It finally happened. I've finally got writer's block. I'm trying to start on Chapter 11 but I'm not too sure how to start it. The good news is you don't have to worry about it :D Here's an already-done chapter. Woooo hoooo. Once again, I appreciate every single follow, favorite and review.

The next day began as usual; Sasuke woke up and waited for Masaru to get there so they could start fine tuning their plans on the house. Taro was as cheerful as ever, but after a while, Hinata still had not come as she usually did. This didn't really bother Sasuke at first. Perhaps she had training or something going on at home and he figured she would show up eventually. She always did. Masaru leaned forward on the floor in the Police Headquarters as he began to carefully draw out the blueprints for the house. Every so often, he would ask Sasuke questions like how many rooms, or windows, and Sasuke would reply. If it was too much to get build, Masaru would warn him about time and Sasuke would counter with something rude.

After a few hours of this process, there was a finished product on the blueprints and the old man turned around his papers for Sasuke to have a look. When he did, he had no idea what he was looking at. Construction and the math it took to get the dimension correct were all foreign to him.

"I don't know what the hell any of this is, old man." He said after he took a swig of water from a bottle. Masaru sighed.

"I know dipshit, but this is gonna be your house so look at the writing in the corner. That is the basic line up of your house. All the bedrooms and bathrooms you wanted are numbered there along with the other things you wanted." Taro ran into the building after playing outside for a while and he tugged at his grandfather's sleeve.

"Hinata-san still isn't here, grampa." Masaru rolled up the papers with all of the plans on it and popped his grandson on the head with it.

"I don't blame her. If I had the choice, I wouldn't wanna be around Sasuke all damn day." He said. Taro still wasn't satisfied and he pouted. Sasuke rolled his eyes, even though he was also wondering where the hell she was. Maybe he angered her the other day, but he couldn't think of anything rude he said out of the ordinary. His ego came busting into his mind and he dismissed the thoughts. Who cares? He didn't need her there and he certainly wasn't going to dwell on it. Masaru got up and grunted.

"Fuck, I'm getting too old for this shit." He rubbed his back.

"So you admit it?" Sasuke asked with a look of amusement on his face.

"Shut the hell up. Let's go Taro. I promised your mother I wouldn't bring you home exhausted again." Sasuke frowned.

"What? We aren't going to do anything today?" The old man brushed off his pants and eyed him.

"Well you might not have done anything but I spent hours grueling over your damn blue prints. Go out and socialize or something cause you need it." Taro walked over to Sasuke and his bottom lip trembled.

"W-Will you tell Hinata-san t-that I missed her today?" His eyes were beginning to swell with tears and Sasuke had no idea what to do. He forced a smile and nodded. Taro smiled and wrapped his arms around Sasuke's neck.

"Alright, god damnit, let's go Taro." Even though Masaru cursed in front of his grandson, Taro was too young to understand and probably too naïve to repeat them. Taro got another boost of energy and he followed Masaru out the building. Sasuke exhaled and rolled over on his back. He watched the sunshine of the late afternoon dance through the broken beams above him. Now might be a good time to go see Tsunade and ask her some questions while he had the time. Sasuke sat up and put on his shoes. Before he left the district, he pocketed the Uchiha pendant from the old box that Hinata had found.

Sasuke strolled through the village and watched as the children played with their toy kunai in the streets. It reminded him of when he was younger and he aspired to be like his brother. He never realized the expectations his father had for him, though. Sasuke recalled spending days practicing his fire jutsus in front of the lake just to get his father to look at him. Ch... almost seems like a waste now. He kicked a rock and Hinata came back to mind. He wondered if she ever felt the same way. Her father, Hiashi, was always a stern looking guy and he couldn't even imagine how frail he made her look. They had more in common than he originally thought, and yet they still came out completely different. A yawn escaped his lips and he could tell he was getting lazy. He needed to train. Maybe he would ask Tsunade if his leg was good to go for that. Sasuke forgot how boring his life was now, without anyone around to keep him entertained or without any training. The old man was fun to irritate and even the kid had his moments. And… of course Hinata was usually nice to have around.

He took his time getting to the Hokage's office, partly because he was still feeling lazy and partly because his leg was stiff. Once Sasuke reached the office door, he knocked and barged in as usual. Tsunade looked up from her paper work with surprise.

"Uchiha Sasuke." His name rolled off her tongue as if she was just waiting for a gracious 'thank you for helping me rebuild my district' from him. Well she wasn't getting it. Sasuke stood in front of her desk and shoved his hands into his pockets.

"I have some things I need answered." He demanded rather casually. Sasuke never bothered with formalities. Kakashi was just Kakashi to him and Orochimaru…well, he wasn't shit to him either. And the story was the same for the high and mighty Hokage. Tsunade had gotten used to his attitude and she leaned back in her chair very curious to see what his 'demands' were.

"First things first—how is your leg?"

"Not good enough." Sasuke replied. Tsunade smirked and stood up from her chair. He knew her bitching was coming so he braced himself.

"Well if you had stayed in the hospital like any other normal human being then you wouldn't have these problems." Tsunade scolded and she approached him.

"It's still painful after I've been walking around on it and it gets stiff." Tsunade nodded to his symptoms and applied some healing chakra to his thigh.

"Well, give it a few more days and keep doing those leg exercises I showed you. Otherwise, you'll be fine." He crossed his arms after she had finished and Tsunade went to lean up against her desk. "I know you have a hard time following instructions, but as for your training, you may start slowly. Don't over exert yourself and learn some limits for your body. I don't know the reason why you would want to continue to train, though." He eyed her suddenly.

"What is that supposed to mean?"

"It means you aren't a Konoha ninja anymore." She said bluntly. Two could play at this game and if he was going to be brutally honest all the time, so could she. The familiar anger he so cherished began to build in his body again.

"What the hell?!" He said and Tsunade smiled sweetly just to tick him off more.

"Uchiha, you haven't been a resident here for over three years. You went along with Orochimaru and almost destroyed my village. I don't trust a single thing you say, so why the hell would I want you to carry out missions?" She said watching him closely. Sasuke opened his mouth to say something, but he had nothing to come back at her with. What she said was basically the truth, but he didn't want to hear it. She continued.

"While you were out being a brat, everyone else in your grade has surpassed you in rank. Just because you've trained with Orochimaru doesn't mean shit to me as far as missions go. So until you can gain my trust, then you won't be put on the roster for when missions resume." Tsunade finished what she was saying and stared at him. Sasuke laughed. This is hilarious. This bitch thinks she is so great…

"Whatever! I don't need your fucking missions." He spat at her and she shrugged her shoulder.

"Well good! Then there shouldn't be a problem then, right?" She was really pushing him and she knew it. In reality, Tsunade was testing him to see just how much of a ticking time bomb he was. She couldn't put others in danger simply because the boy couldn't control himself. Sasuke was about to blow up her newly renovated office when he remembered the pendant in his pocket. He pulled it out and showed it to her. She recognized it instantly, thinking back to when Hinata brought her the box.

"The Hyuuga girl said it had its own chakra source." Tsunade nodded and pushed herself off the edge of her desk. She took it from him and then put the necklace around his neck. It looked good on him and he resembled his father. Tsunade offered him a genuine smile.

"It's got your father's chakra. Sasuke, you have a piece of him hanging around your neck." She said softly. He stared at her for a moment, and then looked down at the Uchiha pendant hanging on his chest. Emotion was fighting to be released but Sasuke would rather die than cry in front of this woman.

"It's a memento handed down through the generations in the Uchiha clan. Your father had his father's chakra in it and so on. You aren't totally alone, Sasuke." She said gently. Tsunade crossed her arms and looked on as Sasuke stared at the pendant. He didn't say anything for a long time so she spoke again.

"If you would just let us help you, I promise on my life, you won't ever be alone. I'm not saying that because I'm the Hokage, but I'm saying this because I understand." Sasuke swallowed a lump in his throat and closed his eyes. A single tear escaped down his cheek and he cursed himself under his breath. He spent years upon years building up the rocky exterior mainly to keep people out. He never wanted another person to form a bond with him. He never wanted to feel that wretched pain of losing someone close ever again. Sasuke was afraid to let that wall down because he honestly had no idea who he was without anger and the hunger for revenge. Tsunade smiled slightly and acted as if she didn't see his tears. Men and their pride…ch.

"Anything else I can do for you, Uchiha?" He didn't say anything. Instead he turned around and left her office. Tsunade sighed gently and bowed her head. Naruto had just been released from the hospital yesterday. He begged her to find Sasuke so he could see him, but Tsunade refused and made Sakura promise not to go looking. She knew that it was best that they were apart for now. Sasuke needed to start getting his life back in control and if rebuilding his district meant he was rebuilding himself, then that was fine with her.

Sasuke pulled himself together outside of her office and he suddenly felt stupid. She better not rub that in his face later. That was the last thing he wanted people to know him for was crying in the Hokage's office like a child. As he walked down the stone steps from the Hokage's building, the pendant bounced on his chest. Sasuke felt content wearing it knowing that a part of his father-and clan-still lived on.

The village was bustling with people, which was unusual for the evening times. Then he remembered it was the weekend, and shops stayed open later than usual. He decided he should stock up on some food he could prepare back at the district. He ignored people whispering to each other as he walked by. Some were terrified of him and others were angry at him for being partially responsible for the damage to Konoha. Now he knew how Naruto felt all those years.

The sound of laughter caught his attention momentarily as he looked onward. Sasuke saw two girls dressed in bright kimonos treating themselves to some sweets at a vendor. He furrowed his eyebrows and suddenly he realized he was staring at Hinata and her sister. Sasuke stopped walking and just stared in her direction. Her kimono was dark purple with lightly colored cherry blossoms, which complimented her figure nicely. Hinata's long hair was pulled back into a neat bun with pink cherry blossom flowers tucked into it. The hair that framed her face was left out as usual, and Sasuke wasn't sure if he should say 'hi' like an idiot or try to hide. It would be utterly embarrassing for him to get caught staring, if not drooling at her. But it was too late. Hinata had felt someone's eyes on her and she turned to see him. Hinata blushed furiously. She looked over at Hanabi, who had also noticed him, and she grinned as she poked Hinata in the arm.

"Hey, isn't that Uchiha Sasuke?" Hanabi asked as if she had no idea. Hinata squirmed and felt Hanabi shove her forward to go talk to him. She almost fell, but Hinata quickly balanced herself. Sasuke looked clueless as she approached him and he tried to act as if he didn't care.

"S-Sasuke-kun… I'm sorry I wasn't around today." She said, and the breeze blew her sweet vanilla scent around him. He groaned on the inside and shifted his weight. Sasuke refused to admit to himself that she looked beautiful. The kimono hugged her curves perfectly and she was even wearing make-up. Not to mention, he could see her face more clearly with her hair up. Sasuke thought about ignoring her and walking away, but he remembered Taro's request from earlier, grateful to have something to say to her.

"Taro said he missed you." He said sheepishly. Hinata smiled and looked down at her sandals.

"Truthfully, I missed him too." She said. "There was a wedding in our family today. So I had to be there with Hanabi." Sasuke nodded and he tried to avoid her gaze. He wondered if she missed him. Of course Sasuke quickly dismissed that thought as if his ego was on patrol inside his mind. Hinata suddenly noticed the Uchiha pendant Sasuke was wearing.

"Oh. Did you ask Tsunade-sama about this?" Hinata leaned in a bit to see it more clearly and Sasuke cringed a bit. Nothing like this ever happened with Sakura (or any other girl) and he felt like a stupid child. He didn't need love. That's a lie. He didn't need her around. That's another lie.

"Mmhmm." He tried to concentrate on their conversation, but the words weren't forming very well. "It's like…a memento from my father." Hinata pulled away and suddenly her face became saddened. If Sasuke could punch himself, he would—many times. This is the stupidest thing…

"I see." She glanced over her shoulder to see Hanabi holding up a thumbs up. Hanabi! She looked back to Sasuke and he looked extremely uncomfortable. Hinata had never seen him fidget before and she wondered if maybe he was upset from his talk with Tsunade.

"Well, I've got to get going now. I will be over tomorrow." She said softly. He nodded and watched her walk back over to Hanabi. They were beginning to fret in high pitch voices and Sasuke decided that was his cue to get the fuck out of there. Once he was past them, he finally exhaled his breath. This behavior was so unlike him that he actually got angry about it.

During his entire grocery shopping trip, Sasuke walked around the store mindlessly looking at the products on the shelf. This 'normal life' bullshit was foreign to him and the fact that Tsunade wasn't allowing him on missions was another thing that pissed him off. The reasonable part of his brain fought his ego once more and he figured it was best that he focus on one thing at a time for now. His father came back into his mind and Sasuke recalled trying to master a few simple jutsu. His father offered him some advice now and then. Your brain can only process so many things at once; with the conjuring of chakra added onto the hand movements and stance, you must focus on one thing at a time. Then slowly add them together. Sasuke put a hand on the pendant around his neck and he felt his emotions tugging in his eyes again. Father… you left me with more than I ever thought.

The next morning, Sasuke lay on his back in his sleeping bag, just staring at the Uchiha pendant. He didn't sleep very well mainly because of what the Hokage revealed to him yesterday. You're not totally alone. He felt alone, though. Even though he was surrounded by Masaru and Hinata all day there was just something he felt missing throughout his days. Everyone else was avoiding him (not that he cared). Kakashi hadn't been to see him since he was in the hospital, and even dumb shit and Sakura hadn't been curious enough to come pester him. Everything that he planned for was completely changed. Sasuke figured that after he killed his brother, he would die alongside of him. He never planned on staying alive and having to live a normal life again.

The clouds were dominant over the sun and Sasuke wondered if it would rain. It would make the start of building the house be difficult. He sat up when he heard Masaru's loud voice calling for him. He got up and slipped the pendant underneath his shirt, then walked out of the Headquarters. Everyone was waiting on him, but he noticed that Taro was missing.

"Where is Taro?" Hinata asked Masaru as he motioned his oxen to stop. They pulled a trailer full of supplies behind them and Sasuke could feel his stomach flop. It was finally going to happen- the rebuilding of the Uchiha district. He was excited on the inside, mainly because it would be nice to sleep in a real building soon.

"He's sick today. Besides, there ain't much for him to help with today." He looked over to Sasuke who was approaching them. Hinata thought back to their encounter yesterday. She was never one to draw a lot of attention to herself, especially when she was all dressed up. Hanabi insisted that she go with her to get some sweets at the vendors, and Hinata didn't feel right letting her go on her own.

"Yo Uchiha. I'm going to be startin' on the foundation for the house today." Masaru said as he held on tightly to the blue prints.

"What do you need me to do?" He asked, slipping his hands in his pockets. Masaru scratched the back of his head and grinned.

"Stay the hell outta my way. No offense, but you don't know shit about this. It would be way easier if I worked on my own today." Sasuke frowned, but if it would be faster for the old man, then this would be the perfect opportunity for him to resume his training. He looked over at Hinata; she looked the same as usual. Her make-up was gone, her hair was down, and she wore her normal attire.

"Hyuuga." She glanced over in his direction and her cheeks flushed at the sudden attention from him.

"Yes?"

"Are the training grounds still intact?"

"U-Um no. There are temporary ones a few blocks away from here, though."

"Take me to them." Sasuke said and he started to walk past her. He had done some stretching and leg exercises last night, and his leg felt great. He was ready to get his adrenaline pumping and do something that was familiar to him. Hinata took him on the short walk on the outskirts of the village and through the forest line. Sasuke followed behind her and began to feel a burst of energy as a clearing ahead of them came to view. There was plenty of space for him to practice throwing kunai, as he noticed targets set up. Hinata watched him stretch for a moment and she felt the breeze blow back her hair. He probably wanted to be alone, so she turned to leave. The whistle of a kunai whizzing by her ear caused her to jump, and she looked back wildly at him. He stood with a smirk.

"What are you doing?" He asked. She suddenly felt embarrassed.

"Well… I was going to-"

"Spar with me." Sasuke said simply as he stared her. Hinata blinked a bit, surprised by this. When she didn't say anything, Sasuke lurched forward at her and this triggered her ninja senses. She dodged a blow to her shoulder, and he didn't hold back. Hinata continued to dodge his attacks, barely putting up an offense, which irritated him.

"Come on, Hyuuga." He growled. "Show me what you've got!" Hinata felt the adrenaline in her body kick in and her Byakugan activated. She could see the large amount of chakra in his body and even though it had been over a month since he had done much, he was making little to no mistakes. Hinata jumped out of his way and onto a tree branch. Sasuke smirked. He was surprised at her skill, specifically her quick reactions and chakra control. Sasuke thought about using his Sharingan, but this was more of a dry run for him to get his mind in the right place. A few kunai came at him and he dodged them easily. He felt Hinata's presence behind him, so he whipped around to a fist coming toward him. He caught it in his hand and she was quick to provide him with a good offense. It was thrilling for him to get back into doing what he loved most. Sweat began to form on her forehead, and he could even feel his body reacting to the sudden exercise.

"Don't…underestimate…me!" She said, with confidence to her voice and Sasuke smirked. She knew that he was holding back and so his Sharigan finally decided to come out to play. This made it a lot easy to predict her moves, and they went back and forth for a few moments. Hinata noticed his moves getting more and more difficult to dodge, and he was moving a lot faster than before. One of her punches finally landed on his jaw, and Sasuke disappeared with a puff of smoke. Before it could register in her mind, he appeared behind her, and grabbed her arm, pulling it up behind her. The pain in her shoulder was sharp, and she struggled to get out of his grasp. She had been caught! Her knees finally buckled underneath her, he eased her down face first in the grass. He had a firm grasp on her arm, and he was breathing heavily. Sasuke was satisfied and he released her. She lay there for a few minutes trying to catch her breath and he sat next to her doing the same.

Small raindrops began to fall and she rolled over on her back to welcome them. It was a warm day, and the cool feeling of the rain felt great. Sasuke began to stretch his leg muscles while he sat, remembering Tsunade's advice. He, too, thought the rain felt good. They sat in silence, and Hinata closed her eyes. For them, meditating after using their eye jutsu's was always smart since over use can cause permanent damage. Sasuke glanced over at her, and her face was peaceful. Even without all the make-up, she still looked beautiful to him. Even her pale lips looked soft. The rain drops were light but the sound of them through the trees around them was nice.

"Sasuke-kun?" She asked, with her eyes still closed.

"Hmm?" He mumbled, massaging his leg. Perhaps he went a little too far in training than what Tsunade recommended. She didn't say anything for a moment. Hinata was trying to find the courage to follow through with her question.

"H-Has Naruto-kun always loved Sakura?" She whispered and secretly hoped Sasuke didn't hear it. He did though, and his stomach churned in jealousy. The rain began to pick up a little, and Hinata sat up. She stared at the water droplets that formed on the grass. Hinata hadn't seen Naruto since he was still in a coma. She hadn't forgotten about him, but she was just trying to avoid the real issue at hand. Sasuke wasn't sure what to say. Their team had always been a huge triangle when it came to admiration. But romance was always on the back burner due to the events of a ninja. People always thought Sasuke was just thinking of himself in his actions, and maybe he was. But he was also very observant. He knew that Naruto always wished Sakura would show him the affection he wanted. Sasuke would never understand why the Hyuuga girl had such feelings for him.

"I wouldn't know. I don't follow that idiot's love life." He said simply. Hinata felt her hands form fists. Sasuke always felt such hatred towards his team mate and she had no idea why. Why was he always so bitter towards everyone?

"H-He's not an idiot." She said softly. Sasuke rolled his eyes.

"If he wants to be Hokage so fucking bad, he should be focusing on that and not love." Sasuke stood and felt rain drops rolling down his cheeks. Hinata stood up, too.

"That s-shouldn't matt-" Hinata tried to say, but Sasuke walked up to her just inches in front of her face.

"He doesn't ever go out of his way to notice you. He doesn't even know that you love him. Why bother with it?!" Sasuke growled, staring into her lavender eyes. His brain was telling him to stop, but his heart was refusing.

"I don't care if he never loves me." She said softly. That's a lie. He furrowed his brows out of anger and he gripped her shoulders as if it would help her come to her senses.

"Love is pointless if it's never returned." The words left his mouth bitterly. Hinata was about to open her mouth, when the words left her speechless. Sasuke's eyes were usually empty, but she could see something in them now. Sorrow. Their eyes remained locked and a flash of lightning made Hinata look away. Her eyes were beginning to fill with tears. Sasuke wasn't sure what to do next, but he didn't want to let go of her. He didn't want her to love Naruto. These thoughts were so foreign to him, but his ego wasn't big enough to will them away anymore. He put a finger on her chin and forced her to look at him. His touch made a shudder go down her back as she looked in his eyes once more. Her cheeks were flushed and her lips looked as soft as ever as the rain drops fell on them. No… She struggled in his grip and eventually she pulled away from him. Hinata turned and ran. The wet grass squished underneath her feet and she didn't look back at him.

Naruto-kun… why? Why don't you love me? Her thoughts were running wild. She loved him for years. She gave him the courage and hope he needed the most and yet… he sought out Sakura. Hinata felt like an idiot. She told Sasuke she didn't care if he never loved her, but she did care. How long could she hold onto the hope of Naruto ever loving her? Hinata ran until her legs could no longer stand it, and she slowed down, before falling to her knees on the outskirts of the village. Her father's voice rang in her mind. Stop being so weak. Hinata hugged herself, and bowed her head in the rain. Sasuke was a refreshing way to avoid her feelings for Naruto, and it was especially helpful in her getting over the confession she heard that day at the hospital. She'd try to deny any slight feelings she had developing for him. Hinata would try to deny it until the day Naruto finally loved her.