Date: 9/11/13
Rating: K+
Genre: Angst, Drama
Prompt: Sakura gets offered the Hokage position.
He stopped on her way out of the Hokage's office, pulling her aside onto an empty street. But whether he was waiting for her or not, Sakura wasn't too sure; however, from the look of his face, she knew Sasuke wasn't pleased, scowling as he asked, though it came out more like a statement than anything else, "You, too?"
That was just like him, always straight and to the point. She sighed; she knew there was no use in lying to him. Besides, word travelled remarkably fast in Konoha. Even if it didn't come from her, he'd find out soon enough. "Yes."
"So both of you, then."
"Well, it's not just us," she said weakly, rocking back and forth on her feet—heel, toe, heel, toe—"I heard Tsunade-sama was going to call Shikamaru and—" Sakura stopped, noticing Sasuke's fists clench tighter, his scowl deepen. She laughed, softly and quite awkwardly. "This isn't really helping, is it?" He didn't answer. "I mean, nothing's set in stone; it's still too early. Tsunade-sama said herself that she wasn't planning to step down just yet. She and the elders, they're just considering—"
"But they are," Sasuke said, as if blaming her, "considering you."
She bit her lip. That was right. Even with all the interrogations, the hearings, and the trials, Sakura couldn't believe how easily Sasuke was accepted as a reinstated citizen of Konoha. And yet, as easy as it was, it still came with a price: no missions for at least a year—and even then, Sasuke wouldn't be assigned anything above a C-rank; partial house arrest from dusk to dawn with ANBU supervision; and random drug testing, despite the fact that Sasuke told the elders he hadn't touched anything Orochimaru had given him in months.
But all of those things, despite how irritating they were, Sasuke could handle. It was the last condition that actually drove him mad: indefinite ineligibility for the Hokage position.
"At least," he said, his tone abrasive, his tone like sandpaper, "you have a choice." He exhaled deeply, fighting to stay calm, fighting to keep his frustration at bay—because it wasn't Sakura's fault; it wasn't her decision to make. "They're afraid of me."
Sakura shook her head. "No, it's not that. They just," she paused, searching for a better way to say it, coming up with nothing. "They just don't trust you; at least, not yet. But can you blame them?" she asked. "You should worry about completing your probation period first before even thinking about the Hokage position. It's going to take some time, but it will happen." She smiled. "I promise."
"What about you?"
She raised a brow. "What about me?"
"Do you," he said slowly, "trust me?"
She blinked, taken aback by the question, Sasuke giving her that look—the one that unsettled her, that made her feel uncomfortable, vulnerable, that said Don't you dare lie to me. She swallowed. "I—I don't know."
And she meant it. Too much had happened, too many secrets, too many battles, too many lives lost. Sasuke had hurt comrades, hers and his alike. She wanted to trust him, and yet, she couldn't. Sakura honestly didn't know. She didn't know a lot of things. But, there was one thing she was absolutely certain of, something she'd known since she was twelve.
But Sasuke didn't know that—breathing in deeply, exhaling sharply—turning stiffly as he shook his head and began walking. "Wrong answer."
However, Sakura wouldn't let him leave that easily, not a second time. She grabbed onto him arm and forced him to look at her. "Wrong question."