16. When the first burst of emotion faded back into...

When the first burst of emotion faded back into normality, they lingered, locked in an embrace in silence. She relished the warmth of his arms and the familiarity of his presence. After what seemed like a lifetime, his cool and emotionless voice sounded just as she had remembered it.

"Sakura, where have you been?"

She felt strangely confused: "Where have I been?" She untangled herself from his embrace and stared at him. "You mean, where have you been?"

"On a mission. Kakashi's orders." His smooth voice answered and reminded her that he was still a man of few words.

She frowned: "Mission? Kakashi?" and then realisation hit her. Her jaw dropped and she stared at him amazed.

But when she tried to speak, he held up his hand to silence her. "Let's get you warm first."

They faced each other over a small fire. She fought nausea fighting its way up her throat while chewing on a small strip of almost burned rabbit that Sasuke had caught. Still she forced herself to eat and flushed it down with water. As she filled her stomach with the small portion of game, the nausea slowly disappeared until it was nothing more than a bleak memory in the back of her mind.

She kept staring at him, she couldn't help it. Sasuke in return, didn't acknowledge her but stared ahead into the fire. As she studied him she noticed small details about him. His face had changed so much!

Traces etched in his skin, trailed his finely chiselled features. Fine lines that expressed hardship and suffering and made him look matured and wise. They also betrayed the depth of his emotional life, he was no longer that angry and aloof boy, but a man that grew up through hardship and experience. His eyes had not changed: an intense black that seemed to absorb light instead of reflecting it. Those eyes still did not betray the workings of his mind, but they made him look as she remembered him: painfully handsome.

Sitting face to face with each other, there was another feature that stood out. A significant calm about him that felt uncharacteristic. No restless impatience with his surroundings that used to reside within him. He now reminded her of the two older Uchiha: Madara and Izuna. She felt a pang of hurt at the thought of the brothers. They were lost to her, and thinking that she would never be able to enjoy their easy manner and friendship, or witness their magnificent prowess in battle, felt like grief.

When she could focus on the now again, she noted that Sasuke's character seemed whole and well balanced. Calm but with a hidden power; young but with wisdom edging behind his lashes. She realised with a start that this was what he would have been like if Itachi didn't kill the Uchiha clan and traumatised him. Could it be that saving Izuna resulted in this? In a whole Sasuke? Had the massacre been averted? She felt a rolling tension take over her body.

"Sasuke-kun, why are you on a mission for Konoha? Are you a Konoha ninja again? What happened in the war?"

"I am. We beat Madara and Kaguya," his emotionless face changed when he lifted the corner of his mouth into a small grin, "and afterwards that dobe finally beat some sense in me. We have an … understanding..."

"Understanding?" She stared blankly at him.

"I guess you could say that I now acknowledge him as the better fighter and as my friend…." He said it softly as if he still couldn't believe it himself. His voice was tender when he spoke of Naruto.

She could only stare at him mesmerised by his words. What on earth? Naruto finally did it? He brought Sasuke back? She felt tears forming in her eyes. She lowered her head, ashamed of her emotions and scared to be disappointed by his reaction to them. She bit back her tears in the only way that she knew how to: with anger.

"You idiots! FIghting each other to the death?" Her eyebrow twisted dangerously.

"We were punished enough." He just stared at her unimpressed and then held up his left arm.

Her keen eyes analysed quickly and she recognized an artificial arm. She sat down next to him and grabbed it to sense the arm with her chakra. He let her do it silently. It was an artificial arm, but it seemed to be much more than that. She would ask Tsunade how she performed this miracle.

"And Itachi?"

His features grew grim as he stared into the fire, slowly recalling the last moments of his brother and the confession that he made. His face was impassive while he disclosed this most intimate moment of his life with her.

Instead of sympathising with his loss, she found her brain working furiously as his confession proved that the massacre was not a myth. How was it possible? There was no effect of their plan. She felt tears breaching her resolve. It was all for nothing. She gave up a life and then lost a new one. And it was all for nothing. Her hand caressed her belly, her thoughts drifting to Tobirama and she felt empty and alone.

"I am glad, Sasuke-kun," she paused for a minuteful second, trying to recollect herself but failing; " that you made peace with your brother, with Naruto, and the village."

"Not willingly. The dobe is responsible for this outcome."

As if thinking about Naruto invoked the idea of Team Seven, Sasuke stared at her then, tentatively, mistaking her tears for another emotion: "Sakura…I never had a chance to say this to you, but I am sorry. Sorry for everything."

She laughed through her tears: "You better be Uchiha. You hurt us, more than you know."

He looked at her with neutral eyes.

"But I am glad that you are at peace now. Can I call you my teammate again?" she felt a familiar fear bubbling in her stomach for his reaction.

"I guess you can, but I hope that we can be friends again as well." She felt some emotion stir deep inside, fluttering butterflies. Friends? How long did she wish for these words and more?

"Yeah.. friends would be good."

They fell silent and they both stared at the fire again. The cold began to seep into her limbs and she shivered. Sasuke noticed out of the corner of his eye.

"I have a cape that can keep us both warm." She looked at him as he held out one arm, lifting his cape, inviting her and she hesitated for a moment.

The cold was undeniable and would become worse. If she was squirmish she would freeze tonight. So she leaned into his warmth while he draped his mantle over the both of them. After a few awkward moments she let herself drift away, enveloped in his scent that reminded her of a youth long gone. She felt his hand drawing circles on her back which calmed her and made her drift off into darkness.

Sasuke sat there mesmerised with her in his arms. He was stunned by this chance meeting. She had been reported to be missing in action. Kakashi had been vague about the circumstances of her disappearance, but he always acted like she was just travelling about and could return any time.

What were the chances that he would find her like this, somewhere in the wilderness? And where had she been? He had not asked her again. Her black shinobi clothing looked old fashioned. She wore a Senju-clan hitai-ate, which puzzled him to no end, and she looked exhausted and worn down. A strange tale was behind it, but she did not volunteer information about her whereabouts yet. He would try and debrief her in the morning.

Her small form clinging to him felt nice, her smell was familiar. He realised with a start that he had missed her. Pushing her away with brutal force all these years made him feel regret for hurting her. He noticed a faint shimmer of hope deep inside himself. A hope that she would still care for him and her tears seemed to be proof of it. He hoped that they could become more than friends, even though he felt that he did not deserve it. He would be able to rebuild the Uchiha clan with her, a deeply rooted wish.

Then he thought about Naruto and felt a small pang of regret. He took her into his arms a little bit tighter, sniffing in her scent, and relishing the feel of her body against his. He would watch over her tonight and then bring her home tomorrow but in the meantime he would try to win her heart.

Beta'd by damnednation