A/N: we're getting close to the end so Sasuke has become so incredibly soft for his wife ajkfajs

Enjoy and sorry for not updating sooner :~)

They spent a lot more time sitting and talking by the river. It was just far enough from the village where Sasuke didn't feel suffocated, but close enough so he didn't feel like he was running away.

"The retaliation is getting worse even though no formal decision has been made yet. Each family is supposed to get a set of food vouchers from the village but-" Sasuke shook his head. Calling the Uchiha clan self-sufficient had always been a thinly veiled excuse to stop providing them with resources. It just led to a vicious cycle of the Uchiha being forced to fulfill their own needs, then growing more independent and distant from the village.

At first, he thought some kind of punishment was necessary. But he was coming to realize that justice wasn't so black and white. Just like the many citizens of Konoha weren't responsible for the shortcomings of their leadership, someone as innocent as his baby nephew shouldn't be punished for what he wasn't involved in creating. His anger grew more complicated when he wasn't sure who to blame.

Sakura wore a disgusted expression, "That's no way to treat your own villagers. It's completely unfair."

"That's what I keep thinking, but part of me also feels like we dug our own graves and now we have to lie in them. We caused this mess, in a way." He tossed a stone into the water and watched it sink to the bottom. "At the same time, my father said the village has always had its own agenda and I…"

"As much as you hate to agree with him, he's right."

Sasuke nodded. Konoha used people as pawns. "I hate how it took me so long to notice. Your family, was it ever any different?"

"Hmm, there are definitely some things my parents would like to see changed. Some seasons the village pressures them to just grow more and more of one crop, but that's not so good for the soil. And they've never paid farmers very well, despite them sustaining the entire village and then some." She had always been taught to value hard work, but sometimes after a long day, she would wonder if there was an easier way.

"All of this has forced me to really think." Sasuke was grappling with big questions and kept coming up short on satisfactory answers. He had been comfortable before — but he was growing now.

Sakura made a noise of agreement. "I don't particularly care for the phrase 'a blessing in disguise' but some things that start out bad, end up not being so terrible. Or they teach you a lesson. You endure. You find reasons to keep going. Like, I didn't want to get married at first but now…"

Sasuke looked incredibly smug as he stole a kiss from her. He was confident that she no longer simply tolerated their union, but found pleasure and comfort in it.

"You're easily distracted," Sakura observed.

"You're very distracting," he countered, kissing her again. "Let's fish now." He was tired of conversation for now. He too needed time to sort his thoughts.

Sakura shifted on the floor, seemingly content with the change in activities. "I'm quite hungry today, catch a really big one for me!"

"Ah, I will."

The orphanage was finally nearing completion thanks to so many helping hands, but the children housed there would need care for a long, long time. Every time the world beyond Konoha's line of trees calls to him, Sasuke looks to the side at Sakura talking with the children and he's pulled right back.

She was needed here. Asking her to leave with him was out of the question. It would be like taking a plant outside of its native habitat; perhaps it can grow elsewhere, but it would not thrive.

Maybe one day, he can feel needed here too.

Sasuke felt a small hand tug at his trousers. He looked down to see one of the kids staring up at him with a mischievous twinkle in his eye. "Can we play? I'm bored without school."

Maybe that day would come a lot sooner than he expected.

There were things he missed about his old life. He should pay a visit to the aunty who always gave him snacks. He should play with his nephew more.

But he didn't miss waking up alone. He didn't miss feeling like the weight of the world rested squarely on his shoulders. He didn't miss looking to his father for validation and never finding it every damn time.

He could be responsible for some things, like making sure his wife was happy and getting enough rest.

He could set goals without letting them take over his entire life, without letting those successes and failures define him completely.

"We should open another school here. Maybe one connected to the orphanage," he told Sakura on their daily walk. Sasuke felt like he could finally stretch without burning after growing pains had torn through him.

He could choose to enjoy the simple pleasures of everyday life instead of worrying too much, like the way his wife's eyes sparkled at him and the fact that the sun was shining beautifully. No matter how small, happiness was happiness.

"Where did you get that idea?" she asked with clear interest.

He shrugged. "I think I'd be decent at teaching math." The skills he learned selling at the market had to be good for something. And the village had reached the phase of rebuilding where thinking bigger was cautiously allowed. Konoha had plenty of room for another school. At a school you could teach and build and guide and create instead of destroying.

Sakura came to a stop to kiss his cheek. "Just make sure all the girls don't fall in love with you when you're teaching, it happens more easily than you'd think. They'll be totally doomed if you offer private lessons."

He slung an arm around her and smirked, "They'll grow tired of my lessons when I won't stop talking about my wife for the entire hour."

They sat by the river watching the sun set. "This could be a decent spot," Sasuke commented vaguely. But Sakura got the message.

"I think it's a good choice. Not too far from the main village, but we'd have privacy." Sasuke's ears turned red, but he nodded. That was important to him.

"We can get the materials to start soon."

"Sounds like a plan."

He waited to tell his parents until he was absolutely certain what his next move would be. One does not simply leave the Uchiha clan. Even Itachi still lived nearby.

Sasuke had been in crisis, wondering what is tradition? What is purity? And who gets to decide these things? He couldn't control his heritage, but he can create his own future and leave behind his own legacy. The true Uchiha traditions of loving fiercely and deeply would remain carved into his heart, but he didn't have to accept the disrespect being shown to him by his own family.

He didn't quite know what his purpose was anymore. But he would never find out if he stayed in one place.

His father, the stubborn old man steeped in his ways, wasn't having it.

"You are an Uchiha and that means you will stay here." Fugaku could live with fraught and frosty silence, but he could not stand for this outright rebellion by his youngest son. Itachi had been permitted to move out, but Sasuke had not even asked.

"I define what being an Uchiha means to me. I refuse to remain here any longer. We're leaving." Everything had always been laid out for him; so many expectations and burdens were placed upon him before that all changed. He was still young, but he had known for a long time that he would never be the son his father so desperately wanted him to be. And that was just fine.

"Where will you even go?" Fugaku leveled an accusation in his condescending tone: he didn't believe Sasuke could make it out on his own.

But he wouldn't be alone. "Sakura has her own network of friends and family. We'll stay with others until we can finish building our own home." He would never pay off his debts to Tsunade, would he? No matter. He would rather owe someone who always had his wife's best interests in mind than grovel at his father's feet.

"You can always come back here," his mother spoke up quickly.

"No need," Sasuke said in a much softer voice than before. "I've made my decision, and I'm not backing down." He walked away from his parents to start packing up his things.

Sasuke still went to clan gatherings when he felt like it. He kept some people at arm's length, not quite ready to close the gap yet. Being able to choose where to live outside of his childhood home helped him feel like he was in control too.

He could let go of some of that control when choosing to plant a garden; he'd be at the mercy of the sun, but it seemed worth it to cultivate some tomatoes of his own.

He had returned from a meeting and poked around the newly planted garden for a bit before telling Sakura what happened. She was nothing if not patient with him and he appreciated that endlessly.

He sighed, "They reached an agreement. An extra tax will be added to all of our goods, but it goes entirely to the rebuilding efforts. Citizens will just think we raised our prices a little. No one will know. They didn't want to stir up any more fear.

Turns out that slimy elder Danzo planted the buyer. He's always hated us. Our family friend, Kakashi, led the investigation and found that out after some serious questioning and a full investigation. Kakashi called this a wedding gift to us. Strange guy, but a decent one.

And the old man is stepping down. It's about damn time. I heard the new Hokage, a Namikaze, is backed by Tsunade so I'm sure he'll be fine. I also heard she was a contender, but turned it down."

Sakura nodded and placed a comforting hand on her husband's shoulder, "Sounds about right. Tsunade has her own plans, you know how she is. And I'm so relieved that things worked out about as well as they could." It was only the start, but they would move forward one day at a time.

"There's more," he swallowed. "All the village children will receive a small monetary gift. Like a promise to the next generation. They're innocent, always have been. And going forward, there will be more integration with Uchiha children. They want them to attend our school.

The Uchiha are proud, fierce, loyal. They are loving. That can extend beyond our little district." Sasuke looked at Sakura meaningfully. "You don't have to be born Uchiha to have these qualities or values. Uchiha can be forged like the steel of our finest swords."

It had taken a lot to get there, but Sasuke could finally feel some semblance of peace settle around them. He would take it.

A/N: In this story I hc that Sasuke loves kids 3 Anyway this story will wrap up soon (like one more chapter that is mostly written), I've enjoyed writing it but feel ready to move on!

I didn't originally intend to make this so Sasuke-centric but so it goes :')