"Have enough courage to trust love one more time and always one more time."
-Maya Angelou
(17 ANT, Hidden Leaf Village)
Sasuke knew he unsettled her.
That much was certain.
He watched her as she stood by the window sill of his room, listening with little interest to Naruto babbling on about one of their adventures in the Sand Village. She was walled up, with her arms wrapped tightly around herself, her gaze either on Naruto or cast out the window, anywhere but at him.
His traitorous mind ventured to the night in the hospital when she had held his weeping form in her arms with none of this distance or tension, only with compassion and love.
He wondered what had changed since then.
Despite her uncomfortable shifting under his gaze, he continued to stare unabashedly at her. He'd gone four years without the sight of her and he was not going to deny himself the luxury now.
She was all neatness, dressed in her medic kimono, her hair pinned up high with a pen stuffed away at the top. She looked a few years older dressed like that, reflecting her mentor Tsunade a little.
The minutes ticked past when Sakura finally caved. She pursed her lips and turned to acknowledge Sasuke's relentless stare. She looked expectant, as if wondering if he had something to say to her, but he didn't, he just watched her unapologetically from where he was perched against the wall of the small dorm.
The staring contest lasted until Naruto finished his lengthy fable, then announced abruptly that he needed to head home to get ready for early training, lifting himself from where he had sat on the bed.
That snapped Sakura right out of the spell Sasuke's eyes had cast upon her. Panicking, she quickly straightened and adjusted the strap of her messenger bag properly over her shoulder. "I should be going too, I have an early shift."
Naruto took hold of Sakura's shoulder before giving it an affectionate squeeze. "Alright, night, Sakura."
He then patted Sasuke's shoulder on the way out. "I'll see you both tomorrow!"
"Goodnight, Naruto."
"Hn." Sasuke nodded toward his friend, before turning back to Sakura, who kept her gaze focused firmly on the floor.
"...Goodnight, Sasuke." she murmured softly when she passed him, moving to leave after Naruto.
Abruptly, he caught her left wrist in his right hand, making Sakura freeze mid-stride, her head snapping up to look at him with stilled, wide eyes. Unlike Naruto, he did not give her an affectionate squeeze, he held her wrist firmly and powerfully before letting his hand slide gently down to her own, entwining their fingers together.
Sasuke felt the burning sensation of her touch under his skin as it climbed up his arm like a blazing fire, it was enough to make him still. He was relieved to feel her fingers close around his hand after a moment's hesitance, their soft tips coming to rest over his jagged knuckles.
"Good night, Sakura." he whispered, leaning toward her slightly, finding his voice slightly raspy and strained. He watched the color rise to her cheeks as he softly moved his callous thumb against the palm of her hand, before slowly releasing his hold on her.
For a moment, she looked like she was about to say something, but instead she turned and bolted away, too overwhelmed to speak, leaving the Uchiha alone in silence.
...
Naruto came early before her shift for a re-evaluation. His medical records needed to be updated before he could begin active duty again.
"Sit here, take off your shirt." Sakura told him, a little irritated that he had come in unannounced. She would just have to finish filing everyone's paychecks afterward.
"Oh, I see what you want." Naruto said with a cheeky grin, taking off his jacket, then slowly pulling off his black t-shirt in a way that was supposed to be seductive, but ended up failing as he almost choked himself with the collar that got stuck under his chin.
"Let's stick to what you're good at." Sakura smiled, helping him pull the shirt off the rest of the way. "Saving the whole village, yes. Seducing your medic, no."
He just blushed sheepishly. "Heh, yeah I better stop, otherwise I might accidently kill myself."
Sakura just shook her head as green chakra began to flow from her hand, hovering over his bare skin to evaluate his internal health status. She never bothered with the formal questions when it came to him or Kakashi, knowing she would never get the full truth from them anyway.
Naruto's growing silence was odd to her as she continued to work. He was never this quiet when she was healing him, he always chatted to avoid feeling nervous. Knowing him so well, she guessed he had something to say, but wasn't sure how to say it.
"You okay?" she asked, glancing up at him.
He nodded and smiled almost sadly. "I will be."
It was silent again, and she decided to continue working, unsure what was going on in his blonde head.
"...I've always loved you, you know." he spoke suddenly.
Oh.
Sakura stilled in her movement, the glow of green chakra vanishing from her hand in surprise. She tried to gather the right words to explain, to let him down gently, as she turned to face him, but he took her hand and smiled happily before she could even speak.
"I know, you don't have to say it." he told her. "I know your heart has always been with him, but I had to tell you."
Sakura tried to blink back tears. "Naruto, I'm sorry, I..."
Sakura tried to blink back tears, recalling how she had tried to lure him back to the safety of the village with false pretenses of love. It was something she deeply regretted, despite his forgiveness and understanding.
"No, don't be sorry." he shook his head. "I'm not saying this to hurt you, I'm saying this so I can move forward, what I've felt for you has ... all I've ever wanted is for you to be happy."
She gripped his hand tightly. "Naruto, your happiness has always been important to me... you mean so much to me, you're the one who has always been there for me, that's why I wish sometimes I had felt differently, but..."
"It's okay, I know." he replied. "I've always known."
When he opened his sole arm, she wasted no time in wrapping her arms around his bare shoulders, letting the tears fall freely into the crook of his neck. How much she truly did love him. Her idiot.
"You're the best friend I've ever had and I will always love you." she cried into his shoulder. "Always."
Naruto smiled into her hug, not feeling the slightest bit of embarrassment or excitement like he used to when Sakura had held him in the past, only a strong, familiar warmth. This, he thought, must be what it feels like to have a sister.
"Thank you, Sakura."
(22 ANT, Hidden Leaf Village)
Sasuke needed to take an hour to calm himself down before he made his way to meet Sakura.
He might have been successful in gathering information about the escaped rogue, but the words of their leader still rang in his head, cutting open old wounds.
The Uchiha Clan was indeed a history of blood, lies, violence and betrayal... but those rogues didn't know the kindness of his mother, the selflessness of Itachi, nor the many innocent lives buried alongside a band of passionate revolutionaries, simply for baring the Uchiha name.
Hell would freeze over before he'd let that happen again, before he would let Sakura or their child suffer for the sake of the Uchiha name. His wife, his light and hope for the future, would always be protected. Always.
When he finally arrived at his in-law's home, Sakura spotted him from the terrace of her old bedroom, wearing her civilian, cream-colored sweater and holding a mug of warm tea in her hands.
"You know sir, you look an awful lot like my husband." she said with a tilt of her head, smiling down at him.
"What are you doing up there?" he asked with a small smirk, seeing that she was alone.
"Waiting for my mother." she called down. "I've been lectured at for three hours, weighed on a scale, force-fed, and now she is pulling out her old maternity clothes."
Sasuke was up on the terrace in an instant. "Well, aren't you a lucky girl?" he said, greeting her with a kiss on the top of her hair.
"You're funny..." she said with a roll of her eyes, moving over so he could join her on the bench. "...What happened with the interrogation?"
"We have a location for the fourth rogue." he replied with a sigh, "Kakashi will give out their sentence as soon as that one's apprehended."
She nodded in understanding. "I take it he will send out a team as soon as possible."
"...I'm not going anywhere." Sasuke replied, reading her thoughts. "He's already put a team together, their leaving this evening."
"Okay, these are a few tops... Oh, hello, Sasuke! I didn't even hear you arrive!" Mebuki Haruno said while opening the sliding glass door to the terrace with a pile of clothes hanging over both her arms.
"Sorry, habit." Sasuke said, giving his mother-in-law a small smile. "How are you, Mebuki?"
"Going gray because my daughter is too reckless and doesn't take any precautions." the golden-haired woman answered, looking pointedly at Sakura.
"You really need to stop being so rash," Sasuke told Sakura, smirking at her glare. "You're making your mother nervous."
"Yes, I know, I've heard about that the whole time I've been here." Sakura replied, giving her mother an exasperated smile. "I'm going to get some more tea."
"Oh, no you're not, you're resting your feet and looking through these clothes, I will get more tea." Mebuki told her sternly, setting the pile of clothing on her lap. "Green tea, Sasuke?"
"Sure, thanks." Sasuke replied.
"Okay, I'm not an invalid, the baby is literally the size of a bean and hence doing nothing to my ankles or feet, I have no need to rest them." Sakura said as her mother took her mug from her.
"Be quiet and look through the clothes, Sakura." Mebuki told her airily, entering back into the house.
Sakura pouted before she glanced down at the pile of rather bland, overly large shirts piled on her.
"Your dad must be away." Sasuke stated, not sensing any familiar chakra nearby.
"He went on a fishing retreat with a few old squad members." Sakura confirmed. "He'll be back by next week sometime."
"Aa." Sasuke replied.
"Why he'd want to leave I have no idea." Sakura smiled to herself. She held up the dark blue blouse at the top of the clothing pile, holding it too herself. She cringed. It was three times her size. "These are huge."
"Isn't that the point?" Sasuke asked her, unfazed by their size, amusement flickering in his eyes.
"You really think I'm going to get this big?" she asked, pulling out the flowing waistline of the blouse.
"If the rumors I've heard are true." he droned sarcastically, giving her an eye roll. "You know, the depth of your medical knowledge is always so astounding."
She ignored his sarcastic comments as she usually did, finding another shirt and showing it to him. "What do you think of this one?"
He sighed, taking in the red empire-waist blouse, knowing she'd prefer that one before she even picked it up. "We've talked about you asking me about clothes, I don't notice enough to form an opinion."
"You didn't like that orange top I started to wear at work, and made a point to say so." she pointed out.
"Because that shirt was ugly enough to catch my attention." he muttered, frowning at the memory of her in that color.
"Come on, you're the one who's going to have to see me in these." she told him, holding up a few different colors. "Just tell me one preference, and we'll never speak of it again."
Sasuke looked skyward, before glancing back at the hand-me-downs, noticing a mint colored one. "I like when you wear green."
"Green?" she perked up.
"...yeah, lighter green, you don't wear it a lot and it... brings out your eyes." he grumbled, looking away with a deepening frown.
"Well, okay then." she smiled, taking the mint one and (not surprisingly) the red one, and a few others that were not too outdated. She noticed the scowl on his face and couldn't help but smirk."Was that so hard?"
Sasuke frowned, his eyes narrowing into slits. She had no idea.
Mebuki returned then with their tea and a few various items tucked under her arm. "Here we are."
"Thank you." Sasuke nodded to her as she handed him his tea.
"Thanks, mom." Sakura echoed, eyeing the pink pile tucked under her arm. "What do you have there?"
Mebuki smiled in a way that made Sakura weary. "Just a few of your old baby clothes I found tucked away upstairs... and a photo album."
"Oh God," Sakura groaned in disdain. "I think it's time to go home."
"Oh, it's just baby pictures, Sakura." Mebuki told her, handing the album to Sasuke, who curiously started to page through, before Sakura snatched it away from him.
"Hey!" he interjected.
Mebuki then, happy tears rimmed in her eyes, held out a pink, satin and lace, perfectly tiny, infant gown. "Look how tiny you were, Sakura!"
"Mom..."
"I know you don't know what the baby is yet, but I have so many of these old clothes, you should take them."
"Sakura did call it the baby a 'she' yesterday." Sasuke told his mother-in-law factually.
"You did!?" Mebuki asked Sakura.
"Well, I guess, yeah." Sakura sighed as her mother clapped her hands excitedly.
"Ah! It must be your motherly intuition!" her mother exclaimed happily, piling all the pink baby clothes on top of the maternity clothes. "Take these! I'm going to find the rest of your old clothes!"
"Well, I hope you're happy." Sakura told Sasuke as Mebuki rushed away, he'd somehow gotten the album back when she had been distracted, and was paging through it casually. "We're never getting out of here."
"Hn." he smirked with amusement at one of the photos in the album, not listening to her at all.
"What?" she asked leaning over his shoulder to see, only to sigh. He was looking at a photo of her when she was about a year old, laid out on a blanket, her hair pulled up in a ponytail that stuck straight up in the air like the tip of a paintbrush. "They had to dress me all in pink, because my hair and skin just weren't enough."
It was true. She was nothing more than a bundle of shiny pink skin and satin, with her sea foam green eyes popping out in contrast. Seeing her as a baby made him think of his own child, growing within Sakura. He wondered if 'she' would be this pink.
He paged through some more, but when he got to a few nude, bubble bath photos, Sakura snatched it back. "Okay, that's enough of that."
"Tch, nothing I haven't seen before." Sasuke told her smugly, taking a drink of his tea, more than satisfied by the flush of scarlet burning against her cheeks.
...
(17 ANT, Hidden Leaf Village)
Sakura let her tears fall without shame as Kakashi took the white and red mantle of Hokage, standing above her and the other countless ninja of the Hidden Leaf Village.
A warm hand found her shoulder and gave it a gentle squeeze from behind, and she turned to see a pair of familiar, sparkling, blue eyes.
"That bastard is taking all my spotlight." Naruto grumbled, though his smile was all teeth and cheer.
Laughing merrily, Sakura turned and embraced him around his neck, catching him off guard. But, the knucklehead was quick to recover with a chuckle as he picked her up tightly, spinning her around with his sole arm joyfully. They had made it, together, and Sakura could never find enough words to thank her idiot of a best friend.
He pulled back and took note of the happy tears falling down her face, a welcome change to the tears of inconsolable grief he had seen her shed far too many times in the past. "You're still such a sap, Sakura."
"That will be you someday." she told him solemnly, glancing back up at Kakashi. "Not long now, that will be you, I promise."
"Promise of a lifetime?" he asked cheerily, setting her back down to the earth once more.
"Yes, promise of a lifetime." she smiled, ruffling his hair fondly.
"I'm holding you to that." he grinned, ducking away from her hand. They turned to look back up at their former sensei, now fully donned in his sacred garb, looking out over the crowd of his village.
Sakura found herself glancing up over her shoulder, feeling a gaze lingering on her from behind. High above the crowds in a tall, strong, oak tree, perched like a hawk, was Sasuke. His black eyes, however, were not on Kakashi, the Sixth Hokage, but fixed intently upon her.
Staring back at him in silent and contemplative admiration, she felt herself take a step towards him, only to pause in hesitance. She was happy to see he had come, but she wanted him by her side, she wanted him to stand with her and Naruto as they watched their old sensei take the honor of Hokage and begin a new era of peace. However, she knew why he stayed out of sight, she knew that too many thought he was still a threat and a fugitive that was yet to be tried and sentenced.
Hearing the beginning of Kakashi's oaths to protect the village, Sakura made herself break away from his gaze, and turn back to the new Hokage. In the corner of her eye she could see Naruto smiling knowingly at her.
"I wish he could be down here with us too." he told her comfortingly.
At the end of the ceremony, Kakashi greeted Sakura and Naruto first, who stood on the steps of the Hokage Tower. Sakura wasted no time leaping into Kakashi's arms, hugging him with the utmost pride.
"Congratulations, Sensei." she said, feeling more tears start to well in her eyes.
Kakashi smiled at her fondly beneath his mask, placing his hand on the top of her head like he had done when she was still his little genin student. "Thank you, Sakura."
He then turned to Naruto. "I'm just holding it over for you, you know, no hard feelings."
Naruto snorted. "Whatever, Sensei, don't get to comfortable in that hat, because soon it will be mine!"
...
She was at so much ease with Naruto and Kakashi, Sasuke thought as he slowly made his way back to the Hokage Tower. He'd watch the way she welcomed both of them in her slender arms, how she laughed and cried into their chests.
Again, the affection she had given his former comrades was nothing but innocence, yet he found himself envying the place they had made in her heart, the comfort she felt around them, while she could barely even speak to him.
It wasn't just petty jealousy he was feeling, it was more than that. Sakura was of the village, it had claimed her as its own and her roots dug deep into its soil. He knew she loved him, he did, but he wasn't sure if he had a place in this pleasant little life of hers, if he even belonged.
As if sensing his dreary thoughts, a light rain began to fall from the illuminated gray sky, he pulled the black jacket he'd been wearing closer around his shoulders and he continued his slow place. His shelter was an empty, boring, off-white room, and he had no great desire to return there.
He continued on and didn't turn to acknowledge the sudden presence beside him.
"Thanks for coming." Kakashi said casually, no longer in his ceremonial robes, but in his jonin attire, holding an umbrella in one hand and his beloved orange book in the other.
"Hn," Sasuke replied with a shrug, not surprised Kakashi had spotted him. "Least I could do for not being thrown into prison for life."
"Your sentiments are quite moving." Kakashi replied. "You could have stood with the others, you know, if that was what you had wanted."
"Even with my five ANBU friends following me around, I don't think that would have been a good idea." Sasuke replied. "No one needs me casting a shadow on day like today."
"You know we don't see you that way." Kakashi told him, taking his attention away from his book.
"Not everyone in this village is as absurdly forgiving as you three." Sasuke countered. "Don't worry, when I get back to the tower I'll have a good cry over not getting a front row seat to your ceremony, and maybe, just maybe, I'll get over it someday."
Kakashi was unfazed by his student's sarcasm. "Well, Naruto and Sakura would rather have you beside them than appease the village, you don't need to worry about their reputation."
"I've ruined their lives enough."
"Yes, by not being there." Kakashi replied. "I know you won't be able to stay long after your trial, that you'll want to figure things out for yourself, but don't waste the time you have here. You should use it to make things right with them."
I don't know how to do that. Sasuke thought miserably. Especially when a certain one could barely speak to him.
He didn't need to turn to know the Hokage had vanished, and only continued on in the rain, hands stuffed in his pockets.
...
He wandered aimlessly and slowly to avoid arriving at his destination, but also to annoy his ANBU escorts, who were undoubtedly sick of lingering in the rain. It was well past midday when he made his way up the steps of the Hokage Tower. Drenched completely through, his hair plastered to his face, he ignored the stares of the Hokage's attendants and made his way through the halls to his room, only to stop shakily at the sight of Sakura approaching from the opposite end of the hall. She was nearly as wet as he was, walking with no Naruto beside her or any paperwork from the hospital in her arms. Just her, Sakura, soaked from the rain in her red uniform. He took note that she was retreating from the dormitories.
Had she been coming to see him?
"Sakura?"
She froze in her step about a yard from him, looking him up and down, obviously uncomfortable.
"...You're soaked." she stated, for lack of better introduction.
"So are you." he replied, and decided he wasn't in the mood to beat around the bush. "Were you coming to see me for something?"
She averted his gaze then. "...I saw you at the ceremony."
Apparently, this was a time for stating the obvious. "Hn."
"I wanted to make sure you were okay," she explained more fully, looking back up at him shyly.
"I'm fine." he answered automatically, before cursing himself. He'd been wanting her to open up to him, and the minute she did he closed up like a clam. Sakura nodded in understanding, letting her gaze fall to the floor. Water droplets rolled off the curled ends of her hair, and he wonders how long she had stood out in the rain for.
"Right, I just thought that it must have been hard, and I..."
"I'm alright, Sakura." he told her, hoping he sounded convincing "...But, thanks for coming to check up on me."
When she said nothing else, he knew he must have killed the moment entirely, and made his way to walk past her. He didn't make it too far however, before she spoke up.
"This is hard for me." she explained, making him pause in his step. "I don't know what I expected to happen when you would come home, but now that you have... I don't mean to pull away from you, I'm just trying to get used to it."
"I couldn't ask you for more than that." he replied, turning back to her and feeling relief lift away the heaviness of his heart. "That's already more than I deserve."
Sakura looked up at him like she had during the ceremony, puzzled admiration, as if trying to decipher this new-found man before her.
Sasuke glanced behind his shoulder toward the quiet and empty dormitories, not wanting to spend another miserable day alone, he asked without thinking. "Do you want to come in?"
Sakura eyes widened a bit, and Sasuke almost cursed himself out loud this time. "I mean, till the rain stops."
She relaxed a little at that, her eyes darting toward the rooms at the end of the hall and back to him, before she gave a small, slightly nervous, smile. "Okay."
...
(22 ANT, Hidden Leaf Village)
"Thanks for the tea." Sasuke told Mebuki as he handed her the empty mugs, as the older woman began to wash dishes. Sakura was slipping on her sandals by the door preparing to leave.
"My pleasure." the blonde woman smiled, glancing to make sure Sakura was out of earshot, before turning back to her son-in-law. "Sakura told me that someone broke into your home, but not much else. She told me not worry, and I know she is a Jounin and Head Medic, but... should I be worried, Sasuke?"
"No, it's been handled." Sasuke promised her. "Something like this will never happen again."
Sorry it's a bit late, but I hope you like it!
So, domestic Sasuke. I've written normal Sasuke, AU Sasuke, psycho Sasuke, ghost Sasuke, RTN Sasuke, and now I have flashback/redeemed/broken Sasuke and daddy-to-be/domestic Sasuke. This character. I tell you!
More headcanons:
1. I'm already thinking about thier wedding. And it's simple, quiet, at night, outside with only a few people around. Very intimate and beautiful.
2. Sasuke likes Sakura's mom. Their just both serious and complete dorks, I can see them getting along.
REVIEW PLZ!
