Summary: When no one else understood him, for being paranoid about the lives he took, she was always there to tell him that it wasn't his fault, that he had no say in the matter, that within her and in her arms were lives he brought forth into the world.

Pairings: Sasuke/Sakura

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto, at all. All the characters belong to Kishimoto Masashi-sensei.

As Time Passes

Comforting

He rubbed his hands furiously under the running water as he tried to remove the stench of human blood on his skin. The soap he was using was starting to sting the vulnerable skin covering his hands, as he did this every night. He was an ANBU Captain; he was supposed to be accustomed to this sort of thing, assassinations. Hell, even his own wife was an ANBU, a medical specialist but an ANBU nonetheless. She killed, despite the fact that she was a medical specialist. When she washed her hands, it wasn't as vigorous as he was doing now. He almost always nearly rubbed his hands raw but his wife almost always came in to stop him from continuing.

Lately, he had been undergoing ANBU missions without his wife, who was his subordinate in the platoon. After all, she had an excuse. What kind of wife would want to be separated from her first child who was barely five months old? He was too young to fend for himself and she did not want to bother their friends to take care of their own child. Most of them were expecting or had their own children to take care of. He just didn't want his child to be under the care of Naruto, whom he found too immature to take care of his son. Everyone else just didn't meet the expectations. In the mean time, she had asked for an indefinite leave from her duties as a ninja, until she found a suitable arrangement where she would feel safe about the whereabouts of her son. The Godaime was alright with this. After all, his wife is the Godaime's favorite pupil and their son was her favorite, if not the only, godchild.

The door creaked open, causing him to swerve around suddenly, the warm water sill running, splashing the vulnerable skin of his hands. Crimson laced his otherwise emotionless onyx eyes as he eyed who was behind him. It was his wife and in her arms was their son, the heir to the once glorious Uchiha Clan. Reaching out, he twisted the knob which stopped the water from running. Facing his wife, he had a blank face.

"Come, I want to show you what Satoshi did today," said Sakura softly as she stretched out a hand, inviting Sasuke to come over. "It's really cute. Nothing refined or anything but what do you expect of a five month old child?" Sasuke smirked slightly as he walked over, taking his wife's otherwise smooth hands in his own calloused ones. "Another mission went wrong?" she asked, inquisitive of the things he had been doing lately.

"No," he mumbled softly as he tightened his hold on his wife's hand, "But the history of the one we were tasked to assassinate reminded me of him." Sakura squeezed his hand, telling him to forget about it. It was probably just a coincidence anyway. "I should find a time to kill him soon. The longer he lives, the more dangerous he is to yours and Satoshi's existence, as well as any future child we may have." Sakura chose to remain silent until they reached the living room. "What is it that you wanted to show me?" Swiftly, the kunoichi put their son into his arms, bent down on the floor, and showed him a piece of paper.

"I think it's amusing," said Sakura with a confident grin as she watched her husband stare at the piece of paper, then down at his son, "That he has the capability to draw his own father at the age of five months old." Sasuke stared incredulously at the paper. That was supposed to be him in the paper, not a bunch of squiggles! Modesty aside, he did have to admit he looked much better than that. "Black on top, then flesh, then blue, then white, flesh once more for the legs and the arms, then blue for the sandals. Very life you, Sasuke-kun," said Sakura impishly, a sparkle in her jade green eyes.

"I'd like to see you drawn by Satoshi," retorted Sasuke, his words barely heard. However, due to the silence of the living room, she heard it. In a flash, Satoshi was on the floor with a piece of paper in front of him and crayons that associated with the colors Sakura wore were on the floor beside him. "Satoshi, draw your mother," he said as he stood up straight. His wife only laughed.

"Come, sit down with me," she invited as she pulled him along with her, landing on the couch with a soft thud. Sasuke remained silent as he waited for her to speak. "Stop rubbing your hands so when you wash. It's not your fault you're assigned to kill. It's what an ANBU does," said Sakura softly as she intertwined her fingers with his, her jade eyes focusing on Satoshi.

"But the guilt is still there," he replied stubbornly.

"You don't have a say in the matter. All you can really do is follow what the mission asks of you." Sasuke kept silent. "I'm pregnant again, you know."

"Oh really? How do you know?"

"Tsunade-shishou told me so. I visited her today. She wanted to play with Satoshi for a while."

And it was all he needed to know. Even at the cost of lives that he had been tasked to take, there were always two things to look forward to, even during the mission, the fact that his children were alive and the fact that his wife understood him, even if no one else did.

Owari

It's long.

It's cute.

Not much else to say.

In any case, these stories aren't going to be long, since they're the type devoid of any major storyline. If these one-shots inspire you to write any more, by all means go ahead.