has separated them, too many betrayals, too much selfishness. Instead she just nods and melts away into the crowd. For a fraction of a second she moves her gaze towards her old teammate. Black, empty eyes meet her own. She expects it to hurt. She expects to feel something but she doesn't. It's almost disappointing. So many years wasted away dreaming about this moment and in the end it doesn't even matter. The god has returned but she is no longer his disciple.
The next day a meeting is conducted. Sakura is obligated to attend as Tsunade's second in command. They make the traitor stand in a corner while they argue, while they make decisions about his life. Naruto shouts and pleads with them. Some want him killed, some want him punished and others are stuck somewhere in the middle. The Hokage silences them and tiredly asks for Sakura's opinion. "We need to determine if we can use him or not" the kunoichi tells her sensei. "Can he be trusted? Is he useful? Do we even need him?"
"Of course we need him! He is our friend! What is the matter with you?" Naruto shouts, stunned that Sakura is not immediately on his side. "We must be practical and objective" Sakura answers. "There is no room for personal feelings here".
Three hours later the meeting is adjourned. Sasuke will live. Sakura is oddly comforted by this. She might not have feelings for him anymore but she prefers to know that he will be alive. At least Naruto will have a friend. He does not know she plans to leave this place very soon.
A week passes by with hardly any change. Naruto is happy he has his friend back. When she tells him she has to go away for a while his good mood dissipates. "Why now? We are finally back together, all three of us!" Sakura shakes her head. "I have to go and train. Tsunade cannot help me any further. I want to become stronger. Surely you understand that?" Naruto sighs and hugs her. He knows she is right but he will miss his best friend.
Sakura is ready to leave as she once more searches her room for anything she might have forgotten. There are no feelings of regret as she slowly walks away from her house and towards the unknown. A lone figure is waiting on the road ahead of her. Sasuke seems to be deep in thought as he traces the movement of the falling leaves. They make eye contact as she passes by him, in a twisted parody of a long ago moment. She is the one who is leaving this time. There is nothing in his eyes. There is nothing in her heart.