A/N: This takes place after the War. A look at the regrets that Team Seven has – and how they carry them. Gratefully dedicated to MCL3690 for their consistent and kind interaction with this collection. You make my day. Please enjoy!

Regret

I.

It was the night after Sasuke returned to Konoha that she lost it. She saw Naruto's glowing confidence in Sasuke's presence and Sasuke's relaxation in his, and she realized how well and truly she'd fucked up.

She left Naruto's apartment early, let them stay and talk and argue, and slipped out the back door. She went home and poured herself a drink. She was Tsunade's student, after all, in all the ways that mattered.

She was three drinks in when they found her. Naruto knocked twice before Sasuke simply invited himself in and the blond followed, looking bemused and worried. Sasuke sat across the table from her and watched her do another shot, and she looked at him with exhaustion and guilt, and then, in the hush of the alcohol and the buzzing of the light in her kitchen that she could never quite fix, she told them the truth.

She told them how she'd doubted them – doubted them both. How she'd had nightmares for months, been confident Sasuke would kill her someday, or, worse, that she'd someday kill him, because he could no longer be saved. How she'd wept when Naruto reminded her of his promise, when he confidently instructed them all to leave Sasuke to him, how he was still their teammate – no matter what.

She wept from her shame and guilt from all that doubt, and she downed another glass before staring them in the eyes and wondering if they could ever forgive her.

Naruto and Sasuke glanced at each other, and both moved. Naruto took her bottle and swiftly dumped it down the sink. Before she could snap at him, Sasuke grabbed her wrist. "That," he said, his voice low and angry, "is the dumbest shit I've ever heard."

"Not sure you should drink, if this is what it makes you think about," Naruto said more cheerfully. "But if you do, let us be here, huh?"

She tried to speak again, but –

"I tried to kill you," Sasuke said bluntly. "I tried even harder to kill this idiot. You did the right thing. If anyone else from Konoha ever turns, I hope you do it again." He squeezed her wrist harder, forcing her to look him in the eyes. "Sakura. You did the right thing. This moron – he just got lucky with me."

"Hey!" Naruto said indignantly. "Last version I heard going around the village, I basically won the whole war singlehandedly just by talking to you. They've even forgotten I ever lost an arm, at this point."

"Proving my point about your idiocy," Sasuke muttered. His eyes didn't leave Sakura. "You did the right thing," he said again.

Her eyes filled with tears, and when she crumpled, Naruto caught her shoulders and Sasuke's hands twisted slightly, rubbing soft circles into her pulse.

"There is nothing you could do," Naruto whispered, "that is any worse than anything we've done. It's okay, Sakura."

And she didn't know when her tears turned to laughter or when they managed to move her to her bed and tuck her in, but when she woke up, Sasuke was sleeping in her arm chair and Naruto on her couch, and she knew both she and her secrets would always be safe with them.

II.

It was during one of Sasuke's spur of the moment visits to Konoha, after he'd overheard one of the villagers muttering about how he must surely have repented if he was still allowed to walk free – it was then he realized he had to tell the truth, at least to someone.

So he waited. He waited outside Kakashi's window in Hokage Tower for Team Seven to come to him, as they knew he would, as they always did whenever he let them sense him nearby. It didn't take long. It never did.

It was there that he admitted to them, under the cool, steady moonlight and in the silence of the darkness, away from watchful eyes that Kakashi had unquestioningly banished, that he didn't regret or repent the things that Konoha thought he should.

In truth, Sasuke knew that what he'd done at the Five Kage Summit wasn't ideal, that it had been born of anger and fury. But he also knew it was anger well deserved, righteous and pure, and that the pain that had birthed it had been caused by Konoha. He didn't know how to regret killing Danzo. He couldn't regret what he'd learned from Orochimaru. There was a part of him that knew that if he hadn't left the village, he never would've reached the level needed to end the War. He had sinned, and he needed redemption – but not from what they thought.

He needed redemption for leaving Sakura with cruel words, for the kunai and the Chidori that had missed her by inches, for the genjutsu that had punished her even as he and Naruto had their final battle. He had sinned when he had attacked Kakashi, when he had thrust his hate and anger and pain onto Naruto without another thought, when he had betrayed every bit of who he was by trying to break their bond. He regretted what he'd done to those who loved him – to those he loved.

He hoped that was enough.

Naruto smiled and gripped his shoulder, eyes brilliant blue and strong. "You don't have to regret any of it," he said confidently. "None of it matters now, anyways. You don't do that kind of stuff anymore."

And Sasuke knew that, but –

Sakura reached out to gently touch his shoulder, gentle and strong. "We love you," she told him, so soft he almost missed it. "We know who you are, and we love you."

Kakashi's eyes crinkled in the corners. "Sasuke, I wouldn't go around telling the whole village. But personally, I wouldn't have expected anything else."

And Sasuke relaxed, because knowing they understood – that he wasn't, even unintentionally, betraying their trust – was somehow better. Sakura made tea, and Naruto complained to Kakashi about how come the Hokage didn't have any ramen available, and Kakashi did his best to explain that being Hokage didn't actually mean having everything he wanted at his beck and call, and Sasuke sat quietly in the windowsill and loved them as well as he could, in silence, because he couldn't take back his past, and maybe he wasn't ready for the future. So he waited until dawn and left his secrets safe with them.

III.

It was after they sparred that he let himself go.

They had met in a clearing only a day's travel from Konoha, at Naruto's request, and they had sparred until they could barely stand, until they had all three collapsed in the clearing at each other's backs. The rain started then. Sakura and Naruto had to return to the village, but neither of them moved.

It was there, in the quiet space created by the pouring rain, booming thunder, and the wind that ripped the leaves from the trees and rattled the bones of the dead – it was there that Naruto began to speak, and his voice was rough and low, filled with doubt and fear.

It was there that he admitted that when the older villagers called his name, he still flinched, waiting for the angry shouts or punishing hand that was sure to follow. He wondered (aloud, for the first time) if one day, he and Kurama damaged Konoha, even in protecting it, if then the hate would return, the anger would return, if he stood to lose all he had gained simply because he was who he was, and Kurama's power, however they wielded it, was pure destruction.

He wondered not if it was possible to protect the next generation but if it was probable that they would change the old.

His face was wet – with rain or tears or both, none of them knew for sure.

Overhead, a branch cracked and splintered as he finished speaking, spiraling down on them with all the force of the storm.

Naruto's chakra flared. Sakura raised her arm in defense. But it was Sasuke who deflected it as if it were nothing.

Susanoo was an overreaction, really, to only a branch. It wasn't like any of them were truly vulnerable. But the armor flowed purple around them, protection and safety, and Sasuke stared at Naruto with mismatched eyes and said, "You always have a home, moron. Village or not."

And Naruto half-laughed, and Sakura realized it was up to her to remind them both –

"You'll always have a home in Konoha," she said. "Both of you. Naruto, those people – you already have changed them. You make them want to be better. You are Konoha. You're its heart." She smiled at him softly. "And even if – even if they could change back, I'm Konoha, too. And Hinata. And Shikamaru. And Ino, Choji, Sai, Kiba, Shino, Tenten, Lee, and Kakashi-sensei – and Iruka-sensei. The village can't turn on you – on either of you – because we are the village, and we never will."

There was a pause, where thunder split the sky again, and the wind sent another limb swirling down harmlessly against Susanoo. Then a tan hand reached around Sakura's shoulders and pulled her into an orange chest, and pale fingers tangled with hers and squeezed tight. Naruto pressed a chaste kiss into her hair, and Sasuke whispered a soft thank you against the back of her hand.

They didn't make it back to Konoha until morning, when Sasuke saw them to its gates, but all night, they rested, protecting each other with chakra armor and unspoken love. They sat back to back, supporting each other, guarding each other's secrets through every lash of the storm.

They were far from perfect. No ninja lived unscarred. But each knew that when the darkness came, they wouldn't have to face it alone.

A/N: Alright, there's another one! What did y'all think? I've been angling for Team Seven goodness lately. Want more? Should I focus in on one relationship in particular? Let me know what you think! And as always, thank you for reading – it makes me happy to know there are those who enjoy this little collection.

-MN