A gift-fic written for Tumblr's haruno-sakura-cherrychan, who requested I write a "heart-wrenching and beautiful story. The great ninja war has finally finished but Naruto is in a really bad state. Sakura comes and…" Well, you'll just have to find out ;)
Personally, I'm not satisfied with this fic. At all. I wrote it during a time of writer's block, and the ending doesn't make me happy at all. So much so, in fact, that if I ever have a burst of creativity, the ending may be subject to change. As for the moment, however, it's all I've got. T.T Apologies.

Disclaimer: I do not own "Naruto" or any affiliated characters; all such belong to Masashi Kishimoto. :)

Redamancy
"the act of loving the one who loves you; a love returned in full."

'Where are you?'

Her breath escaped in short pants as she raced across the battlefield, a once beautiful landscape now disfigured and scarred from the Fourth Shinobi War. The alliance had prevailed against the threat of Uchiha Madara, the final, scale-tipping blow delivered by the one and only blonde knuckleheaded ninja of Konohagakure.

'Where are you?'

Forcing chakra into her feet, she pushed herself ever faster, ever further, jade eyes set on the area she'd last seen him. He'd pushed himself so hard, too hard…the fight against Obito, the extraction of the Kyuubi, the final battle against Madara…had it been anyone else, she never would have betted on their survival.

'Where are you?!'

Finally, she reached the top of the hill she'd so studiously climbed, using the vantage point to gaze over the wreckage in search of that single blonde head, that orange jacket, those whiskered cheeks. In the light of the rising sun—had their battle really only lasted so briefly as a sole night?—she spotted the prone figure of her teammate. With a startled, disbelieving gasp, she sprinted down the hill, stumbling momentarily in her haste, his name tearing itself from her ragged throat:

"NARUTO!"

There was an infernal beeping next to his ear that made him want to pull his hair out.

'Quiet, I just want quiet.' He thought with a contradictory loud groan. Now that consciousness was tugging at his mind, he could decipher the undeniably familiar telltales of hospital life. Soft footsteps, the smell of antiseptic, quiet murmurs of nurses, undertones of pained patients down the hall, and that damned beeping.

Knowing that peace and quiet was officially beyond his reach, he reluctantly opened his eyes. Gazing around the room, he took in the unfamiliar surroundings: the feeble texture of a tent met his gaze as it billowed softly with every breath of the wind outside, paired with a makeshift floor of boards covering the bare ground beneath; the only entryway leading in and out of his room was marked by the fluttering of a floor-length flap, adorned with easy-access snap buttons currently holding the 'door' closed. Other than his bed and medical machines, he was alone.

'A filed medic-tent,' he mused after his survey. 'That must mean…the War…?'

Just as an image of battle flashed through his mind, the door-flap tore open and a pink-haired medic strode in, jade eyes locked on the clipboard in her hand.

"Sakura-chan," he breathed, the ache in his chest from the memory fading at the sight of her.

"Naruto," she responded absently, still not looking at him. "How do you feel?"

"Better, now that you're here." He gave her a signature grin, though she continued to concentrate on her clipboard rather than him. At his reply she gave a noncommittal sound and turned to fasten the snaps back before making her way to the foot of his bed.

"What happened, Sakura-chan? Why are we in a field tent? We won the War, right?" the questions poured from his mouth almost faster than he could think them up. Still, Sakura only nodded as though she were half-listening, tapping the end of her pen against her lips as she stared at something on his chart. Frustrated, Naruto crossed his arms over his chest and waited impatiently for her to actually acknowledge his presence.

"How much do you remember, Naruto?" Sakura inquired as she moved to his side, checking the machines; scratching the back of his head, he gazed up at the ceiling as he tried to recall.

"The last thing I remember until waking up here is defeating Madara," he finally replied with a satisfied nod. A strange sound from Sakura drew his gaze to her; though her head was down, her bangs hiding her eyes, he could see the death-grip she now held her pen hostage in. Swallowing hard, he wondered what he might have said or done to upset her.

The moment passed as Sakura composed herself, scratching the pen against the chart as she wrote something down.

'How's she getting any information when she won't even look at me?' Naruto wondered, frowning.

"Sakura-chan…" he began to ask her what was wrong when she abruptly cut him off.

"Your vitals look good; excellent, even. And you're obviously feeling fantastic, if you're able to gloat over winning the War the first you wake up." Naruto's jaw dropped at the venom in her voice. "So I guess you're well enough to be moved to a different ward. I'll fetch Shizune-Sensei to have you transferred—"

"Sakura-chan." Naruto reached out, grabbing her wrist and halting her as she made to leave. He felt her stiffen at his touch and wondered again what might have caused her sudden aversion to him. Determined to find out, he tightened his fingers around her wrist as he asked softly, "What's wrong? Talk to me."

"Let. Go." was her only response, a reply so soft he could barely make it out, yet the heat in her tone convinced him of her current emotion. Suddenly, without understanding why, he knew he couldn't allow her to leave without figuring out what had made her so upset. Tugging, he pulled her back to his bedside, causing her to turn in the process or risk falling onto the bed beside him instead. For the first time since she'd entered his room, he got a look at her eyes.

They were the color of malachite; dark, haunted, and angry. Naruto released Sakura on self-preservation instinct, just before she verbally went for his throat.

"'What's wrong?'" she mimicked heatedly. "'Talk to me'? You don't even realize the very miracle it is to be able to even have a conversation with you right now, do you? Of course you don't. That's because you've been in a comatose state for a week. And the first thing you have to say is about Madara?"

"Actually," he pointed out, knowing full well the risk he took in interrupting her. "The first thing I said was your name."

Sakura inhaled sharply, the heat in her eyes dimming momentarily; Naruto reached out for her again but she stepped back, her clipboard in front of her like a shield.

"Whatever," she muttered, anger evident once again. "You immediately jumped to him afterwards, anyway. Don't you want to know how your comrades are? Kakashi-Sensei, Sai—Sasuke-kun?" The accusation in her tone caused his own temper to flare and he glared at her.

"Of course I do," he bit back, fists clenching in his lap. "But the fact is, we are—were—in the middle of a war, Sakura-chan. My first duty as a Shinobi is to be certain that the enemy has been defeated, because if that wasn't the case, my second duty would be to get back out there and fight."

"So you could what?" she growled at him. "Kill yourself?"

"We're Shinobi, Sakura-chan. You know death comes with the occupation, and if it meant defeating Madara to save everyone else…yeah." He said it simply, matter-of-factly…and realized too late it only pissed her off more.

"Damn you!" she cried, clenching the clipboard until it cracked. "Damn you! You and your…your damned nindo! You'd sacrifice yourself for a world that wouldn't bother thinking twice of you afterward, save for the few of us who know you personally. You'd throw your life away, and for what? For—"

"To save you." Naruto yelled back. "To save them!" He pointed at the door, indicating the multitude of Shinobi not just outside of his room, but everywhere. "It's not about those who wouldn't recognize me from the other thousands—it's not even about receiving recognition—it's about defeating an enemy who sought to overrule everyone's free will. You know that!" Breathing hard, he paused as he watched tears fill her eyes and she shook her head. There was a brief, uneasy pause.

"What I know," she finally said softly. "Is that you died, Naruto. Once, beneath my very hands; hands trained to heal and save. And yet, you slipped away from me." Inhaling deeply, she met his gaze again through her tears, jade eyes narrowed. "I brought you back; more through sheer will and anger than training, but damn it, I brought you back."

Startled at her words, Naruto could only stare at her, watching as she clenched the clipboard tighter, the crack in the middle lengthening before she threw it at him. Reflexively, he threw up an arm to deflect the flimsy weapon and it fell harmlessly to his lap as Sakura began crying and yelling all at once.

"Then, after I'd somehow managed to revive you, you run off into battle half-cocked, half-dead, and, while yes you managed to defeat Madara, you go and get yourself killed again in the process! And I'm miles across the damned battlefield!" her voice caught on a sob, shoulders shaking as tears dripped from her chin, yet she refused to break eye contact. It was then that Naruto could see the fear she'd harbored, and it made his heart ache that he'd caused her such pain.

"I'm sorr—" he began, but she cut him off again.

"As per your habit, you ran off into battle without thinking twice and put yourself in perfectly avoidable harm's way," she was seething now, fists clenched so tightly that he could see her veins bulge. "If you'd stopped for just a second, we could have come up with a plan—I could have gone with you—I should have gone with you—" Another sob tore from her throat and she turned away from him as if meaning to flee.

Not stopping to think, Naruto jumped up and caught her elbow, spinning her around to face him; their bodies collided and the blonde let out a hiss of pain. The sound seemed to trigger the trained medic within Sakura; her hysterical sobs quieted and she immediately chastised him as she led him carefully back to his bed.

"Baka! Didn't I just finish telling you about how you died, twice, and just woke from a week-long comatose state? Idiot." She grumbled, pushing him gently into a seated position. Naruto couldn't help but grin, though he had the good knowledge to hide it before he regained his former position in bed. Regardless, his tone was serious when he spoke again.

"Sakura-chan," he murmured, catching her hand in his and twining their fingers together absently. "I'm sorry I scared you. It's just that, Madara had to be stopped—"

"I know," she sighed, scrubbing her free hand over her face in a gesture of exhaustion. Naruto suddenly wondered how long it'd been since she'd had any rest. "I'm glad that you defeated him and that we won the War—of course that was the first priority, I knew that—it's just…I watched you die, I felt your heart stop beneath my fingers. I was terrified," Sakura paused, reaching out to brush his bangs away from his eyes, her own softening. She didn't even seem to mind that he was continuing to hold her hand, an act of intimacy she typically would have been uncomfortable with.

"I was terrified," she repeated, seating herself on the edge of his bed. "Of never seeing these eyes of yours again; the way they brighten when you're happy, or being mischievous, or perverted…or when you see me." Pausing, she slid her hand down his check, thumbing the whiskered marks there gently "Never seeing your smile again, hearing your voice…never experiencing the feeling of sunshine and hope and home from a single person, like I do from you..." Suddenly blushing, she drew her hand away and placed it in her lap, though she tightened her fingers around his with the hand he held.

"I reached you, you know," she murmured, picking at something on her medic coat. "I ran across the battlefield to you until my feet bled and my legs gave out where I fell beside you. Madara managed to stab you right before you took him down—in the heart, the bastard—and all I could think as I knelt beside you a second time that night, feeling your heartbeat fade under my palms again, was that I'd saved you before only to send you to a harsher death."

"No." Naruto growled, squeezing her hand reassuringly. "You're not responsible for my actions, Sakura-chan. It's not your fault I'm impulsive—you've reprimanded me about that since we were kids—and you can't blame yourself for something you couldn't prevent."

"I could have followed you—" she started, but he interrupted her with a determined, "I wouldn't have let you." They stared each other down for a moment, both frowning and stubborn, before Sakura sighed and shrugged, glancing away.

"I…for a moment, when I thought I would lose you—when I felt your heart stop—I understood Obito; his desire to create a world where he could have his loved one beside him again." She met his gaze again, guiltily. "For a moment, I would have been willing to live in that world…if it meant you would have been there with me."

Naruto sucked in an astonished breath, replying earnestly, "Sakura-chan, you don't mean that—"

"I do." She clasped her free hand over his, trapping his hand between both of hers. "I'd already lost you once that night, remember; I was reeling from the way my heart broke at thinking you might not wake up…and to find you on the brink of death twice, only moments between the two incidents, I knew…I couldn't lose you, Naruto, not forever. You're my best friend, my sunshine on rainy days, my home in a way Konoha could never be."

Stunned, Naruto stared at her, searching her eyes; they were bright and clear, softened with emotion. A blush tinted her cheeks as the silence stretched between them and finally she gave a little embarrassed laugh, releasing his hand and moving to get to her feet as she murmured something about how he "must think she was being a silly, emotional girl" and that she still had other patients to see.

Before either of them realized, Naruto tugged on Sakura's hand, their fingers still intertwined, with enough force to unbalance her; she fell back into her previous seat with a startled exclamation, finding herself nearly nose to nose with the blonde as he searched her eyes unabashedly.

"I wouldn't have left you," he told her softly. "I would have found a way back, even from the afterlife, because I swore during the fight with Obito that I wouldn't have regrets. So even if I died, I would have come back, if only to say the one thing I've wanted to tell you for most of my life." Sakura's breath hitched, but she didn't pull away as he confessed with the sweetest of smiles, "I love you, Sakura-chan. Even death couldn't have stopped me from letting you know that."

"Naruto," the pinkette breathed softly, setting her forehead against his as she closed her eyes. Tears burned the corners of her eyes but Naruto's hand brushing her hair back from her face startled her enough to risk opening them as he asked with an uncharacteristically insecure blush, "C-Can I…kiss you, Sakura-chan?"

Her lips tilted in an amused smile as she whispered, "Baka"; yet she tilted her head and pressed her lips against his, breathing in the astonished gasp he gave. She kissed him sweetly, lingering a moment before pulling back to meet his stunned gaze.

"Sakura-chan, you—" he stopped abruptly, staring at her with open-mouthed shock. Sakura smirked and tapped a finger under his chin, closing his mouth for him.

"I've waited a week for you to wake up; in that time, I've struggled with deciding whether to beat you senseless of scaring me so bad, or kissing the sense out of you instead. I suppose the latter was a better choice; Tsunade-shishou wouldn't have appreciated it if I'd sent you into a second coma, after all."

Regaining his ability for speech, the blonde grinned, replying, "Then you would've had to have waited even longer for another chance to kiss me senseless, so I appreciate the consideration." His eyes softened as he cupped her cheek gently, murmuring, "I meant what I said, Sakura-chan. And I'm sorry for scaring you, but—" his grin returned full-force "I really didn't have anything to worry about with you by my side. I'm still here, after all. Because of you."

Tears threatened to spill yet again, but Sakura held them at bay as she swatted the back of his head playfully. "Baka; I had to save you. What would I have done for the rest of my life without your incessant nagging about going on a date? Which we are, by the way; as soon as we get home, you're taking me out to Itchiraku's."

"Ne, are you serious, Sakura-chan?!" Naruto exclaimed, wide-eyed with excitement. Sakura chuckled as she rose from the bed, gathering her broken clipboard with a nod.

"Yes, and you'd better not be late or you'll owe me a second date in order to practice your punctuality." That said, Sakura bent down to place another gentle kiss against the blonde's whiskered cheek. "Now, I have other patients to attend to. Behave yourself so we can get outta here sooner rather than later, yeah?" Naruto grinned at her and gave a two-fingered salute.

"Yes ma'am, Doctor Haruno, ma'am!"

Rolling her eyes, Sakura flicked him playfully on the tip of his nose before taking her leave. Naruto watched her go, rubbing his nose halfheartedly, hiding the grin beneath as he settled down to rest; after all, the sooner he healed, the sooner he and Sakura could have that date!

. That ending...ugh.
Anyway, thanks for reading guys! R&R is, as always, extremely appreciated! xoxo

~Miah-Chan