Chapter 12: Goodbye
Sasuke awoke abruptly. He groaned and glanced at his clock; 1:07 am. What the hell?! He laid there for a moment, trying to concentrate on why he had woken up so early. Then, he realized: someone was approaching his door. They were walking very fast, and had a distinctive chakra that the Jounin would never be able to forget.
He got up and headed to the door, ignoring the fact that he's just wearing a pair of black boxers. He wrenched open his front door, and there stood Sakura. Her head was bowed and she was trembling. He frowned, feeling his stomach twist slightly in worry. "Sakura…?" A sob erupted from his pink-haired teammate, and she flung herself at him, burying her head into his chest while her arms wrapped around his middle.
"S-Sasuke-kun." She choked, and Sasuke could feel his shirt getting wet. Frowning, he lifted her up slightly, closing the door with his foot.
"Sakura, what's the matter?" She shook her head and wrapped her arms around her shoulders, almost as if to protect herself.
"T-they're dead." Sasuke felt his insides freeze. They could mean a lot of people, different people, but his mind immediately zoomed to Naruto and Kakashi.
"Who, Sakura?" Sasuke asked, leading her into the kitchen where she promptly collapsed onto a chair, shaking.
"My parents." Sakura said quietly, and Sasuke exhaled a breath he hadn't even known he'd been holding. He hadn't been here when Sakura's parents had died, and had never been able to comfort people, so he just stood there, fists clenched together. Damn, he didn't have any pockets! "Sasuke-kun…?" She looked up, eyes bright with tears that were still sliding down her cheeks. "Can I stay here tonight? I don't want to be alone." She noticed the look on his face and looked down once more. "Nevermind." She muttered, standing up. "I'll go stay with Naruto-"
"No." Sasuke interjected, startled at how that last line had made his blood boil. She looked up, confusion and shock playing across her face. "You're already here, and besides, that dobe is probably snoring away and won't hear you knock." Sasuke said coolly, the desperate need for pockets growing bigger than ever. Sakura sighed and nodded.
"Okay, well, if you insist…" Sakura said hesitantly. "I'll just go home and go grab some clothes and I'll come back." Sasuke didn't fail to miss the way her emerald eyes flashed with pain at the word home.
The Uchiha shrugged. "I've got clothes here." He told her, and Sakura blushed.
"I don't want to impose-"
"You already are." The male pointed out, and he expected Sakura to glare at him. Instead, she shrugged.
"I guess you're right." She said quietly, and Sasuke felt something twist in his gut. He hated it when people cried, even more so when it was Sakura, because her tears… they did something to him. Something he would never admit out loud.
"Follow me." Sasuke said, and headed upstairs towards his bedroom. Sakura did as told, but she was silent as she obliged her teammate. Sasuke could only guess that Sakura was too caught up in her thoughts, and he would not push her over the edge when the female teen was already on the way to a mental breakdown.
The two walked into Sasuke's bedroom, and he rifled through his drawers before finally grabbing a pair of boxers the same color of his own and a navy Uchiha shirt, both of which he handed to Sakura and pointed the way to his bathroom. Then, he seated himself on the edge of his bed and sighed. Sakura came out and he moved his head to look at her.
The breath caught in his throat, and his mind immediately flashed back to a time when it had been raining and Sakura had come to his house, dripping and furiously apologizing for the intrusion, but could she just stay there for a little while until it had stopped raining? Sasuke agreed, quite aware of the fact that it was supposed to downpour all night. Sakura didn't, though, and wound up sleeping in his clothes, in his bed… and in his arms. Not that she had ever known, because Sasuke had woken himself up before she had and moved out onto the couch.
And that was where he intended to stay tonight Sasuke told himself stubbornly as Sakura walked closer. "You take my bed, I'll go out onto the couch tonight." He said, getting up. And he really was intending to go out into the living room, but a hand stopped him. Sasuke turned his head, and Sakura had her own bowed.
"Please, Sasuke-kun." She whimpered. "I really DON'T want to be alone tonight." Sasuke tensed, and Sakura let go. "I'm sorry." She muttered. The dark-haired male didn't answer, but after a couple of minutes (and a rather heated argument with his inner self about things that would make Kakashi blush) Sasuke headed over to his side of the bed.
Sakura stared at him until, annoyed, Sasuke snapped, "Well, are you coming or not?" A hint of a blush spread on her face before Sakura scrambled over to her teammates bed and laid down, while Sasuke turned off the light. Eventually, Sakura's breathing evened, and so did Sasuke's; that was, until hours later, when a whimpering broke the Uchiha prodigy from his sleep. Sakura was tossing around, obviously in mental and emotional distress. She cried out softly, and Sasuke sighed, idly wondering how long these nightmares were going to last. He reached out and shook her shoulder softly, detachedly noticing that as he did so, the tear marks on her face shone because of the soft moonlight infiltrating his room.
And then, Sasuke froze, as Sakura realized that there was another warmth in the bed and immediately shifted towards it. She pillowed her head onto his shoulder and snuggled into his side, still whimpering. The Uchiha laid there, body feeling numb, as he breathed in the scent of cinnamon.
Slowly, Sasuke moved his arm, and it draped itself around her waist. The Sharingan user glared at it, almost as if his arm had a life of it's own and was betraying him. However, Sakura seemed to like this, and she inched closer to Sasuke. A sigh of happiness escaped her, and her pink lips twitched upward in a happy smile. Unaware, Sasuke thought of how many times he had made Sakura happy, and realized with a pang of guilt that he could count on one hand how many times he had made her honestly happy.
Fie, Sasuke. Fie upon you.
It was then Sasuke realized that he liked making Sakura.
Shit, he was in deeper than he thought.
----
"Psst." Sasuke grumbled and turned over, unconsciously seeking for the warmth of Sakura. When he didn't find it, his eyes snapped open. "Pssst, Sasuke-kun?" He glanced over and noticed emerald eyes peering at him. She gave him a tiny smile, and it was a couple of moments before Sasuke realized that it was genuine; he then mentally smacked himself when he realized that he was actually glad to see it.
"What, Sakura?"
"I made breakfast." Sasuke raised an eyebrow. "To thank you. You didn't have to let me in, or sleep in your bed." If he wasn't an Uchiha, the male would've flushed. He really hoped that they hadn't been in any compromising positions when Sakura had awoken, or God forbid, have her wake up with his arms wrapped around her. What ideas that would give her he didn't even want to know.
"Hn. Then go eat it." He muttered, closing his eyes.
"Sasuke-kun!" Sakura hissed, and Sasuke cracked open an eye. "I bought you some tomatoes…" The konoichi urged, and two onyx eyes opened fully. The girl smirked to herself; she thought that would do it.
"Fine." Sasuke got up and headed downstairs into the kitchen. "Coming?" He irritably snapped over his shoulder, and Sakura scrambled after him. The two sat down, and Sakura quickly began to eat after giving thanks, unaware that over his table, Sasuke was staring her. She seemed normal enough, but then again, Sakura had been in the game long enough to learn how to lie flawlessly. His eyes narrowed as he assessed her, watching as she ate, waiting for that perfect mask to break. However, either Sakura was an amazing liar, or she actually did feel better. It could be either of the two, and Sasuke felt frustrated.
"Anyway, Sasuke-kun, thanks again. Where do you want me to put your clothes?" Sakura asked, placing her plate in the sink. Sasuke was quiet for a couple of moments.
"Keep them."
Sakura's eyes went wide. "Excuse me?" Sasuke gave her a look.
"I said, keep them. I have tons of them."
The green-eyed female smiled. "You're not afraid that I'm going to sell these to your fangirls for a scandalous amount of money?"
Sasuke snorted and rolled his eyes. "They'd probably kill you." Sakura laughed, and Sasuke was relieved at the sound.
"You're right, they would." She giggled, and nodded. "Okay, well, I'll just go get my stuff and then I'll see you later, okay?" Sasuke nodded, and Sakura flitted away. A couple of minutes later, Sasuke heard the door close quietly.
He sat there for a couple of minutes, battling with his inner self.
You're worried about her.
Of course I am, she's my teammate.
Teammates don't worry about their other teammate the way that you worry for her. You're falling for her, aren't you?
Hell no.
You always were good at denial.
…Shut up.
Whatever, Uchiha. You love her, and you're selfish. You will do whatever it takes to not lose her again, won't you?
A picture of a peaceful looking Sakura flashed through his mind, pale and calm, but she wasn't breathing; Sasuke found that he didn't have a comeback to that.
A week later, Sasuke irritably kicked at the dummy, eyes narrowed as he tuned out his inner voices shouting.
Admit it, you moron. You care about her more than you should.
She's just a teammate.
Liar! Teammates don't crawl into bed and cuddle up with their other teammates!
That caused Sasuke to scowl; he didn't like having jabs taken at his manliness.
I wasn't "cuddling up" with her. I was just comforting her.
Uchiha Sasuke, we don't do comfort, or are you forgetting that? We don't do comfort, because Itachi is still out there to kill. There's a reason why we don't let ANYBODY get close to us. Do you want a repeat of what happened to our clan?
Sasuke shuddered, remembering the immobile body of his mother slumped on top of his father, remembered how his heart clenched when he realized that the one woman that he loved, the only person in that house beside his beloved nii-chan that cared about him, was dead.
A cold feeling gripped his stomach as the smooth, silky hair began to turn red, then pink because of the blood, and instead of onyx eyes, emerald stared up at him in horror, mouth gaping open.
A sudden presence made the raven-haired male aware of his thoughts, and he inwardly ordered himself to relax and begin training once more. The intruder was no harm to him, he could tell by their weak chakra.
"Uchiha Sasuke?" Sasuke turned around and noticed a Chuunin staring up at him, obviously in awe.
"Hn." Sasuke said smoothly, putting his hands into his pockets and mentally repressing the images that had appeared in his mind.
"H-Hokage-sama requests your appearance in her o-office." The young boy stuttered, and with a nod from Sasuke, he scampered off. The soon-to-be-last Uchiha sighed and disappeared, reappearing inside of Tsunade's office. He inclined his head at the amber-eyed female.
"Sasuke, good, you're here." She stared at him seriously and linked her hands, leaning her chin on them. "Some of my hunter-nins have gathered word about one Uchiha Itachi," Sasuke stiffened at the words, "And I know that if I were to assign anybody to this mission, it would be you. Only I request that you take an ANBU squad, and I'm sure Naruto would want to come as well." Sasuke scowled slightly.
"I'll take Naruto with me, but no ANBU." Tsunade assessed him for a moment before nodding slowly. It was a miracle that Sasuke was even taking the Kyuubi vessel in the first place.
"Alright. Go tell Naruto to come to my office, right now. You two will be leaving Konoha. Tonight."
----
Sakura could tell that something was off. Tsunade-shishou seemed very tense, and it looked like her pink-haired apprentice would soon be dashing off to find the sake soon. "Tsunade-shishou? Is… is something wrong?" Sakura asked hesitantly. Tsunade sighed.
"No, Sakura, I'm fine. But I think that you should go spend some time with Sasuke and Naruto. I'll give you the rest of today and tomorrow off." Feeling forbidding clutch at her heart, Sakura nodded and hurried over to Sasuke's apartment after putting away her things.
Sakura pounded on the door with her fist, and after a couple of minutes, Sasuke opened the door. "Sasuke-kun, what's happening?" was the first thing out of Sakura's mouth.
"The dobe and I are leaving on a mission." Sasuke said, and opened the door for his female teammate. Sakura stepped inside the threshold, then sunk into a chair.
"What kind of mission?" She inquired warily. For a moment, she thought that hesitation flashed into his eyes, but she blinked and it was gone.
"Konoha hunter-nins spotted Itachi, and we're leaving on an assassination mission." Sakura felt panic clutch at her throat, making it hard to breathe.
"When?" She rasped, her vocal cords working furiously to unblock itself. She took a couple of deep breaths in order to calm herself down.
"When what?" Sasuke asked, frowning as he observed her critically.
"When do you leave for the mission?" Sasuke didn't answer. "Sasuke-kun?"
"Tonight." The panic was creeping up again, but Sakura stubbornly kept it at bay. She wouldn't lose it, no way, not in front of Sasuke. She was no longer that weak little girl, and she worked hard to keep up her composure. However, behind that calm façade, Sakura could feel her heart crumbling, feeling the bile rise at the thought of her boys dying.
Sasuke watched as her shoulders slumped and she seemed to want to curl into herself. He also noticed the way that she bit her lip and looked out the window, eyes misted over in a way that he was familiar with. Sakura wanted to cry, but she wouldn't allow herself.
"I'll be right back." Sasuke told her, and Sakura didn't even move. He stood there for another minute or so before heading into his bedroom, where he had been packing for the mission. Finished, he left the bag on his bed and headed out into the living room. Sakura still sat there, but her elbows were braced on her knees and her face was in her hands, shoulders shaking in silent sobs.
Somewhere, a tiny part of him hurt at the sight, but most of his feelings were determination. He wanted to kill Itachi, but it was more of he needed to kill Itachi. For his peace of mind and to also make sure that his bastard of a brother would never bestow the fate of their clan upon the people that Sasuke had slowly began to call friends. The same picture of Sakura taking his mother's place wormed its way into his minds eye, and Sasuke almost shuddered. He had lost the pink-haired female one; he had no intention of loosing her again.
Sasuke walked over, and the muscles in Sakura's shoulders tensed, sensing that he was there. "Why are you crying?" He asked.
"Because you and Naruto are leaving, and I don't want to be alone again." She replied, glancing up. Sasuke stared down at her, watching as a tear dripped from the corner of her eye and make its way down to her chin, where it dropped out of sight. Watched as her sad, pale face crumpled in pain and she looked down again.
"You have Kakashi." Sasuke countered. He wished he could just rip his own heart out (despite the gross factor of that) because it was twisting itself with every tear mark on her face, every time she sniffled, every time she brushed a hand against her face because she was trying to be strong because of him, because he was the one who had always called her weak.
"It's not the same, Sasuke-kun." She whispered, and looked up. He stared into those bright green eyes, shining with the tears she had left to shed.
Sasuke always found a way to make Sakura cry.
"I…I really don't want to be alone again. Not after…" She shook her head. "Not after my parents died. After they did, and when I woke up in your arms," here she blushed, and Sasuke could feel the heat creeping around the collar of his shirt, "I felt so complete. I felt whole again." Sakura confessed, and to the Uchiha's surprise, she didn't back down. "I don't know how I would feel if you and Naruto would die."
Sasuke could relate. He remembered how he felt as he stared down into Sakura's casket, mentally just begging her to open her eyes, to smile at him the way she always had. However, her eyes remained closed, as did her mouth. And Sasuke, though unwilling, knew that it was permanent.
Sakura stood, and hesitantly, she wrapped her arms around Sasuke. After a moment, he returned the gesture, relishing the feeling of having her in his arms. He knew that there was a great possibility that he would die on this mission, and this was the least that he could do for the girl whose heart he always seemed to unintentionally break.
"I know that there will never be anything that I could possibly do to stop you." She said, laughing, although it was broken by a sob towards the end. Unconsciously, Sasuke tightened his hold on the petite pink-haired medic. "Even if it wasn't a mission, I know that you wouldn't be happy unless Itachi was buried deep under the ground."
Naruto was his best friend, and the two could relate to one another, but Sakura, he believed, would always know him almost as well as the dobe. In fact, she even understood his various hn's and aa's.
Why was he such an idiot? She didn't deserve this, didn't deserve him. Why did Sakura constantly wait for him when all he was was just a big disappointment to every one? All he would ever do is bring her unhappiness, because he always seemed to hurt those that loved him the most. But he would have to hurt her, as much as it pained him. She, Naruto, and Kakashi were the only people in this entire world that Sasuke could (grudgingly, mind you) admit that he trusted his life to. He would not allow Itachi steal these last few things that made him happy.
Sakura shifted her head from his shoulder, and Sasuke turned his head to look down at her, look at those slightly red and puffy eyes, those flushed cheeks that still had tear tracks on them, that nose that was still clogged up from crying. He never realized how green her eyes were…why were they so big? Damn, they were getting closer.
And then, Sakura's mouth gently connected with his own. Her lips were soft, and they still tasted slightly of the salt that had fallen from her eyes. Despite this, Sasuke reciprocated, and his arms tightened their hold on her as his lips moved against hers. He never expected his night to turn out like this, but he certainly wasn't going to complain. If such a simple act would make Sakura happy, well then, he would allow it to go on. There were such few moments where he made her happy, and she…
Sakura was Sasuke's happiness.
The thought made Sasuke pull back, subtly trying to catch his breath. Sakura was doing the same, eyeing his apprehensively.
"I'm sorry, Sasuke-kun." She apologized. "I don't know what came over me." Sasuke watched her, and then in a sudden burst of courageousness, he glued their lips together. It was only a couple of seconds, but it made Sakura's heart drop to her stomach.
"It doesn't matter." Sasuke murmured. Then, something occurred to him. "You have the keys to my apartment, right?" Sakura nodded. "Good. Collect your things and bring them here." The female gave him a confused look.
"What? Why?"
"You did say that you didn't want to be alone, right?" She nodded, and Sasuke grunted. "Okay then. Besides, that house is too big for you now." Sakura stood straight, and stared at him open-mouthed. Then, she snapped it closed.
"Thank you." She whispered. The words brought a pang of nostalgia to Sasuke, but he ignored it. After all, his leaving for Orochimaru had never happened, and as such, Sakura didn't realize how those two simple words affected him so.
Sasuke merely shrugged and headed into his bedroom, grabbing his bags. He headed once more into his living room. At the sight of his black bags Sakura looked at the floor, obviously trying not to break down again.
Sasuke approached the door, and now he and Sakura stood side by side, although they faced two opposite ends. "Sakura…"
"I'm sorry." He murmured, and opened the door, closing it softly behind him. Sakura closed her eyes, the tears falling from them.
She couldn't believe how much it hurt. Sure, he had kissed her, but it tasted of regret. What for? It wasn't his fault she had to go and be an idiot and fall in love with him. She didn't know the full consequences until they smacked her right in the face, dangling in front of her, taunting her because she knew that someone like her would, could NEVER possibly be with someone like him.
Their story reminded her of Romeo and Juliet. Their ending would be tragic, no matter how much she tried to defy the odds. Because in the end, they just weren't meant to be together.
The medic-nin shuffled her feet, and they carried her to Sasuke's bedroom. She collapsed onto the silken comforter and buried her nose into a pillow.
It smelled like him.
That night, Haruno Sakura cried herself to sleep.
Come on, take a step towards me
So you can figure me out
I've been hoping and praying for a single way
To show you what I'm all about
And I know, and I know this is the only way of pleasing the crowds
But when this is over and done with and we walk away
There should be no doubts
So let's get a little closer now
Let's get a little closer now
You say, you say that we're all tied up
And wrapped around in useless, useless states of mind
But at the same time we're still young
We have the time to realize that we were wrong
Come on love run with me
Get the hell out of this town
So we can get a better feel for each other
I'll take you, back to, when you
Remembered how you used to
Just live your life a little for me
Take the time to let it go
Step away and watch me grow
So let's get a little closer now
Let's get a little closer now
You say, you say that we're all tied up
And wrapped around in useless, useless states of mind
But at the same time we're still young
We have the time to realize that we were wrong
You can stay if you want to
And I write to you and tell you how you've always been so special to me
You can stay if you want to, and I'll try
You can stay if you want to
And I write to you and tell you how you've always been so special to me
You can stay if you want to, and I'll try
To keep you close to me (x3)
You say, you say that we're all tied up
And wrapped around in useless, useless states of mind
But at the same time we're still young
We have the time to realize that we were wrong.
A/N- So yes, they kiss, but at a price. And I know, I am a terrible, AWFUL person for making Sasuke leave again. But I did warn you that there would be angst in this chapter, right? I actually never intended for the fluff, but it just sort of seemed to flow. Also, this chapter came pretty easily to me. Friday is my mom's birthday, and she would've been forty-five. My dad and I were planning on visiting her grave on Friday, but we can't. It's like, ten degrees where I am, and the flowers would wilt.
Anyway, tomorrow is my last day of midterms, and then I'm FREEEE! Stupid Biology, ugh. But my week sucked. I had what Sakura had in the last chapter, MIDTERMS (those things are the spawns of evil!!) and my throat hurts really, really badly. Of course, I wanted to get sick, and now that I am, I'm like, go away! Sorry, that was weird. On another note, the song above is Beauty in the Breakdown by The Scene Aesthetic. It's a fantastic song, and I've been listening to it for the past couple of days. I feel so proud of myself, this chapter is pretty long. So ANYWAY, want to review? This time I'll give you… chocolate. Yeah. I'll give you chocolate if you review.
