Recap
"Sasuke?" she mumbled frozen in place.

Chapter 1
"Sasuke?" she repeated as thousands of questions began to fill her mind. "Why are you..." She stopped. Her mind was in overdrive. She couldn't even began to form a complete sentence. "How are you..." Once again she stopped. Her frazzled mind only produced fragments of questions. She must have stood there, staring up at the man she hadn't seen in over ten years, for five minutes.

The sole Uchiha stared down at her with his captivating onxy stare as the rosette continued to choke out fragmented questions.

"The eggs are burning." He said in between his signature Sasuke smirk.

"What?" she stuttered, "Right, the eggs. Umm ..." She looked around the kitchen frantically as the eggs continued to burn. Her eyes darted left and right but the spatula was nowhere to be found.

"Sakura," Sasuke said in his melodious deep baritone voice.

"Yes?" she asked with apprehension.
"The spatula is alreaddy in your hand." He informed her. The smirk still graced his flawless features.

"Oh yes, Right." She said as she struggled to hide the deep crimson blush that fought its way to her face.

Sakura finished making breakfast in a haze. Her mind simply could not process that Sasuke Uchiha, the traitor and betrayer, was back in Konoha and was seated at her kitchen table. Her thoughts were running absolutely
rampant. Sasuke Uchiha, the Sasuke Uchiha, had returned to Konoha. She was dumbstruck.

The silence and tension in the room was almost tangible as Sakura placed breakfast on the table. Naruto was beginning to feel very uncomfortable. As Sakura handed Sasuke his plate, she gave him an almost disbelieving look. As she continued to stare, or rather gawk, the disbelief was replaced with a fealing of despair and
apprehension. Questions of 'Are you staying?' plagued her distraught mind.

Her pain and despair made her look away from the beautiful ebony haired man. She glanced at the clock. "I'm going to be late for..." she paused as Sasuke's inquisitive onxy eyes reached her bewildered emerald orbs, "...work." She finished as she broke away from his captivating gaze. The medic quickly gathered her
supplies and lab coat before kissing Naruto on the cheek and opening the door. "I'll be home at six," she informed them as she stepped out the door. Just as quickly as the door closed, it opened and Sakura said, "Don't hurt yourselves while I am gone." Her final warning rang throughout the apartment before being drowned out by the slam of the door, and Naruto and Sasuke sat in an uncomfortable silence before Naruto attempted to mummble an apology to Sasuke.

"You'll have to forgive her. She hasn't seen you in so many years. She is just… frazzled." The blonde said as he nervously scratched his head. Sasuke rose an ebony eyebrow at the blondes antics. 'Some things will never change,' he thought to himself as he watched the blonde.

As Sakura walked to work she was lost in a whirlwind of thoughts. Her legs seemed to work separately from her mind as she walked the streets of Konoha. They moved out of sheer muscle memory. Sakura's thoughts never left the mysterious Sasuke Uchiha and his even more mysterious return. Before she knew it, the rosette had arrived at the hospital. As she walked through the front doors the smell of antiseptic assaulted the medic's nose and the preoccupied rosette collided with the even more distracted Ino.

"Hey! Watch where you're go…" Ino shouted but promptly stopped as she gazed into her best friends bewildered and distant emerald eyes.

"Sakura," she gasped, "You look like you've seen a ghost!" She exclaimed the cliché in a near shrieking shout.

"I might as well have," Sakura said in a monotonous, dry tone.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Ino said, worry now crossed her beautiful features. The rosette medic merely shook her head and continued walking in a slow lifeless manner.

Her feet took her through the bleach white corridors of the hospital and straight to her office. There was a pile of papers knee high waiting for the her upon entering. "Fantastic." She said to herself in a deadpan tone. She slowly made her way through the seemingly endless mountain of paper work and by the time she had finished, she had worked straight through her lunch break. She then begrugingly started her rounds, but once again her thoughts were elsewhere. The patients received the care and medical attention they needed, but the joy that usually filled Sakura's emerald eyes was replaced by a distant distraught stare.

Sakura glanced at the clock for the first time since her forgotten lunch break. It was nearly six. She sighed knowing that she would have to face him when she went home. Sakura knew without a doubt that the devastatingly handsome and dangerous Uchiha would have no where to say but at the apartment. She sighed knowing her resolve was threatening to plunge beneath the stirring waters of pain and despair. The fragile little girl that was hiding behind her poorly constructed façade was threatening to unveil herself.

She sighed once again an heaved herself from her office chair. Her body was fatigued. She had used a large portion of her chakra supply healing all of her patients. Her body protested as she walked out of the hospital. The rosette once again mindlessly ambled through the streets of Konoha until her feet found their way back
home. She unlocked the apartment door and sucked in a deep breath waiting for the feelings of hurt and frustration to assault her.

She was greeted with silence. Sakura threw her key onto the nearby table and sat down on the sofa. Relief flooded her being. The infamous Uchiha was nowhere to be found. Sakura closed her eyes and rested her head on the sofa taking in the silence. As she opened her eyes, she saw a note placed in the center of the coffee table written in Naruto's hand.

It read:

Sakura,
Sasuke and I went out for a while. Be back soon.
Love,
Naruto

It was vague. Naruto used this tactic when he was doing something she would ultimately not approve of. 'Oh Naruto, What are you up to now?' Sakura asked herself as she got up from the sofa and proceeded into the kitchen. Sakura spent several minutes debating what to cook. After finally deciding, Sakura grabbed a sauce pan and began preparing dinner for Naruto, herself, and undoubtedly Sasuke.

Sakura was humming and stirring the sauce when she heard the front door of the apartment open. She had her back turned toward the door, but she could make out the undeniable dragging limp of an injured person. Figuring their spar ended badly, Sakura called without looking over her shoulder, "Naruto, you know where the first aid kit is." She sighed and put down her wooden spoon. As she turned around she asked, "Is anything broken?"

Sasuke was slightly amused at the duos antics and stopped to watch the two before limping into the apartment and carefully taking a seat on the sofa. Naruto had gotten the first aid kit and slowly shuffled his way into the living room to take a seat next to Sasuke.

Sakura quickly washed her hand and made her way into the living room to attended to the injured men.

"You just never learn," the rosette said with a sigh, her gaze was fixed solely on Naruto's apologetic cerulean eyes. She chanced a glance at Sasuke only to see that he was slightly worse for wear than Naruto. Sakura could not suppress the small smirk that reached her face. She turned away in fear that the Uchiha would see the prideful smirk that graced her lips. Inwardly sighing, the medic got up and attended to the Uchiha who was in more need of her attention.

Sakura took his hand in hers to heal the obviously broken wrist. She could feel the blatant skip in her heartbeat and the hitch in her breath. Some things never change. No matter how hard she tried to suppress her feelings, they always seemed to bubble up to the surface. She hid her face from the looming Uchiha. The rosette refused to meet his captivating onyx gaze.

Sakura heard a small gasp escape the Uchiha's mouth. Be it from sheer amazement or the pain of the healing process, she would never know. It was from the small gasp that Sakura noticed that the Uchiha was bearing several broken ribs. His breathing was hindered. His back was hunched. His eyebrows knitted closely together
as he inhaled. It was then when Sakura stood up.

"Please remove your shirt," she said in a professional manner.

"Excuse me?" Sasuke uttered thoroughly taken off guard by the sudden out burst. She then caught his gaze. Hers was of strength and resolve, his was of mystery and untold pain and suffering.

"I said, please remove your shirt," she said with a professional voice and a steely resolve, "You have broken several of your ribs, and several have been broken and never set properly." It was then that the Uchiha understood. He was temporarily taken aback by how her voice was laced with such confidence. The Uchiha
complied and slowly took of his blood stained shirt.

Sakura had diagnosed him with startling precision. Sasuke had broken several ribs and was bearing the results of three ribs that were broken but never set properly. Sakura let her gaze linger on his well toned muscular body for a few fleeting moments. She worked quickly but deftly. The process of re-breaking bones and healing them was never an easy task. Sakura was drawing on her almost empty chakra preserves.

Before long, she was done and moved to attend to Naruto's wounds. The blonde only sported a cracked rib, a broken finger, and a rolled ankle. Sakura quickly healed the blonde and was met with startlingly beautiful cerulean stare.

"Thank you," he said in a loving manner. His face was etched with love but his eyes showed his concern. Naruto could see clearly that Sakura had used almost all of her chakra and was fighting fatigue. She gave him a weak smile and a 'you're welcome.' Just then the oven timer when off breaking the two from their captive gaze. Sakura slowly got up and disappeared into the kitchen. The sounds of dishes clinking filled the air shortly before Sakura called out, "Dinner is ready."

The men entered the kitchen and Sakura set their plates down in front of them before placing her plate on the counter and turning to leave.

"I need to lie down." She said before walking off toward her room. The two ex-teammates were left in silence. Naruto stared after Sakura. He could not mask his concern. Finally sparing a glance at Sasuke, Naruto could see the Uchiha's slight confusion.

'He must think she is avoiding him,' Naruto thought. Naruto sighed and explained, "Sakura has been working very long shifts at the hospital. They have been understaffed for almost a year now. The art of healing takes a large amount of chakra from the healer. Sakura works until her chakra preserves are dangerously low,
and now, having to heal us has caused her to use the last remaining chakra she had. Her body is fatigued." The Uchiha finally understood. 'Sure, that's it,' the Uchiha thought to himself bitterly.

"Now," Naruto said startling the Uchiha out of his musings, "let's get down to business. Why did you come back to Konoha?"

(This part contains spoilers for those of you who are not up to date on the manga)

Sasuke paused momentarily. He brought his elbows to the table and folded his hands in front of his face. The Uchiha had done this periodically throughout his childhood to symbolize his pensive state of mind. Naruto waited patiently knowing his ex-teammate was thinking.

After several moments of silence, The Uchiha said, "To explain, I must start from the beginning." Naruto nodded telling the Uchiha to continue and giving him silent approval. With that, the Uchiha began his anecdote. "Long ago, when I left Konoha, I left on a search for power. Orochimaru promised me untold power and secret techniques unfathomable to any ninja. I left knowing that I would finally hold the power I needed to defeat him, to defeat my brother Itatchi. I left Konoha a never looked back. I had heard word that Konoha had sent search parties for me, but none of the search parties had ever gotten as close as you did Naruto.

When you found me, I was in a transitional state. Orochimaru had promised me his power on one condition. That condition was my death. I was told that to enter the second state of the curse seal I would have to die, and so I did. I was so young and naïve. I was willing to do anything for power.

When we fought at the Valley of the End, I had to call upon Orochimaru's power and the power of the curse seal just as you had to call upon the Nine Tails' power. It was then I defeated you. Many years ago my brother told me of the true way to reach the Mangekyou sharingan. Itatchi explained to me that the only way to unlock the sharingan's true potential was to kill your best friend.

Naruto, I contemplated killing you right then and their at the Valley of the End. You were right there. You were passed out and at my disposal, but I couldn't do it. I was weak. It was there that I left you and there that I left to the Sound to train under Orochimaru."

Sasuke paused. He looked up at the blonde's expression knowing that he would probably never forgive him for his despicable transgressions. What shone in Naruto's cerulean eyes was not malice but forgiveness and understanding. Sasuke was at a loss for words. His best friend held such compassion and forgiveness that the Uchiha couldn't bear to think of his actions against him as a boy.

Sasuke continued, "Orochimaru and I trained together daily. I gradually grew stronger, but I wasn't progressing nearly as fast as I wanted. I was Orochimaru's slave and I couldn't bear to work under him any longer. When Orochimaru was at his weakest, I killed him." Naruto didn't gasp at this for he had known for a long time that Sasuke was the one to end the Sannin's life. "From there I assembled my own team and I finally succeeded in killing my brother. With my group, we joined the Akatsuki and began doing their dirty work. We set out to capture the tailed beasts. The leader of the Akatsuki then went out to destroy Konoha. You knew him as Pein. When you defeated Pein, Tobi took over. Tobi, or should I say Madara, was one of the original Uchiha. He told me the truth of my brother and that is when I discovered that I murdered my brother after he had gone through extensive lengths to save me." Sasuke paused. This part was extremely hard for him to talk about. Naruto could see the pain in his eyes and waited until Sasuke was able to compose himself enough to continue his story. "I hated Konoha for what the elders had done to my brother. They turned him against his own family and disgraced him by banishing him. I set out to kill every last one of the elders. I had to avenge my brother. Then, I set out to destroy Konoha, the one place despicable enough to turn a boy against his family. It was during the war that my eyes were finally opened.

I saw Itatchi during the re-animation jutsu. He told me that no matter what I did, he would always love me, and it was from there on out, I decided to gather facts and see if my revenge was justified. I spent years searching for the truth. Years of collecting data. It was then that I discovered that I had been wrong all of these years. I spent half of my life hating my brother and hating Konoha. I never truly knew my brother. My brother did everything he did out of love. His love for me was so great that he went against his orders and spared my life. I have spent years hating the very thing my brother wished to protect. I have spent years trying to destroy the life my brother made for me." Sasuke paused. This was all to much for him to continue talking about.

Naruto stood. The silence was becoming unbearable and the air was becoming stagnant. "Welcome home, Sasuke." Naruto finally said as he collected dishes. Sasuke nodded his head and helped bring the dishes to the sink. "There is one more question I would like to ask, if you don't mind." Naruto said.

Sasuke was a little weary at this point, but he agreed to let his ex-teammate ask him the question. "What is your punishment for leaving the village and killing the elders?" Naruto asked in a quiet tactful voice. Sasuke explained that he was to be on probation for three years and that he was to be under the supervision of at least two ANBU black op ninja at all times.

It was then that Sasuke said, "I don't understand why Hokage Tsunade is letting me stay here though. I thought I was only under the supervision of one black op ninja." Sasuke said gesturing to Naruto.

Naruto who was washing dishes looked back at him and raised two fingers. "Sakura and I are both ANBU black op ninja." He said before returning to the dishes. "Tsunade let you off that easily?" Naruto said over his shoulder.

"No," Sasuke said, "I am not allowed to leave the village with out a team of ANBU and will have periodic check-ups by the information collection teams. I have also been required to release all of the information I possibly can about the Sound and Akatsuki. If I am caught lying about any information or caught withholding any information I am to be executed on the spot. I am not to have any missions for a year and half of my chakra has been sealed off. This is why when we last spared, I requested that we both used solely taijutsu."

"With Tsunade's temper, I would say that you got off fairly easily." Naruto said with a grin. 'Just how crazy is this woman?' Sasuke said to himself. Naruto finished the dishes and put on a kettle of warm water for tea. He then gestured at the table for both of them to sit.

Sasuke locked Naruto into a hard stare. Onyx clashed with cerulean. "Naruto," he said, "I can never tell you how sorry I am." Naruto flashed a brilliant smile at Sasuke.

"I forgave you the moment I found out that you came home to Konoha." he said between his cheeky smile. Sasuke let out a sigh of relief.

"Sasuke," Naruto began, "I may have forgiven you, but there is someone who hasn't."

By now the kettle was screaming and the hot water was ready. "Tea?" Naruto asked.

"Please," the Uchiha said. Thoughts seemed to whirl about his head as Naruto poured the hot tea. His thoughts all surrounded a particular medic, Sakura. His thoughts centered on the night he left Konoha and left the rosette beauty knocked out on the cold stone bench. How he wished he had never left Konoha. How he wished he had never left his home and his loved ones. And now, he may have lost one of his loved ones permanently. How had he been so blind? Sakura hadn't looked directly at him since he had been back. She had been avoiding him. He had hurt her and she may never forgive him.

"I am going to ask Sakura if she would like some tea," the blonde said as he handed Sasuke a cup of tea. Sasuke let his guilt consume him when Naruto left. How would he ever apologize to her? Would she even forgive him if he did apologize? What was he to do? He was an Uchiha. He did not grovel. He was above begging for forgiveness or anything for that matter.

Just then, Naruto re-entered the kitchen and said, "She is already asleep. She must have used every last ounce of her chakra healing us." Naruto then glanced at Sasuke's tea cup. "Should I make you a different flavor?" He said after seeing the still full cup.

"No, this is fine, thank you. I was just thinking." He said to his blonde best friend. He still couldn't get her out of his mind.

"She will come around." Naruto said in the most reassuring voice. "She just needs a little time." Sasuke nodded and began to drink his tea.

"Maybe." Sasuke said with an underlying tone of doubt. Naruto then glanced at the clock.

"It's late. I will show you to your room." Naruto said as he stood up. After putting their cups in the sink, Naruto led the Uchiha down the hallway to his room. "This will be your room," he said while pointing, "and this is the bathroom. This apartment is fairly small, so we only have one master bath and a half bath." Naruto explained while showing Sasuke the master bath and the half bath down the hall. "If you need anything, my room is right across the hall from yours, and Sakura's is down the hall to your left."

"Good night." Naruto said with a smile while entering his own room. Sasuke entered the room and flopped down on the bed. 'How am I going to make her understand?' he thought 'How am I going to explain everything that happened? Will she forgive me?' His thoughts ran rampant and his dreams were plagued with nightmares. There was one question that filled his mind and controlled his nightmares. Will she ever forgive me? The question echoed through his mind as he fell into a fitful slumber.