EDIT: I uploaded this chapter earlier today and deleted it. I decided the length was too short and added another scene to this chapter. If you read the chapter in the morning, make sure you scroll down and read the last scene again. Sorry about the confusion!
Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto.
Sakura dragged her feet along the path that lead her away from the main hospital building and into the surrounding garden. Her limbs felt like lead as she plopped herself down on a bench overlooking a bed of dahlias.
Heaving a deep sigh, she let her eyelids fall shut.
Only to have them pop open again the next minute.
She didn't have to turn around to know who that powerful aura belonged to.
"Sasuke." her voice ringed of surprise. "You're still in Konoha? It's been-" her eyerbrows scrunched "-five days?"
"Six." he responded, bypassing her first question. Sakura sighed again. Every day followed the same routine, all her days were spent at the hospital and after a while it became difficult to tell the days apart.
"Oh." she mouthed. Her head rose so she could meet his eyes. "So what brings you here?"
Wordlessly, he crossed over to the other side of the bench and sat down. He lifted the sleeve of his black t-shirt and held his arm out to her.
Sakura propped herself up straighter and examined the laceration on his forearm.
"How'd you get this?" she inquired as she tried to inspect the depth of the cut and what might have caused it.
He only shrugged.
"It's been healed before." she remarked.
"Aa, an old man outside Ame looked at it." he replied "He healed it a little and said the rest would heal naturally."
Sakura bit her lip and nodded. The old man was right, she thought, it would heal naturally, but Sasuke isn't a patient man. The wound was probably the only reason he was still in Konoha. On his other visits he'd only stay a day or two at a time, never staying longer than necessary. His patience with nature must've lasted five days before it ran out.
Sasuke was mentally debating whether he should ask Sakura to look at it another time given her exhausted and chakra deprived state or simply walk away, but before he could do either he felt warmth soak through his arm and travel down his body in waves.
The ethereal green glow around her hands disappeared as quickly as it had appeared. He glanced down at his arm to find not even the slightest indication that there had been a wound there only seconds ago.
Sakura leaned back against the bench once more as Sasuke nodded in thanks. He got up to leave when Sakura's voice stopped him.
"Ne, you can stay Sasuke-kun. The flowers are beautiful this time of the year." her eyes remained fixed on the wide expanse of blossoms before her.
With his wound healed, Sasuke was ready to depart from Konoha next morning, but as he swept his eyes across the garden he thought it wasn't like he had to return home to prepare for his departure. He never unpacked.
Without saying a word, he sat back down.
They sat there in comfortable silence until a frantic medic rushed out the hospital door and informed Sakura that her presence was required in the operating theater.
Scrambling towards the building, she mouthed an apology in Sasuke's direction and he took it without a word.
The next time they saw each other was eight months later.
Sakura took measured steps towards the hokage's office. An ANBU messenger had appeared on her window sill this morning informing her to receive a mission from Naruto later in the day.
Inside the office she saw Naruto behind his massive oak desk, every inch of the rich wood covered by papers and scrolls.
To her right sat Sasuke on an old, green sofa, mild amusement shining in his eyes as he looked at the young hokage frantically shuffle through the papers. Of course, Sakura knew of his presence before she even stepped into the room. She had sensed his pulsating chakra when she stepped into the the vicinity of the hokage tower.
"Sasuke-kun! You're back. Where'd you go this time?" she quipped.
"Kumo" he answered, eyes never leaving the blond.
"Aa" she acknowledged. Turning over to face Naruto, she asked "You summoned me, Hokage-sama?"
"Aw, don't call me that Sakura-chan! And yes, I have a mission for you. There's been some sort of disease outbreak in Suna and they need assistance" he said. "I'd send someone else but Gaara personally asked for you."
Sakura pursed her lips. True to his word, Naruto had directed money towards the hospital and with the increase in staff count, she'd finally been able to relax a little. She was hoping to see Ino and catch up on some reading in her free time.
Although, she supposed, maybe leaving the village wasn't such a bad idea. It had been over an year since she last took a mission.
"Alright." Sakura said. Naruto nodded and threw a scroll her way which she deftly caught. "Thanks Sakura-chan!"
She nodded at him and then looked at Sasuke. His features were set into a scowl as he gazed out the window behind Naruto. Her heart fluttered in her chest as she took in his sharp, angular face and his mismatched eyes but her face didn't betray a thing. Turning around, she walked towards the door.
"Ja ne, Naruto, Sasuke."
.
She returned from Suna a week later. The mission was simple and the epidemic was handled swiftly. Suna's hospital was smaller than Konoha's but very efficient, when she left most patients were well on their way to recovery.
Crossing the gates of Konoha and nodding in greeting to the guards, Sakura made a beeline towards the hokage tower. After submitting her mission report she walked home to her apartment only to be greeted with an empty fridge.
Cursing under her breath, she changed out of her shinobi attire into civilian clothes and made her way out the door with the intent to stock up on groceries.
She walked down the streets of Konoha, smiling and nodding as she came across old friends and patients on the street, occasionally stopping for a chat. But when another familiar face came into view, her feet halted.
A little ways ahead of her stood Sasuke, critically examining a tomato from a fruit stand.
Her eyes widened in surprise. She didn't expect to see Sasuke in Konoha after a week. Worry filled her as she ran a cursory glance over his body, expert eyes looking for any signs of injury.
She found none.
Still frozen in place, her eyes widened in realization of what this could mean. Sasuke turned his head in her direction.
Their eyes met and she smiled.
Placing one stiff foot after the other, Sasuke retraced his path out of Konoha. He knew his journey of redemption was far from over, and he still hadn't found it in himself to forgive Konoha completely for what they did to the Uchiha.
So why was he finding it difficult to leave?
Grinding his teeth together, he crossed the threshold of the leaf, moving towards the dense forests ahead. With practiced ease, he jumped from treetop to treetop while his mind wandered back to Konoha.
He had arrived at the village with the intention of informing Naruto about the activity on the border, restocking his supplies, and then leaving. That should have only taken him a day, two tops. So why had he stayed a week?
'Because you're a fool' his mind answered in contempt.
He was sitting in Naruto's office when he sensed Sakura's chakra nearby. He figured she was there to discuss hospital matters again.
But no. The dobe was sending her on a mission, alone no less. He knew Sakura was an adept kunoichi, maybe the strongest he'd seen, and it wasn't even a combat mission so there was really nothing he should have been worried about.
Which is why he was finding it hard to explain to himself why he had stayed in Konoha till he was sure she had returned.
Sasuke Uchiha is no delusional fool. He knew Sakura was more than his teammate. She was one of his most precious people. Of course it was justified to be worried about someone you just cannot afford to lose.
But the dobe was his friend too. And he never felt the kind of relief when he saw Naruto after a mission as he did when he saw Sakura in the market that afternoon. Unharmed.
Shaking his head, Sasuke picked up speed, putting more distance between him and Konoha. As if distance could drive away the pink and green that plagued his mind. Looking down at the arm that Sakura had healed months ago, Sasuke wondered if it had anything to do with how he got wounded in the first place.
Closing his eyes, he tried to drive away the memory of the girl in Ame screaming for help, and how all his ninja training left him as he quickly stepped in and shielded her with his body from the thug's Kunai.
He tried to forget how her pale red hair had looked pink in the dim light.
A/N: Well, that's chapter one. I'll be updating weekly but I thought I'd upload the first chapter earlier, so you have an idea where the story is heading. The plot will revolve mostly around Sasuke's visits to Konoha between his travels and the progress he makes with Sakura. If you liked the chapter (or didn't) then please drop a review! I'd love to hear your thoughts about the story.