A lot has changed from this point!
I hope you enjoy it!
Shino took the cryptex and headed towards Sunagakure and got it delivered to Gaara.
After beating him within and inch of his life, Naruto hauled Sasuke on his back and headed towards Konoha. They reach just as the dawn was breaking. Sakura thanked the team for their timely support and left to report the mission details to Tsunade. Kakashi and Neji took the rogue nins to Ibiki for interrogation and Naruto took Sasuke to the hospital.
Once again, Sauske was tended to by Sakura, only this time she remained cold, distant and avoided him as much as possible. Time went by, Sasuke healed a lot faster than before. Sakura didn't tend to him as the days of his discharge came closer. On the day he was leaving Naruto came to see him
"Hi… I came to tell you that Tsunade sama wants to meet you… " he said
"Hn"
"Also… I'm leaving to Myōboku to continue my training so I wont be seeing you… Don't run off while I'm gone…"
"Hn"
"And stay away from Sakura… you've done enough damage there…"
"…."
"I'll see you when I get back … "
As he leaves, Sauske calls out to him.."Naruto… Why…" did you never give up was left unsaid.
"Because you are my best friend!" with his trademark smile and thumbs up Naruto closed the door and walked away
—-
Tsunade was calculating his every move as he walked in. Once he took a seat opposite her, she said "I need to know everything you did in the past 5 years while you were away…"
He told her, everything, about the travel, about finding the remaining members of team Taka getting them settled. Visiting Itachi's shrine… meeting Orochimaru's and his son and sending him to Konoha.
Tsunade listened intently. Once he was done she said… "Do you want to leave? Or do you want to stay?"
At the word stay the flash of pink hair passed his mind and before he could process the question his heart made him blurt out "Stay…"
"For good?" Tsunade asked firmly
Sasuke gave a curt nod. A small part of him felt better as he thought of how hard Itachi had wanted him to be part of Konoha
"Okay good… As you know once the Uchiha's were in charge of the Konoha Police, I would like to reinstate the force and would like you to head it… The village has gotten much bigger and after the war, the only way we have of managing our economy is by sending ninjas on missions. This leaves very little room for internal affairs monitoring. Are you up to it?"
Sasuke couldn't believe his ears. Not only was Tsunade, not going to charge him, she was giving him the opportunity to become a member of this Village once again. He couldn't bring words to express his fear and his gratitude, instead he gave a curt nod. Not a single muscle on his face flinched to show the emotions running wild beneath the surface of that calm cool exterior. He thought best not to speak as each time he did open his mouth he seemed to upset someone.
A week later the village knew and regardless of whether they liked it or not, they had to live with the fact that an Uchiha was running the police force yet again. He wanted to go meet Sakura. He wanted to tell her about this. He wanted to thank her for healing him. He wanted a lot of things but he'd end up doing none of them. He just stood there looking outside his bedroom window from which he had left 5 years ago.…
Flashback
"Sasuke…" Sakura called out tentatively in the darkness. He was lying there bandaged but no longer near death. He held his breath and kept his eyes tightly shut as if he was still asleep.
He felt her sit next to him "Sasuke…" She whispered again
"Hn"
"I need to give you the antibody injection, it's to help your arm fuse with the one we made for you using Hashirama's cells…"
He opened his eyes. Sakura's face was still bruised but it had recovered. Black met green and Sakura's heart skipped a beat. She smiled and blushed and began to rub alcohol on his arm. She found a vein and injected him. He watched her like had for the past week. She was still the same, and yet so different. He could see how much she still cared for him and how much he still affected her. He however could not see any annoying lovestruck kunochi, no, she was now a formidable medic nin who could kill him with a single blow. She had taken on Madara in the final battle and survived. She was worthy of his respect but still, every-time he looked at her, he felt the overwhelming need to protect her. He didn't know why.
She finished bandaging him and got up to leave but this time he held her hand. Sakura looked at him surprised
"It's late…" He said
"I'm sorry I got stuck at the hospital but you needed the injection…"
"Stay"
"What?"
"It's late… stay…" He kept a firm grip on her hand and closed his eyes
Sakura smiled a little and lay down next to him.
End Flashback
Sasuke was lying in bed alone and all he could think was how empty the bed felt without her. He could hear her voice in his head "You're not alone… I promise… Just talk to me…"
—
The next morning, before going to the station, he paid a visit to the Hyuga complex. He bought a lot fine gifts that he presented as tribute to Hiashi Hyūga and then asked him for his guidance and help in setting up the police force's detective division. Hiashi was not keen on Sasuke, but he couldn't refuse him outright since the boy was obviously making an effort. He said he would taks Neji with any help he needed and with that promise Sasuke left.
After the Hyuga clan he visited the Nara, Inuzuka and Yamanaka clans with a similar request. Shikamaru and Ino were happy to help but Kiba's father Akihiro Inuzuka had his doubts, he however was not as polite as Hiashi and simply dismissed the Uchiha with a warning that if word of coup ever brewed again, he would get rid of the Uchiha himself. Sasuke was still grateful that he had the full support of 2 out of the 4 great clans of Konoha. He wanted someone to share it with but Naruto was at Myōboku and Sakura… Well, he didn't know how to even gather the courage to go there… So after doing the necessary paperwork for the building of the station, he went home, ate a few flavoured rice balls and tried to fall asleep…
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