Chapter Twelve: Hope Without Regret; Regret Without Hope

Disclaimer: I regret to inform you I do not own Naruto

Sasuke wiped away sweat as he tightened the bolt before moving onto the next one. The sun beat uncomfortably hot on him, making the air sticky and a little stifling. Despite it being mid-April, the day proved to be unrelenting in its humid heat, the river below them doing little to cool the rising temperatures.

Although he had only been helping to build the bridge for the last six hours, Sasuke had developed a new respect for construction workers. He knew a thing or two about hard work and diligence, but he hadn't expected building a bridge to be difficult. Evidently, being a prodigy only took you so far – and he had the cuts and bruises to prove it.

Finally finishing the last bolt, Sasuke rose to his full height, stretching as he did so. He surveyed the other men as he continued to stretch his stiff muscles. They all wore similar grim and paranoid expressions, but none of them complained and continued working in relative silence. In fact, they had made surprising progress since that morning for such a small group of workers.

Still, with so few men, he couldn't help but wonder how they were supposed to finish the bridge in only a week. If Naruto and his clones were here to help…

Sasuke shook his head at once. No, Sasuke thought as he hoisted up a long meal beam over his shoulder.

I don't need Naruto. I don't need any of them. Yesterday proved I've been allowing myself to get too close to them, and I need to distance myself from them. Sasuke frowned. I won't be able to destroy Konoha if I'm concerned about those two.

"You're a good worker." Tazuna commented as Sasuke set the beam in front of the crane. "Where's that blond kid and the girl?"

"Training." Sasuke told him.

Well, Naruto was likely training; he honestly wasn't sure where Sakura went. Sasuke had returned late, had gotten up before she had, and hadn't seen where she went off to. Naruto never returned to the house at all – but Naruto was Naruto, so it was easy to guess what he was doing.

"Hmm…" Tazuna said as he wiped away sweat.

They continued bringing the beams over to the crane, when one of the workers came up to them. He had a dark red bandana around his forehead, held his hat underneath his arm, and wore an uneasy expression on his face.

"Hey, Tazuna!" the man called.

"Ha?" Tazuna asked as he rose up, looking back to see who spoke. "What is it, Giichi?"

"I've been doing a lot of thinking recently, and…" the man hesitated, looking down for a moment. Then he looked Tazuna square in the eye. "Can I stop working on the bridge?"

Tazuna stared at the man for a moment, panic washing over his wrinkly face. "Why is that? This is so sudden! Not you, too!"

"Tazuna, we've been close for a long time now." Giichi said, stepping forward. "I want to help you, but if we continue this, Gatou will notice us. And if he kills you, then what's the point?"

Sadness and understanding replaced the surprise on Tazuna's face, but he didn't say anything. The other workers paused in their tasks, and turned to Giichi and Tazuna.

"Why don't we quit now…" Giichi continued, glancing around at the other workers. "Let's stop building the bridge."

Tazuna stared at the man, looking older than he should. The air seemed to freeze, and each man present looked at Tazuna with hollow eyes. They… they're all ready to give up, Sasuke realized.

"I can't do that." Tazuna murmured, shaking his head. "This bridge is our bridge. This is the bridge we started building together because we believed it would bring resources into our poor country."

Sasuke raised his eyebrow at the old man; Was Tazuna always this stubborn? Life seemed to return to the other workers' faces, but Giichi sputtered in surprise as Tazuna began to walk away.

"But if we lose our lives…!" Giichi said.

"It's already noon; let's stop for today." Tazuna looked back at the other man, tilting his hard hat. "Giichi, you don't have to come tomorrow."

Giichi pressed his lips together, and hung his head in shame.

"Wrap it up men!" Tazuna called out. "We're done for the day!"

Sasuke stared at the older man for a moment before following after his client. The sun beat down on them as they walked back into town, Tazuna wearing a frown on his face.

The town itself was quite small. Men in ratty clothing held signs that said "will take any job" and urchins ran around with dirt on their faces, making the dreary day all the drearier.

Looking around, Sasuke wondered how a town like this could keep surviving. Was it this bad in the original timeline? Sasuke shook his head; Yes, of course it was this bad. I went back in time, not to an alternate universe.

"I bet you're wondering why I keep continuing…" Tazuna said suddenly as they passed by a thief.

In truth, Sasuke had no such thoughts, but Sasuke chose not to contest.

"See this town? It wasn't always like this… We used to be a thriving place, even though it's always been this small." Tazuna shook his head, and bitterness seeped into his voice as he said, "But, after Gatou came… All the adults lost hope."

Yes, I can see that. Sasuke observed the gaunt faces with eyes glazed over. These people were just waiting to die.

"That's why we now need that bridge! A symbol of hope and courage…" Tazuna raised his face, and Sasuke was shocked to find his eyes shiny with determination behind his glasses.

How could he still have hope?

"We need for the people to lose their fear and regain the desire to stand up for themselves!" Tazuna exclaimed, almost angry in his declaration.

Looking at the townspeople, Sasuke sincerely doubted that would happen, but the fire in Tazuna's eyes didn't fade.

"If that bridge…" Tazuna continued. "If that bridge can be completed, then the city will return to that time. The people will return to how they used to be… That's why I must continue. If I have failed at everything else, I will make sure that my daughter and Inari will not continue to live in such a hopeless place."

Sasuke looked at Tazuna. How could this man still have such hope? Although Sasuke knew they would probably defeat Zabuza and run Gatou out of town again, Tazuna didn't know that. Yet, that desperate determination in his eyes…

"Why do you still hope?" Sasuke asked. He didn't understand why, but he needed to know.

Tazuna looked back at Sasuke with surprise.

"I suppose it's because… I have no choice. Tsunami and Inari… they are my world. I need to make sure I can leave this place better for them. And these people, look at these people! There used to be laughter, there used to be…"

Tazuna smiled bitterly. "Even if I have to lose my life, I will make sure I can at least bring laughter again."

"Hn…" Sasuke responded thoughtfully.

"The shop is in here." Tazuna said, motioning for them to enter a pathetic and rather bare store.

The store owner nodded at Tazuna, his eyes just like everyone else's. Everyone else's except Tazuna, that is, Sasuke thought as the old man picked out a couple of things before bringing them to the shopkeeper to buy. The shop keeper's eyes widened, and tried to return a couple of coins, but Tazuna smiled, shaking his head. The shopkeeper bowed his thanks, slipping the coins in his pocket.

Tazuna turned to Sasuke, tilting his head to the door. Sasuke nodded, and followed him out of the shop.

"Why did you give that man more than necessary?" Sasuke asked once they stepped outside.

"You saw that, eh?" Tazuna chuckled. "Well, it wasn't much. Don't tell my daughter, though! But we are all struggling here so I try to help where I can."

"You're already risking your life to build the bridge." Sasuke pointed out.

"Well, the bridge will help in the long-term; I gotta help in the short-term too, you know? We gotta protect our own."

"That worker of yours didn't seem to think so." Sasuke said.

"Ah, don't be too harsh on him." Tazuna said, waving the air. "He's got his own family to consider, too. But as for me, I don't want to regret anything. Lived too long for that."

Don't want to regret anything…

"Do you not have any regrets?" Sasuke couldn't help but ask.

The old man stared off into the distance for a moment, before smiling. "I do. I regret not loving my wife more, but other than that? No, I don't think I do. No, I have done many things I am not proud of, but no burdens too heavy for me to carry."

Tazuna paused, before turning to Sasuke. "What about you, kid? You got any regrets too heavy for you to carry?"

Team Seven and Itachi immediately flashed through his mind before he could stop it, but Sasuke remained silent.

"Eh, what's an old man like me asking a kid like you that? You're too young to have those kinds of regrets. But listen to this old man anyway: if you can help it, don't do something you'll regret. Life's too short for it.

"Live life to live, and do something that really matters. Or else you might just find yourself old like me, but have nothing to look back on or anything to come home to!"

They slipped into silence as they returned to Tazuna's home, leaving Sasuke deep in thought. When they reached Tazuna's house, Sasuke bid him farewell, and headed right to the forest to train.

He always thought better when he was training, and the thoughts at present pressed painfully in his head.

Regrets, huh?

A wry smile slipped on his face as he summoned another ball of electricity. I've already killed Sakura and my own brother. Even if they're alive now doesn't change what I did; my hands are still stained with their blood.

Sasuke paused in sending his lightning ball to explode in a nearby tree. Didn't Kakashi mention something about redemption, way back in the beginning of my last timeline?

A mirthless laugh escaped Sasuke's lips that died the moment it left. Please; people like me don't get redemption. We get revenge. That is my purpose. Get strong enough to kill the people who took everything dear to me. Redemption… isn't in the cards for me.

Sasuke took a deep breath and focused before creating two simultaneous orbs of lightning – and huffed in disappointment as one of them fizzled into nothingness. Sasuke briefly wondered if training with Naruto and Sakura would help him. Somehow, he always progressed faster whenever he was trying to beat Naruto or listened to Sakura's suggestions and theories…

Sasuke blinked, and sneered at the thought.

I'm pathetic. Can't even do something like this without thinking about those two; I bet Itachi could have created seven stupid lightning balls without help by now.

Clenching his jaw, Sasuke closed his eyes and forced himself to relax. He gathered chakra to his hands and imagined two balls of lightning as he formed the hand seals.

I do not need them.

Sasuke opened his eyes and two perfect balls of lightning appeared. A tiny smirk appeared on his face. Now, all he had to do was see if he could send both of them in two separate directions–

"What are we to you?"

Almost audible, the memory of Sakura's words from yesterday broke Sasuke's concentration, and the two spheres ended up exploding in the ground five feet away from him. Sasuke scowled at the large black hole in the dirt.

Usually during ninjutsu training, this would be the point where Naruto would be rolling around laughing, and Sakura would point out the successful aspect of his failures – few though the failures may be.

Not that he needed the motivation of wiping the smirk off of Naruto's face, or for Sakura to be there for him to notice the explosion was powerful enough to create a three feet deep crater. No, he didn't need them to be present for him to succeed.

He continued training, hardly noticing as the sky began to darken. He could, however, notice the chakra depletion settling in. Stretching, Sasuke called it a day and made his way back to Tazuna's house.

As he walked back, he felt rather satisfied with his progress; he could easily produce two lightning balls simultaneously, and could create four total with some effort – for now.

Sasuke considered these things when he noticed a broken tree branch. Sasuke raised an eyebrow, and inspected it – No animal could do this; it was some kind of sharp object… A weapon?

Could it be that Zabuza recovered early? Or Gatou sent someone else?

However unlikely either scenario seemed, Sasuke knew he couldn't take any chances. He stepped closer, and heard soft cursing.

Hiding behind several layers of leaves, he peeked through the bush and was somewhat surprised to see Sakura cut up and covered in dirt. She was panting, and even from his hiding spot, he could see the sweat trickling down her forehead.

She wiped away sweat, and raced forward to an invisible opponent, her hands already moving. She slammed her hands to the ground, and several razor-sharp stones emerged as she jumped back.

Before she had landed on her feet, the stones had demolished a tree. A loud crack echoed in the forest, and he watched as the large tree fell down. Sakura bit her lip, and looked around. Shrugging, she raised her hands again, and Sasuke took that as his cue to leave.

"Sakura-chan!"

Sakura startled as a blur of blue and orange jumped in front of her. Sasuke frowned and settled back down; when Sakura was training, he probably could have slipped away unnoticed. But now that both of his teammates were there, and neither of them were distracted with training, Sasuke believed he may have missed his opportunity to leave inconspicuously.

"Don't do that!" Sakura scolded. "What if I hurt you?"

"Eh, I'm sturdy." Naruto dismissed, looking around. "C'mon, let's go. Tsunami's done with dinner, an' Kakashi told me to go get you… Honestly, I think you might've actually trained more than me today!"

Sakura scowled, and crossed her arms. "What's that supposed to mean? I know I'm not as strong as you guys, but that doesn't mean I don't also train hard!"

Naruto immediately threw his hands up. "Whoa, that's not what I meant! All I was saying is that you worked really hard today, and it's cool! I need to step up my game, by the looks of it."

Sakura sighed, and rubbed her temple. "Right. Sorry, Naruto. I know you don't see me that way."

Naruto paused, and scratched the back of his neck. "Er, Sakura-chan, I'm sure Sasuke doesn't either."

Why do I get the feeling this isn't the first conversation they've had about me? Sasuke internally sighed, hoping that this conversation would end quickly.

Sakura shot Naruto a glare. "No? I think he's made it pretty clear that he thinks I'm this pathetic little princess that needs to be protected at all costs, and useless, and helpless, and I need to be saved, and can't do anything-"

"Sakura." Naruto gently interrupted, putting his hands on her shoulders.

Sakura shrugged his hands off and put her hands on her hips. Meanwhile, Sasuke strongly felt he was intruding and wished once again that he had the skill to disappear without them noticing him. Why didn't I focus more on silent body flicker techniques the last two months?

"No, it's true! Why else would he go and 'save' me from those chūnin the other day, when I had them exactly where I wanted them! Did he not notice the genjutsu I was casting?" Sakura huffed loudly.

Wait… what? Sasuke's ears began to become warm, and thought back on the battle with the demon brothers. Had he really missed Sakura casting a genjutsu, and then got in her way? Sasuke internally groaned in embarrassment. No wonder she got so upset… I would be furious if anyone did that to me.

"Why else would he always be so harsh during our training sessions? I understand I need to work on a few things, but is it really so bad that he has to scowl at me like I'm some impudent child? He acts as if I never improved!"

Sasuke got an unpleasant memory of his own father, and grimaced. Did I do that? She's actually improved a lot, and it's genuinely impressive how strong she's gotten in such a short time span.

Do I need to be more careful with my critiques?

"He always refuses to spar with me, and makes comments like 'I don't want to hurt you' which means he doesn't believe I'm capable of protecting myself." Sakura continued, talking faster with each word. "And then when we finally had our spar, he didn't even use the jutsu he was practicing on! He went easy on me because he thinks I'm pathetic."

But… I don't think you're pathetic. Sasuke felt sick, an unpleasant sensation swirling around his stomach. I had no idea she felt this way.

Sakura looked away, and Naruto just stared at her, looking unsure. Finally, Sakura groaned loudly and put her face in her hands.

She mumbled something, and Naruto stepped closer.

"What was that?" Naruto asked.

Sakura raised her face, tears streaming down her face. Sasuke looked away, surprised. She probably wouldn't want me to see her cry like this…

"Naruto, is he right?" she asked. "Am I… Am I really pathetic? I mean, you saw how easily he beat me…"

"No!" Naruto exclaimed. "No, you are the opposite of pathetic! You're the definition of awesome, y'know? You've seriously improved way faster than should be possible, and you are actually a pretty strong ninja. It's just that Sasuke's a bit… On a different level. From anybody! Not just you."

Sasuke looked back at them, surprised by Naruto's near praise.

"Not you." she scoffed. "He has nooo problem respecting you."

Naruto blinked. "He respects me? Really?" Naruto asked, sounding a little excited.

Sasuke furrowed his eyebrows; Why would he care what I think? Taking advantage of the wind rustling the leaves, Sasuke sighed and rubbed his eyes with the palms of his hands. I shouldn't be listening to this conversation…

"Wait, no." Naruto waved his hands back and forth in front of him. "That's not important. The important thing is you are an awesome, badass shinobi who will totally take the world by storm with her super awesome coolness! But like all incredible ninja, you just gotta work on it. And for now, Sasuke is just a little bit stronger."

Sakura pressed her lips into a thin line before sighing. "Yeah, I guess so. I just wish I was stronger now; you know?"

"Oh, I do; trust me." Naruto gave a heavy sigh, looking up at the sky. "But that isn't going to happen for either of us overnight, so let's continue getting stronger together."

"We do get stronger when we are competing with each other…" Sakura agreed, before sighing. "Too bad he doesn't realize that."

"Eh; he's an idiot." Naruto said, resting his hands behind his head, causing Sakura to laugh. "C'mon, let's get back; I'm starving!"

The two of them disappeared, and Sasuke didn't move. Once he was absolutely certain they were long gone, he let out a low groan into his hands.

I need to apologize, he realized. She isn't just overreacting, and she isn't just going to forgive me. I need to keep them at a distance, but if she truly feels this way, then she may start acting rashly in order to prove she's not useless. And that could get her killed.

Or worse, this will make her want to quit being a ninja altogether.

Sasuke cursed, standing up from his hiding position. So that's why she kept saying I thought she was useless… A curse escaped from his throat. But she's not. She… Sasuke thought of her medical ninjutsu, her budding talent for genjutsu… A chuckle escaped his lips; her stubborn need to help anyone and everything that needs it.

Sasuke frowned then. She also didn't have the advantages of having an Uchiha upbringing. Furthermore, she didn't have years more experience than she should have. But she certainly wasn't useless.

How do I make that clear to her, though? He had a sudden desire to burn the bush in front of him, but vaguely recalled Kakashi chastising him about that.

Sasuke shook his head; I'll just apologize. Get it done and over with, and assure her I don't think she's useless. Now that I know what the problem is, I can fix it – and then we can all go back to normal.

Determined to apologize, Sasuke headed back to Tazuna's house – but what do I even say? His steps faltered for a moment before he pressed forward. Gritting his teeth, he started to form something of an apology.

By the time he reached Tazuna's door, the apology was well rehearsed in his head. Sasuke grasped the handle, the apology on the tip of his tongue…

He couldn't open it. Sasuke stared at his hand, willing himself to open the door. This is stupid. He took a sharp breath: You are not a coward. You are Uchiha Sasuke and you can say those three stupid words. Full of newfound resolve, Sasuke gave a short nod and opened the door.

He took off his shoes, and searched for Sakura's face, and–

Nope. Not today, Sasuke decided. The moment their eyes met, her gaze hardened and she quickly turned her face away.

Well… there's always tomorrow, Sasuke thought as he went to the table.

"Welcome back!" Tsunami smiled, setting down a steaming bowl of rice. "You're just in time for dinner."

Sasuke nodded before sitting next to Naruto – diagonal to Sakura. Naruto gave him a brief nod before continuing his happy chatter with Kakashi and Tsunami, while Sakura sat quietly. Sasuke busied himself with rice, not looking in her direction.

"Wow!" Tazuna exclaimed, taking a big bite of rice. "This is super fun! It's been a long time since we ate with so many people."

Sasuke ate quickly, listening to the vibrant conversation around him. It had been a while since he'd eaten with so many people as well, and it was actually almost pleasant. However, as the eating slowed, Sakura got out of her spot and looked up at a picture on the wall.

"Hey, why do you have a torn picture on the wall?" She asked, and then looked back at the table. "Inari-kun was staring at this during dinner. It seems like someone purposefully removed the person that was in the picture."

Sasuke imagined that a torn photo like that would be a rather strange sight – to someone with a perfect family.

Inari became even more withdrawn than he was before, and both Tazuna and Tsunami tensed. Sakura looked at the family in confusion, searching their faces.

"It's my husband…" Tsunami whispered.

"And," Tazuna continued. "The man called the hero of the city."

Inari wordlessly got up from his chair, and started toward the front door.

"Inari, where are you going?" Tsunami demanded. "Inari!"

The door shut, and Tsunami whirled over to her father, tears in her eyes. "Father! I have told you not to talk about him in front of Inari!"

Tsunami raced after her son, slamming the door behind her. Sasuke listened as Tazuna explained how there was once a hero, and that hero was Inari's adoptive father. Tears bubbled out of the old man's eyes as he explained the story. His words were words of love and pride toward his son-in-law, but his tone was sorrowful and bitter.

Sasuke remembered how the first time he heard the story it had shocked him. After all, back then I thought even the most seemingly innocent people were secretly wicked.

But things were different now. Now, Sasuke knew the truth.

Sasuke found himself listening even more intently as Tazuna described the actions of a hero, how his son-in-law did the right thing even at the peril of himself. Sasuke thought of their conversation earlier, and he understood then why Tazuna was so desperate to finish the bridge.

"'If something is truly precious to you…'" Tazuna said, quoting his son-in-law. "'Even if you lose your life, with these two arms, you must protect it!'"

Something to protect… Sasuke briefly thought of when Gaara attacked his teammates and looked away.

Naruto rested his chin on his arms, and Sakura hummed at the old man's words.

"What… what happened to your son-in-law then?" Sakura asked.

"In front of everyone, Kaiza was…" Tazuna paused, a shadow falling on his face. "Put to death by Gatou! After that, Inari, Tsunami…" He shook his head, "the whole town changed."

For a brief moment, Tazuna's eyes met Sasuke's. So that's why you feel so responsible, Sasuke suddenly realized. You couldn't do anything to save him, so now you are trying to save the whole town, right?

A silence settled over the room, heavy in the air. Naruto got up from his spot, nearly tripping in the process.

"What are you doing, Naruto?" Sakura asked.

"If you're thinking of training, take the day off. You've released too much chakra; any more, and you could die." Kakashi informed his student.

"I'm going to prove it." Naruto said, not even looking back at them. "I'm going to prove that in this world, heroes do exist!"

Before he could stop it, Sasuke chuckled too softly for anyone to notice; some things never change. His gaze slowly shifted to Sakura, who had a complicated expression on her face.

Sasuke remembered his apology then, the words once again on the tip of his tongue – she looked at him, and once again, the apology evaporated.

Tomorrow. I'll do it tomorrow.

Sasuke did not, in fact, apologize to Sakura the next day. Or the day after. In fact, Sasuke was beginning to wonder if such a thing would ever be possible.

Over the next several days, Sasuke would work on the bridge with Tazuna and then train in the evenings. During the day, Sakura stood guard as Sasuke and Tazuna worked on the bridge – though, to her credit, she would try to help wherever she could. But even in proximity, she somehow found a way to ignore him.

When Sasuke disappeared to go train, she would train within view of Tazuna's house. Twice, Sasuke thought about asking her to train with him, but both times the question died on his lips before he could get them out.

At least she's not glaring daggers at me anymore, but how do I apologize when she's being like this? Sasuke would find himself thinking with a sigh. Thankfully, Tazuna kept him busy during the day and training consumed his thoughts in the evening. He didn't have much time to worry about apologizing to her.

It was interesting to Sasuke though, how Tazuna only had a total of six other people working – Giichi included, who ended up returning the next day – he never once complained. When another person quit the third day, Sasuke resolved to work harder. Training was important, but he figured he could at least practice chakra control while he worked.

During this time, Tazuna told stories. Stories of his youth, of somehow getting the prettiest girl in all of the Land of Waves to fall in love with him (to which Sakura listened intently, but Sasuke found rather boring), and of the various things he built. Sasuke found himself trying to remember if the elders of his clan ever told stories like the ones Tazuna told.

They also made substantial progress. Despite Sasuke's concerns on the first day, the small team worked quickly, and by the third day, Sasuke was almost as good as any of the other construction workers. They worked long, hard hours, and each day left Sasuke feeling surprisingly satisfied. It was rather gratifying to watch something he worked hard on get closer to completion each day.

It was a good week.

On the evening of the seventh day, Sasuke finally managed to create seven lightning balls. The resulting attack was powerful, but draining – until he deepened his chakra reserves, seven lightning balls were his max.

Sasuke surveyed the damage around him with a small smile. Seven is good for now, though. Even Haku will have difficulty countering this. Depleted and exhausted, Sasuke decided to head back to the house.

Out of curiosity, he took a slight detour to the area Naruto had claimed as his training area. The dobe probably passed out somewhere, he thought as he walked leisurely.

Surprisingly, Sasuke found Naruto upright and still training. He was fighting against his own clones, all of which were throwing different weapons at Naruto. The clones used gusts of wind to propel the weapons at neck break speed, but Naruto repelled each attack with a gust of wind that flung the weapons right back at the clones. Two of the clones were able to dodge, but the remaining eight exploded in a puff of smoke.

Reminds me of the Hyūga technique; impressive, Sasuke reluctantly admitted. Suddenly, all of Naruto's clones disappeared and he collapsed with a groan.

Sasuke raised an eyebrow. Is he…? No, he's fine.

Snorting, Sasuke went over to the blonde and gently kicked him in the side. Naruto groaned, stringing out a series of curses as he stirred.

"Teme?" Naruto murmured, opening an eye.

"Dobe." Sasuke greeted.

"What're you doin' here?" Naruto slurred.

"Are you intending on killing yourself?" Sasuke asked.

Dirt covered Naruto's orange jumpsuit, with several cuts ripping through the fabric. He even had scratches that were beginning to heal all over his face and hands. I know I train myself hard, but he takes it on a whole new level.

"Awe, you d'care." Naruto said, his shoulder twitching. "Hey, Sasuke, I can't r'lly move."

Rolling his eyes, Sasuke bent over, grabbed Naruto, and supported the blonde. Training until he's too exhausted to move. What an idiot.

As they slowly made their way back to Tazuna's house, Sasuke thought of the night they both reached the top of the trees. It had been years since he last thought of that night – of the determination to beat Naruto. It seemed childish now, that desperation to reach the top of the tree without stopping…

Sasuke snorted.

"Hn?" Naruto grunted.

"Nothing."

He doesn't remember it anyway, since it didn't happen.

When they reached Tazuna's house, they were greeted by the others. Sasuke dropped Naruto off at the table, Kakashi shifting in his seat to help set him down. By the time Sasuke took his seat, Naruto was fast asleep. Kakashi looked over at the blonde and snorted loudly.

Sakura rose up from her spot and took a tentative step toward Naruto, a concerned frown on her face. She turned back to her pack and took out some kind of jar.

"Geez, the boy's really out…" Tazuna said.

"That's Naruto for you." Sakura said, her voice an odd mix of affection and irritation as she rubbed medicine on his hands.

"I'm also worn out from today's bridge work." Tazuna said with a smile, sounding proud. "At any rate, the bridge is almost complete."

"Naruto-kun, father, don't overdo it, okay?" Tsunami said in a motherly tone.

Kakashi ruffled Naruto's hair affectionately, causing Naruto to make a tired groan before resuming his snoring.

"I'm not! Sasuke-kun here's been helping me a bunch!" Tazuna said, turning to Sasuke.

Suddenly feeling awkward, Sasuke looked away.

Then, without warning, Inari slammed his hands on the table, causing Naruto to jolt awake. Everyone looked at the young boy in confusion.

"Wut?" Naruto mumbled.

"Why do you guys bother to try so hard?" Inari demanded, tears streaming down his face. "No matter how hard you train, you're still no match for Gatou's men! No matter what glorious claims you make, or how hard you work, the strong will always kill the weak!"

Sasuke actually didn't disagree with him.

"Hey, kid." Naruto said, not raising his head from the table. "The truly strong ones are the ones who protect people, like your dad did. Your dad wasn't weak. He didn't get killed because he was weak, but because that Gatou is a greedy weasel who couldn't stand someone standing up to him. Your dad wasn't weak; if anything, it's Gatou who was the weak one."

Inari's fingernails scratched against the wood, and he shook with fury.

"What do you know? Huh? You don't know anything about this country, or about me, and yet you're so nosy!" Inari shouted, choking back a sob. "I'm different from you; you're always clowning around, and acting so cheerful. You don't know how hard life can be!"

Naruto raised his head, his tired blue eyes peering at Inari. "You don't know what you're talking about, kid. You got no clue."

Inari opened his mouth, but no words came out of his mouth.

"You can't just keep crying about everything. Someday, you gotta stand up and do something. If you can't do that… then just keep on crying."

Inari looked as though he wanted to say something, but he shot Naruto one last glare before running out the door. Tsunami sighed, and slumped down into a chair, her hand over her forehead. Tazuna rubbed between her shoulder blades, and she leaned into her father.

Naruto got up from the table, and moved over to where his sleeping bag was. Sakura offered to make tea, and Kakashi left the house.

Sasuke sat in his spot silently, feeling cold. It didn't take him very long to grow uncomfortable, and he moved over to his sleeping area to clean his weapons. As he did so, Sasuke raised his eyes, watching as Tazuna comforted his daughter.

Sasuke thought of his conversation with Tazuna earlier in the week – of his desperation to produce a better world for his daughter and grandson. As Tazuna whispered kind words to his daughter, Sasuke could see the tension slowly drain away from her face.

The cold feeling returned, and Sasuke focused back on his weapons.

I don't want to regret anything, you know? Tazuna's words echoed in his head.