Written, read through, posted - Unedited. Apologies for any mistakes. They will be fixed once the story is complete. Proof readers are welcome to apply.
Disclaimer- I do not own Naruto
CLOSURE
Itachi's clan shirt is covered with tears and Sakura's heart ache, as the man holds his broken cherry blossom silently.
It has been an hour since they returned home, and it is the most time that he has spent with Sakura since Sasuke began his affiliation with her. Sasuke has not come back from hiding yet. He will do so when he is ready.
If Sakura's state is any indication, then his Otouto cannot be in a good way.
Guilt makes its way into Itachi's heart and mind then. He is the reason they parted, despite there being love between the two. That's right, Itachi knows that Sakura loves his little brother, and he her. Though, from what he heard tonight, it seems that there is also another tucked away inside Sakura's heart…Him.
When Itachi left the house to get some air, it was to get away from everything. Try and forget the joy he felt when Sakura launched herself into his arms. Because the bath he previously had, did not eradicate the scent of the girl he must forget.
How he moved from strolling down the empty cobblestone streets, near Konoha's entrance, to eaves dropping on a very private conversation, Itachi will never know.
One minute he was walking along, and the next he found himself leaping to the nearest tree branch silently.
There, he witnessed the most heart breaking scene, and is quite regretful for it. Perhaps, if he did not see everything, then he would not feel so guilty about loving Sakura.
Nevertheless, he cannot help it. Itachi has always loved her, and now it seems that his younger brother acknowledges this.
Sometimes, Itachi wonders if Sasuke would have noticed Sakura if he didn't give her that pep talk that very first day. Would she still be that 'annoying' girl Sasuke used to complain about at dinner as a youth.
Itachi likes to think that his brother would not have noticed her and that somewhere along the line, Sakura would have found him again, and not Sasuke. The young man knows this is a trivial train of thought. Something tells him, that no matter how 'annoying' Sakura is to Sasuke, she will always have a piece of him, and he her.
It is a bitter pill to swallow, and Itachi can't help but think that he is selfish for wishing for Sakura to be only his. His Otouto is outside hurting because of Sakura's supposed love for him, when she could be with Sasuke with life no different to before.
Only, that is a lie. From what he heard, it seems that Sakura has been unhappy for quite some time, despite the love she feels for the younger Uchiha.
It is certainly a predicament, that is sure to work itself out in due time.
For now, Itachi will be content to hold Sakura. He will allow her to cry away the hurt, over his Otouto, while he strokes her hair softly. The young man will let the pinkette weep until there are no more tears to cry. Once Sakura has dealt with the break up in her own time, Itachi will be here for her.
He will never force his affections on her. She must know how he feels. Itachi is sure a day will come that Sakura will be ready to accept him openly, without regret or guilt.
The silent shinobi will wait until then, and pray that it comes soon.
That night, Itachi falls into a light slumber. It is the best sleep he has had in a long time, and it is all because of the girl laying within his grasp.
Neither Sakura nor Itachi are awake when Sasuke arrives home early into the morning. Itachi is unaware, but his younger brother is currently making some decisions of his own.
When morning comes, Sakura is still out cold. It makes sense considering the way her body shuddered with brokenness the night before. It seems that the pink haired angel has cried herself to exhaustion.
Getting up slowly, as not to wake the slumbering kunoichi. Itachi slides open his bedroom door, ready to take on the day.
When he glances to his left, the ANBU operative comes face to face with Sasuke. Itachi certainly did not anticipate seeing his Otouto so abruptly, but assumes that Sasuke slept a little later because of the events the previous evening.
The moment spans on for longer than normal, and the older man cannot tell what his brother is thinking, as coal orbs mirror each other perfectly.
There is no malice or anger in their stares, only acceptance.
Then, Sasuke inhales a large amount of air, remembering to breath again.
"Aniki." The raven haired youth greets tonelessly.
Itachi notices the way his Otouto's eyes steel a little, "Sasuke." He replies, just as monotonously.
With a nod of each man, Itachi heads into the wash room and Sasuke to his training.
xxx
The low set dining table is used only when Uchiha Fugaku is in attendance at dinner. All family meals are expected to be held in a formal setting, for the Uchiha head is a very strict man that follows all traditional protocol.
Dinner smells amazing, and is already placed in front of each person. Itachi's mother is an amazing house wife, tending to the needs of her fussy husband like an absolute professional. It would seem that Uchiha Mikoto has been trained exceptionally, and the eldest Uchiha son knows that Sakura has the same skills within her. Taught by his mother of course.
Dismissing the thought of marrying Sakura, again, the man eats his food in silence just like any other family meal with his Chichi ue.
Surprisingly, as Sakura and Sasuke sit across from each other, there is no tension. The heir notes that there is something in the air, but it is not malicious, nor is it overly sad.
It has been a week since the break up and this is the first time the pinkette has seen Sasuke in that time. Itachi would know, considering he is on ANBU leave and Sakura has not left his side.
He hopes that the two of them will reconcile soon, because avoidance is not healthy.
Itachi does not know for sure, but he thought he heard his Otouto request his Okaa-san permission for a leave of absence from his familial duties. He is in fact right, and will find out soon enough.
Sasuke felt that his beloved Haha ue needed to know the truth about the relationship breakdown between himself and Sakura.
Neither Itachi or Sakura heard the youngest Uchiha son admit to his mother, that he loves Sakura very much. They do not know that he also told her of Sakura's love for Itachi and his suspicions that his Aniki feels exactly the same way. Yes, Sasuke loves Sakura, but not the way Itachi can love her. He told his mother a little downcast, and allowed Mikoto to hug him as she did when he was little. Sasuke informed her of his plans, and the need for time, to get over the sting of the lost relationship. He loves Sakura, definitely, but it is not the same desperate kind that the pinkette obviously feels for the older male.
Sasuke clears his throat, gaining the attention of the table. Then, without looking upward, he says "As you may be aware Chichi ue. I have requested a time of absence for training purposes, with sennin Orochimaru. Sakura is training beneath Tsunade hime and Naruto will be leaving with Jiraiya very soon to start his own training." He pauses, gazing up at his father. "Will you grant my request Otou-san?"
Sasuke does not see the way Sakura's chop sticks fail her, but Itachi does from the corner of his eye. Silently, the Uchiha heir places his hand upon her knee inconspicuously.
"I will grant your request Sasuke. The sennin of Konoha are the pride and joy of our nation, and you will show respect to your new master." Fugaku replies, after thinking on it a moment. He has had all week to mull this over, and can see no harm coming from the endeavour. Orochimaru is one of the famous sennin, and is coincidentally one of the strongest shinobi in the village. There was a time, in the past, that he could have taken a different road. Thankfully, the peace surrounding Konoha spread through many people, including those troubled souls.
"Naruto will be leaving in a day or two, and I believe Sakura's training is about to move to the next level. The Hokage suggested that I take this path in the interests of Konoha gaining the next generation of sennin." Mikoto praises the young ones talents and says that she is proud of all of them. Sasuke nods in reply, a small smile playing on his lips at the compliment.
"When will you be leaving?" Sakura manages to ask. Itachi does not move his hand off her knee, he understands her pain.
Sasuke replies, unable to look at his now ex girlfriend. "Dawn."
Sakura nods slowly, taking in the information silently. Then after a moment or two of thoughtful silence, the pink haired kunoichi rises slowly from her seat.
"If you would excuse me, I'm not feeling very well. Gomen nasai." The girl bows her head in apology, and Mikoto smiles in gentle understanding.
Itachi watches as Sakura makes her way up the stairs and out of sight. Sasuke looks downtrodden but does not look up from his meal. There is nothing he can do to help, both Uchiha brothers know that.
Itachi does not say anything when he hears Sakura approach Sasuke early into the morning. The older Uchiha knows that she needs to say goodbye, and he has accepted that her heart holds both of them within it.
The second time the man wakes, it is day time. It is no surprise that he has overslept, with the memories resurfacing during the middle of the night.
Itachi did not expect Sakura to walk to his room when they returned from Ichiraku, though it warms him to see her lying upon his sheets. He assumes that the woman acted upon instinct and went to the place she spends most time in.
When they returned to the compound the previous night, Itachi and Sakura did not feel like talking. They sat in melancholy silence until the pinkette dozed off, with Itachi soon to follow.
When he did fall asleep, the man found that he was plagued by memories of the past. From what Sakura told him, through her bought of tears, they were very similar to her own memories.
Itachi remembers meeting Sakura for the first time, his first and only kiss, the first time Sakura broke his heart unknowingly by being with his brother, the night Sasuke warned him to keep his distance, the feeling of seeing Sakura again after months of separation (before it was ripped away by Sasuke's watchful eyes.), seeing the break up with his own eyes, carrying Sakura home that night and everything in between.
Moving slowly and carefully, Itachi decides to wash up and see to breakfast. Sakura will wake soon enough and will need adequate sustenance.
xxx
The door to Sasuke's room slides open cautiously as Sakura evaluates the scene. Just a week ago, was Sakura lying upon the bed a meter away, laughing and being held. Now, to do such things would be crossing a boundary. The thought really does hurt. Does Sasuke think of things like this?
Near the cupboard, is Sasuke. The pinkette doesn't know how she knew he would be awake, but he is. Upon the bed is his weapons pouch and all other related items. It seems that he is choosing his clothing now.
"Sakura." His voice sounds pained by her appearance, though he doesn't look away from her.
Sasuke watches her emerald eyes shine with emotion, as she steps past the threshold of his door.
He should tell her to leave, the girl knows it too. Sakura is greedy for wanting to steal one more moment, before everything goes back to the way it was…before.
"I'll miss you Sasuke-kun." The pinkette finally says, and tears gather at the edges of her eyes.
The man sighs heavily, not bothering to hide his emotions in front of her. Sakura doesn't know what he is thinking, and wonders if it would hurt her to know his thoughts?
Then he replies, "I feel the same." It is simple and toneless, but the girl swears she can see emotion coming off him in waves.
"I'm not running away from you." Sasuke moves on to say. "I won't lie that the timing does benefit the both of us, but this is what is best. For us as friends and my training."
Sakura doesn't know how to respond. She knows that he is right. That it would be cruel for him to sit by and watch her relationship with Itachi blossom. Sasuke was right in saying that she loves his brother. It almost hurts the pinkette to think about how long she has felt this way.
Just last week, Sakura was living in perfect denial. Unable to see how unhappy she was without Itachi. Though, after crying against him for hours and being in his space once more, the girl knew she couldn't lie to herself any more.
It hurts Sakura right now, to see Sasuke like this. To feel heartache of her own as well. She can't even imagine what it would feel like if Itachi broke her heart like that. Could Sakura go on living?
"You need time to be with Itachi, Sakura." Sasuke cuts through her thoughts. "And I need time to come to terms with it." His pack is buttoned up and shut securely. Everything is ready.
"When I come home, stronger and better…Will I still have my best friend?" His words are cautious, and Sakura isn't sure what he is afraid of.
"You will. I will always be here." The pinkette smiles at the bitter sweet moment, willing herself not to cry. Despite everything, this feels right.
He nods in understanding, turning to his items upon the bed. "Good." Sasuke says. It is almost time to leave.
When he attaches his pouch and slings the bag over his left shoulder, Sakura heaves in a large breath. What will a whole year without Sasuke be like?
"I love you Sasuke." She admits, closing the distance between them with a hug. Her arms weave around his middle and Sasuke falls into the embrace naturally.
"I love you too." He says, breathing the scent of Sakura. "This is going to hurt for awhile, isn't it?" They both know the answer.
"I think so." The woman regretfully replies.
"I'm chasing my dreams because of you, Sakura. You do the same, okay? Don't hold back." It is one of the most heart felt things the young Uchiha has ever said to her. "Learn to be happy and so will I."
Sakura nods shakily as a tear streaks down her cheek. While he is gone, they will both let go of each other, but the love will always linger.
"I'll miss you." The sad girl repeats once more.
"Aa." His deep onyx hold agreement, and she can see he wants to kiss her, but refrains. Pulling the strap of his nap sack closer on his shoulder, Sasuke steps out of her hold and walks toward the door. Sliding the shoji screen open, Sakura's best friend and one time love exits with a brief glance over his shoulder. The woman knows what he means, 'I'll miss you too.'
Sakura sits down on Sasuke's bed and stares at the open door. For some reason, the tears do not come.
When Sasuke returns twelve months later, Sakura has become the second best medic in all of fire country. Naruto is back and learning how to control the Kyuubi properly. The pink haired kunoichi is also secretly engaged to his Aniki.
Sakura doesn't know for sure, but she senses that Sasuke is actually okay with this development.
Now that the teens are home, better and stronger, everything goes back to normal.
Team 7 is together, just as they should be.
There will always be a slight electricity between the youngest Uchiha and Sakura, but they have both accepted it. They are happier as friends.
Sun light streams through the window as viridian orbs open blearily. Itachi did not tell her that regaining this many memories would be so tiring. The pinkette can't help but wonder, why now?
Itachi told her the previous night that acceptance played a big part of remembering. Oddly enough, Sakura is okay with letting Sasuke go.
Despite her memories hitting her directly in the face, quite abruptly, the kunoichi feels quite good.
For some reason, the guilt from the previous night is gone and Sakura is ready to have a positive day. Of course, apologising to Sasuke for her behaviour is at the top of her list.
As Sakura rises from Itachi's bed, to get ready for what is to come, she does not realise that her thoughts do not stray to her previous time. The memories are there, in the back of her mind…Slowly becoming a dream.
xxx