Of Bulls and Golden Apples

"We can't keep on doing this, Sasuke. We can't keep on breaking and then mending each other, only to repeat the cruel cycle. We aren't immortal."

Chapter 02

Sasuke was a fool to have thought that just because he spent time with his teammate all day yesterday, that he would be left to his own company.

"Teme!"

A damn fool.

"Hurry up teme! Sakura is back so it is tradition ("Something I've had never been briefed of," Sasuke silently thought.) to eat together. They're waiting for us at the diner!"

Hearing the word 'diner' and not 'Ichiraku' was reason enough for Sasuke to give pause in his morning routines. Naruto, catching on, shook his head sadly. "Sakura refused to eat at Ichiraku. I know, I'm in mourning too." Naruto replied, taking Sasuke's silence as a sign of grief. Giving an exasperated sigh, Sasuke proceeded to turn the blond down but before the words 'I am not going' could spill from his lips, those green – viridian, forest, spring, emerald – eyes flashed in his mind momentarily.

So that was how he found himself walking alongside Naruto to the diner.

He was intrigued.


A bell sang out their arrival as soon as they stepped foot into the tiny, quiet diner on the corner of a busy street. It was mostly filled with civilians but Sasuke was able to make out a couple of younger nins with their family. Toward the back, seated in a large round booth, were Sai and Sakura. The latter was laughing at something the former man had said. Judging by the expression on Sai's face, it hadn't meant to come off as a joke.

"Sakura-chan!"

The soft buzzing conversation in the diner came to a dull stop at the sudden cry from Naruto. Sasuke, who stood uncomfortably next to the loud blond, quickly issued a head bashing as punishment. He sped away from the scene of the crime and quietly sat down at an opening next to Sai. The conversation in the diner slowly picked up and the attention shifted from the unabashed blond to their respective companies. The booth took a dip as Naruto practically threw himself into Sakura's expecting arms. "Sakura-chan, I missed you!"

The pinkette laughed at Naruto's childish antics and gave a hug in return. "I miss you too, Naruto." A slight nudge from the dark-haired ink master next to her ellicted an eye roll and a hug, "Yes, I miss you too Sai."

The three chattered on excessively for a minute or two, about Sakura's mission ("I told you that I can't tell you Naruto!" Sakura persisted.), about Kakashi's still obsession with X-rated novels, and Sai's latest book review of 'What does it mean to feel?'

For a second or two, Sasuke was fine with being left out of the mindless chatter but that ended quickly once he realized that of all the people Sakura greeted, he wasn't one of them. Straightening up in his seat, Sasuke got into his brooding pose. A particular loud laugh from Naruto, in which he threw his head back and slammed it into the wall, reminded him that there was an extra occupant in the spacious booth. "Hey! Sakura, did you see? Teme is back!"

Blink once, twice. Sakura looked around Sai and finally locked eyes with her teammate; the one who deserted them, the final piece to Team 7, and the one who finally made it home. She gave a smile and acknowledged his presence for the first time that day, "Sasuke."

Sasuke.

He wasn't sure why but that one word burned. That word rubbed him raw. It gyrated on his nerves and for a flash of a second, Sasuke almost told her to say his name properly. And her smile was too polite. It was a smile meant for acquaintances; not for teammates who have been through hell and back, for teammates who knew each other since they were budding nins, or for a teammate she declared her undying love for. It was as if they were strangers.

The silence afterwards was overwhelming and a bit unnatural, in Naruto's opinion. Thankfully, and surprisingly, it was Sai who came to the rescue. "What did you say your mission was, Ugly?"

And just like that, the moment between these two 'strangers' ended. It was abrupt, brief, and nothing like what Sasuke thought it would be. The rest of the meal was spent with Sakura denying any information on her 5 month long mission and Naruto and Sai trying to extort the information out of her. When his food arrived Sasuke found that his appetite had disappeared and for the life of him, he couldn't figure out why or how.

It wasn't until halfway through his ninjutsu routines at the training grounds – ox, tiger, ram, hare, rat – that he began to curse his impeccable memory. Images of her smile, warm, sad, loving, appeared before him. Her undying devotion, love, and comfort that he had occasionally drew on. To her, he was always 'Sasuke-kun', not simple and ordinary 'Sasuke'. And most of all, he can recall in great detail the way her eyes shone with immense warmth and tenderness, all reserved for him. That was what he remembered of Haruno Sakura.

This Sakura was a contradiction to all he remembered and he had only his memory to blame.


It took another week or two before Sasuke would run into the female member of their former Team 7. Sasuke hadn't meant to join, but after running menial errands all week ("Sneaking sake for the Hokage is an important task," Tsunade argued), even the brooding Uchiha could use a drink. The varying lukewarm response did nothing to make Sasuke feel welcome, but the fact that everyone stayed put and not leave was a sign on its own; though Sasuke suspect that Naruto had something to do with the hesitant acceptance. Glancing around the long table stationed in the back, Sasuke made out that almost all of the Rookie 9 gang was present. And Sakura, hair in a messy bun wearing a black crop top and pants, was snuggly sandwiched between Hyuuga Neji and Nara Shikamaru. Her attention was solely fixed on Inuzaka Kiba, who was in the climax of a clearly exaggerated story. But as soon as he took a seat across from her, she made eye contact and raised her glass in greeting.

Another moment that lasted for a few seconds before her attention shifted to the Hyuuga seated right next to her. Hushed whispers were exchanged between the two and Sasuke, even without his Sharigan activated, could see how close they leaned into each other. Just as how Hyuuga seemed to be ignoring him, Sasuke decided to do the same, resolving to order some warm sake instead. It wasn't until he saw the Hyuuga make a brief glance at him, caress Sakura's arm – to which Sakura laughed out loud – followed by a self-indulged smirk in his direction that Sasuke almost, almost, threw his drink in those hateful milky eyes.

The night wore on after that incident without any hiccup. More drinks were consumed, stories got more and more dramatic, and touches became slightly inappropriate, but Sasuke didn't find it in him to care. The overflowing amount of warm sake that he consumed had helped loosen the tight string within him. For once Sasuke felt himself relax slightly in front of company, which did not appear any more different from his usual self save for a scowl. His teammate, however, were on a different spectrum. Naruto was already parading around drunk singing and making bets with fellow comrades that his 'sexy no jutsu' would most definitely have Kakashi drop his X-rated book. Sai was drawing some very inappropriate pictures of females at the bar, and then proceeding to show them – which seemed to be going well, Sasuke noted. It was only Sakura who seemed to still be sane. Even after the insane amount of alcohol Sasuke watched her drink, Sakura seemed unaffected.

Reassuring himself that Sakura was a grown woman, and not a five year old child who needed his supervision, Sasuke averted his gaze to be met with Rock Lee's. There was no hesitation in his straightforward gaze and Sasuke could clearly make out the drunken state that Lee was in.

Perhaps that was prompted Lee to ask, "How does it feel to be back?"

The silence in the room was deafening.

For a moment, Sasuke struggled with his answer. Honestly, he never put much thought into his return. He always knew that he would return to Konoha once his goals were met, but he never put any thought behind his actual return. The emotions, the experiences, and the sacrifices; he never paid it a second thought. Looking around the table, he noted that while some feign disinterest, there were many that awaited his answer. Naruto, in particular, was straining over Lee's shoulders and staring at him with anxious cerulean eyes.

Maybe it was the alcohol in the system or maybe it was how close in proximity he was with his old team, but some emotions of his former, past, younger life surfaced.

"Aa"

It was apparently the correct and acceptable answer because the noise grew in comparison to before. In fact, he was even invited to join in some of the ongoing conversations around the table. Later in the night, when Sasuke went over the details of the night, he would tell himself that the only reason he gave an amicable answer was because he didn't want to see his comrade's crestfallen expression anymore - though a small part of him did agree that it was the right answer.

More than halfway into the night - or maybe more than half, Sasuke had already lost count - the door slammed open, followed by a high pitch screech. Sasuke could have sworn that it was the sound of nails running down a chalkboard but when he looked up, all he saw was Ino and Tenten walking in. It was apparent that they had just returned from a mission, their pack still on their backs and their clothes slightly muddied. A platinum blonde blur sped past the entrance and into the arms of a very annoyed Shikamaru. "Troublesome," Shikamaru muttered, but no one missed the way his arms curled around Ino lovingly.

And while that relationship came to no surprise, the next one did. While a blonde blur ran from the entrance to their table, an equally speedy green flash raced from the tables to the entrance. Sasuke watched, with some expression of shock, as Lee gave Tenten a kiss and a bone-shattering hug. If memory serves him right, which it does, Sasuke could've sworn that Neji and Tenten had some sort of relationship forming. Sneaking a glance at said man, Sasuke was met with a stoic expression. Sasuke narrowed his eyes, feeling a bit like one of those gossiping civilian women in the supermarket, and on closer inspection, noticed Neji's tight white grip on his glass.

Sasuke would have thrown a smirk back at the Hyuuga in retaliation, if it wasn't for Sakura leaning in. A slender arm came up from under the table and laid itself on the crook of his arm. A gentle squeeze was followed by Sakura leaning further in to whisper some words into the shell of Neji's ear. Neji turned his face towards the young woman in response, their eyes locking in the short distance. Several short seconds passed as something unsaid transpired between the two.

Suddenly Sasuke felt like an intruder, a stranger, again.

Breaking the eye contact, Neji was the first to get up from his seat while Sakura pounded the rest of her drink. "Sorry everyone, I think Sakura and I are turning in. We were in meeting today and we're exhausted."

While most of the table murmured their acceptance, Tenten called out her disapproval. "I just returned after a weeklong mission! How about staying just a little longer with Lee and me?" Neji simply gave a small pat on her shoulders, "Next time."

The wooden door to the pub opened and closed once more. The conversation went on without breaking stride and Lee found himself in Sakura's old seat as Tenten took a seat next to her beloved. It wouldn't be until further down in memory, when Sasuke revisited the simpler times in his life, did he questioned his next course of actions.

"Dobe, I'm leaving."

Naruto, heavily engrossed in a conversation with a beet-red Hinata, merely waved him off. Not even bothering to give his farewells to Sai, who was having his face sucked off by a random woman, Sasuke made his way out into the chilly night.

'You're just making sure she is okay,' Sasuke silently assured himself when he found his own legs moving as if they had a mind on their own. 'She had a lot of drinks and it is unsafe to be walking around late at night.' Once that reason started to sound a bit like an excuse, Sasuke changed tactics. 'A walk to simply clear out the alcohol.'

In the distance, Sasuke could make out two figures walking up a street that he didn't recall. Following ("No, simply walking" Sasuke admonished quietly") the pair, Sasuke watched as they stopped in front of a simple two story blue house. The window shutters were painted white and the door was a bright red with a simple gold knocker and doorknob. Sorting through his past memories, Sasuke couldn't come up with any recollection of Sakura living on this street and in that house. He made to walk closer, as if he casually strolled by, to see if Sakura was feeling fine. Neji was standing inappropriately close and from their quick, hushed tones, Sasuke couldn't make out if this was against Sakura's will.

He hadn't fully gone a step before quickly turning around and heading back the road he came from.

No matter how fast, how far, he walked away - and thought Sasuke tried to reason that the burn in his chest was from the sake - he couldn't get the searing image of Neji slamming his lips on to Sakura's.

And for all he was worth, Sasuke couldn't get forget the memory of Sakura returning the kiss with the same passion.


A/N: Another chapter? I'm on a bit of a roll, YES to the creative muses! Please review and let me know what you think/opinion. If this isn't really all that great, at least I can focus my attention somewhere else? Also, I'm trying to evolve my writing style, in case anyone notices a difference in writing style from Lurking Within (shamelessly promoting) so constructive criticism is GREATLY appreciated! I'm also finishing up the last bits before updating. JUST REVIEW EVERYTHING.. Kindly please?