A/N: Hey you guys, its Kakashis-girl0! So sorry for the long wait. Sometimes writer's block comes at inconvenient times. LOL!! Well, here's the update. Thanks for the reviews sakuragirl721 and ew-uranerd.
Disclaimer: Unfortunately I don't own Naruto or anything about it. Darn!
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Chp. 2: Remembering

She felt a strong grip pull her up by the waist. Next thing she knew, she was in a warm, loving embrace. She finally let go. She had to release her bottled up feelings to the only person that understood her, Naruto. Her breath became uneven through her sobs. She had begun to feel that unwanted sense of helplessness. Sakura looked into his cerulean gaze.

"Why did he leave us, Naruto," Sakura questioned, her voice wavering.

He gave her a thoughtful glance, even after all of those years he still didn't know.

"I honestly don't know, Sakura-chan," he gave a sigh.

They stood in the pounding rain holding each other, absorbing each other's pain. Why did he leave us, Naruto wondered. Why does he still have this hold over her?

A lonesome tear rolled down Sakura's cheek. It was a lone reminder of all of her suffering. As the tear slid down her face the atmosphere changed. Malice filled the air. As her tear fell to the ground and met with the rain, it happened. The earth shook and trembled, forcing the two to fall to the ground. They both knew who it was, but they didn't know why.

Sasuke remembered the day that he left his village. It was a day much like this; raining as if it was the tears shed by his friends, telling him to stay. The rain had been whispering to him that day, don't leave, Sasuke, we'll miss you. It had made him amused. This village was weak but he had nowhere else to go. His tasks were nowhere near completed, seeing that he had killed the former Akatsuki member, his brother, Itachi. When he returned to kill his former sensei and his lackey, they had disappeared. He knew that he would be shunned for a while after his return, but that didn't stop him. As he jumped from the branches of the enormous trees, an unintended site made him stop.

An unwanted feeling of longing made him stop; up ahead in a clearing stood Naruto and Sakura. Sakura, he played with the name in his mind. They both had grown immensely. The blonde had grown in height, and wore a different outfit. Sasuke guessed that he had also grown in power. He now looked to the kunoichi. Sakura now had the many curves of a woman, and she had also progressed in height. Her lush pink hair was still cut short, but the thing that caught his attention was her eyes. They were still as beautiful as before. He could tell that she had been crying, seeming as though her eyes were glassy and not as optimistic as usual. He used this to his advantage. As her last tear hit the ground, he jumped. Before hitting the ground, his fist collided with the grass, causing the earth to rumble. Steadily, he approached his teammates.

Naruto pulled Sakura up, they both instinctively pulled kunai to the ready. They felt his presence; a powerful amount of chakra coming in waves. Sakura dropped her kunai with a clatter. Her face became pale and she trembled.

"S-s-Sasuke-kun," she struggled.

The look on her face was incredulous. Thoughts were racing through her mind and they wouldn't leave. Sasuke gave his famous at the mention of his name. He nodded,

"It's been a while, Naruto, Sakura," he then turned towards Sakura.

"Have you changed at all Sakura? It looks as though you have been crying. Haven't they taught you not to show any emotion? Or are you still the annoying, weak kunoichi you once were?"
Sakura's eyes turned to slits at this snide comment. Hadn't she worked hard for this moment? Hadn't she labored to change? Yes, she was strong; no one could ever change that.
"I know that I've changed, Sasuke. I don't know that you have. Have you achieved anything under Orochimaru? I know I've changed under Tsunade-sama. Or are you still the same cold-hearted bastard that betrayed this village; betrayed the village for power. I've change, have you, Sasuke?"

Tension filled the air it was a strong presence. It was so strong it was supplying their chakra with hate; forgetting their old feelings. Suddenly, the world was spinning. Everything was a blur of colors. Sakura had landed an attack on Sasuke so fast that he couldn't even defend himself. The blurring became worse and Sasuke collapsed. Sakura had embedded a kunai in a chakra node to make him incapacitated. Sakura had, for the time being, subdued Sasuke. He glanced at her. His smirk was growing, almost to a smile.

"I see that you have changed, Sakura."

His eyes were becoming heavy, his lids started to droop. The darkness was beginning to fill his sight, his body, his soul. He then slipped into the black oblivion of unconsciousness.

Beep, beep, beep. This is the sound that Sasuke awoke to. Two ANBU Black Ops members were watching him. He was the traitor to this village, now and forever. He glanced around the room. His eyes landed on the only other person in the room, Sakura. The kunoichi was dozing off in a chair next to his bed. Her longed to reach out and touch her awake her to see her beautiful eyes… Why, why was he feeling this now? He was beginning to weaken ever since he left Orochimaru. He remembered when they had first seen each other in the meadow. Her eyes had filled with hate, with rage. This sent an unwanted shiver down Sasuke's spine. Sakura stirred in her sleep, and then her eyes fluttered open. She groggily lifted her head off of her hands.

"Oh, Sasuke…Tsunade-sama said you wouldn't be awake for awhile…," her voice trailed off.

She immediately averted his gaze. How long ago had he left? All time had blended together in his search for power. He hadn't expected for her heart to be this battered, this broken.

"Its okay, Sakura."

She glanced up, not expecting to get a response. Sakura nodded, and then left.

Sasuke's thoughts began to envelope him. Had he really expected for a "welcome home?" Had Sasuke really expected for his comrades to accept him after what he had done to them, especially Sakura? Had he really made their lives this troubled, torturing their every thought? Their every thought had been with him while he was miles away. Naruto had promised Sakura to bring him back, because he had hurt Sakura. What had Sakura been thinking? He knew that she thought that if she had loved him that he would stay. Her love though, had been unrequited for so many years. Why hadn't he expected these outcomes? Maybe if he would have calculated more would he have expected this? They soon would start to accept him; they would start calculating his moves. Only after they had watched him, deemed him the "old Sasuke" would they welcome him. It would be a long road. This road would be filled with old hurt and distant memories.

Sasuke then noticed a faint movement in the chairs. The ANBU members stood up.
"Tsunade-sama would like to speak to you," one of the members uttered.

When Sasuke got up, he noticed that he was in his old attire; the black jumpsuit with the Uchiha fan on the back. He then stood up; his fate would be decided in the mere hours. Was he ready?

A/N: So, what do you guys think? I thought that it was pretty good, I don't know though. Please, please, please, if you read PLEASE give me a review. Well, I will try to put this on by next Sunday. Until next time…
Kakashis-girl02