Water was rapidly falling. The sound it made as it touched the sink was reminiscent of a cascade aggressively attacking a rock as if it were destined to become a habit soon.

Sakura sat on the bathroom floor, the falling water submerging the sound of her inevitable tears. She wept like a little child, clutching her knees together in a tight grip.

She wanted to curl up and disappear. Tears of embarrassment and shame streamed down her face. She had been humiliated in front of everyone, and her credibility was doubted. And to make things worse, she had confessed her feelings for Sasuke in the most terrifying way.

She heard people come and go but didn't move. She heard a soft knock on her door.

"Sakura, is that you?" Katsumi asked.

Sakura quickly dried her tears and tried to compose herself as much as possible.

"Yeah, I am here" Sakura said without opening the door.

"The court has been adjourned for the day" Katsumi said "I thought you want to know".

"Thank you" was all Sakura managed to say as she quickly covered her mouth to stop her sobs.

"Sasuke is going to be transported back, why don't you take the night?" Katsumi added.

The thought of facing Sasuke seemed like an impossible task at the moment.

Sakura took a few deep breaths before she could answer a simple thank you.

"I'll leave you to it then" Katsumi said before leaving.

A while passed and Sakura simply wept and sat there quietly.

There was a strong knock on the door. Sakura did not respond this time.

"Open the door, it's me" Ino said knocking again.

"I'd rather be alone" Sakura said.

"Open the door I said" Ino said again.

"Go away" Sakura said.

"I am coming in" Ino shouted before crawling under the door.

"What are you doing? Are you crazy?" Sakura asked wiping her tears.

"My best friend needs me, and I don't plan on going anywhere" Ino said wiping her tears.

Sakura couldn't even come up with an answer and simply hugged her tight and cried harder.

Ino sat there next to Sakura as she wept on her shoulder.

Once Sakura had calmed down a little, Ino walked her to her house in silence.

Sakura and Ino lay in bed together as Sakura was still in no shape to do anything.

"I just want this whole thing to be over" Sakura said.

"Me too honestly, it's gotten pretty exhausting" Ino replied.

"I wish I could just disappear" Sakura said covering her eyes with her hand.

"I bet" Ino replied "I am sorry, you know, I am sorry this whole thing happened" Ino finished.

"Me too" Sakura sighed.

"How…How is he?" Ino asked.

"Pretty broken" Sakura responded.

"Physically?" Ino asked.

"And mentally" Sakura answered.

"That sounds horrible" Ino replied.

"It's awful" Sakura said "you know, sometimes I don't know if he is just broken or if I don't even know him anymore" she finished.

"It's probably both" Ino added "he was gone for so long that I bet there is a lot we don't know" she finished.

"I don't know Ino, there is so much I don't understand" Sakura said.

"What do you mean" Ino said lifting herself to make eye contact.

"I don't know, he just seems so different" Sakura said "he feels guilty, and I understand but sometimes I can't make sense of the things he does".

"Is he acting erratic? That could be a sign of brain damage" Ino responded.

"No, not really. He just says things that I don't remember the way he does" Sakura said.

"What do you mean?" Ino asked curiously.

"I am not sure, perhaps it was a long time ago. He hurt himself pretty badly yesterday and as I was stitching his wound, he kept on saying he was sorry about helping Orochimaru kill the Third Hokage. The odd thing is that I was not aware that he was even working with him at the moment. It makes no sense. When could he have come in contact with Orochimaru?" Sakura wondered.

"That makes no sense at all" Ino added concerned.

"I know. The day before I heard him crying. He was apologizing for killing his parents. I guess it could be survivor's guilt, but I am sure he had nothing to do with their killing" Sakura said.

"I don't think that is survivor's guilt. That's very strange behavior" Ino replied "have you seen any personality changes?" she asked.

"I mean, I have seen some new things but it only makes sense with the amount of years that have passed" Sakura said now trying to remember his behavior.

"What about his description of the facts? Did he describe his involvement in any of these events?" Ino asked rather professionally.

"I guess he has not said much. He kept on saying he remembered the rain and the smell of fresh blood from the day the Hokage was killed but I don't think that is relevant" Sakura said.

"It actually is. How detailed were his descriptions? Did he talk a lot about the weather or the temperature?" Ino added eagerly.

"Now that you say that, he did, but how is that important? What is it you know?" Sakura said while starting to second guess herself.

"I'll explain everything but I have one more question" Ino said "was he given truth serum?" she asked.

"How did you know?" Sakura asked confused.

"That makes so much sense now" Ino said getting up and grabbing a book and a bag.

"What makes sense? What is going on?" Sakura asked.

"I'll explain on the way. I think I can help Sasuke" Ino said confidently.

*In Witness Protection House*

Sakura and Ino ran towards the house when they were stopped by an Ambu.

"You can't come in here without an official authorization" the Ambu said stopping Ino.

"It's for Sasuke's safety" Sakura responded.

"I am sorry, I can't allow it. Come back with an authorizat…" the ambu was saying when Sakura punched him in the mouth. She punched him so hard he was left unconscious.

"What just happened?" Ino asked.

"no worries, keep on going" Sakura said opening the door.

Sakura's determination was both, admirable and terrifying.

They ran to the room where Sasuke was sleeping. Naruto was next to Sasuke deeply asleep hugging a pillow. Sasuke was just turned on his side.

"Hey" Sakura whispered gently touching Sasuke's shoulder.

"I am awake" Sasuke whispered back.

"Follow me" Sakura said signaling him to go outside.

They left the bedroom and sat in the living room. Sasuke looked exhausted as if he hadn't been able to sleep in days. He looked as if he had been crying. His eyes and the tip of his nose were red while his face was a bit swollen.

"Is everything okay?" Sasuke asked.

"Yes, sit down" Sakura said "we think something is very wrong with you" she said excitingly.

"Okay, thanks?" he said sarcastically.

"No, no, I mean, we think that there is more going on than we thought there was" Sakura said.

"What do you mean" he responded.

"I have reasons to believe your memories have been altered" Ino said.

"I don't understand, I don't feel different" Sasuke said.

"Sasuke, but you are. You've been saying things that I have reasons to believe you had nothing to do with" Sakura said eagerly.

"Sakura, I understand you have a hard time believing things I did but I did some really awful things. I know you are looking for excuses but there are none" Sasuke told Sakura with a sigh.

"I know but not everything you think you did, you might have done" Sakura answered confidently.

"What do you mean?" Sasuke asked.

"You've talked about things that we remember differently. I have reasons to believe your memories have been layered with new memories" Ino said.

"Layered? I don't understand" Sasuke said confused.

"When you give somebody truth serum, it doesn't work the way most people believe. Truth serum doesn't make you say the truth. It puts you in a vulnerable state in which is easier to persuade you into saying the truth. The thing about it is that when a person is in that vulnerable state, it is also easy to manipulate and make them believe things that never happened." Ino explained.

"I was given truth serum" Sasuke said "but how would you know if that happened to me?" he asked.

"Well, Sakura realized you said a few things that did happen the way you remember" Ino said.

"What do you mean?" Sasuke was very confused at this point.

"Did you help Orochimaru kill the Third?" Sakura cut the conversation.

"I did" Sasuke said regretfully.

"No, you didn't. You couldn't have. We were fighting Gaara at the same time" Sakura said.

"No, I remember both things. I must have helped Orochimaru first and then went on to fight Gaara. I appreciate what you guys are trying to do but I have clear memories of both events" Sasuke concluded.

"You didn't, timing does not work" Sakura said.

"It does. I have very detailed memories of that day; I would know if it didn't happen. One thing must have happened, I even remember how hot it was that day." Sasuke regretfully.

"That's the thing Sasuke, your memory probably has a lot of sensory input in it. If you think about it, you probably remember things because of how hot, or windy it was on that day" Ino said.

"That sounds impossible, but it somehow makes sense" Sasuke said.

"I can't promise you anything, but I could take a look. If I am right, I might be able to reverse the damage" Ino told him.

"Sasuke please…. you don't have to pay for the sins you did not commit" Sakura pleaded.

Sasuke signed "what do I have to do".

"I going to dive into the depth of your mind. I will go over your memories and find loops where memories overlap. I will replace the new memory with the old memory. It shouldn't take long but it all depends on how severe the damage is" Ino explained.

"Will it hurt?" Sakura asked.

"I don't think so, but it might be uncomfortable. You might feel as if you are in a memory and in the present at the same time. I am hoping to be done quickly" Ino replied.

"Get It over with" Sasuke said.

Ino wet his hands and his feet. Then she wet her own hands and feet. She spilled water in between them and placed both hands in the water. Then Sasuke placed his bare feet on the other side of the puddle. She closed her eyes, and her body went limp.

"Is she in?" Sakura asked.

"I am not sure" Sasuke said followed by a deep sigh "I think so".

"She said you could do anything while she worked" Sakura told him "do you want to go back to sleep?"

"It's okay, I can't sleep anyways" he replied.

"Do you want to eat something?" Sakura asked.

"I am actually starving" he confessed.

"I got you" she said before making her way to the kitchen.

They had placed Ino's body on the sofa and Sasuke was sitting in the kitchen's bar area.

"I am sorry for not returning after today's court session" Sakura apologized.

"It's not a problem" Sasuke said quietly.

Suddenly Sasuke saw Madara standing in front of him. He rubbed his eyes twice until he disappeared.

"Did you see that?" Sasuke asked.

"See what?" Sakura said.

"Nothing don't worry" Sasuke said as he saw Madara standing far by the door looking at him.

"Alright, food is ready" Sakura said putting the food in front of Sasuke and sitting next to him.

"Thank you" Sasuke said as he lifted his fork. Soon he felt a hand touching his shoulder. He turned back but no one was there.

"Is everything okay?" Sakura asked.

"Yeah, let's eat" he dismissed her.

They started eating. Sasuke was really enjoying his food. He was starving. The room started changing. For a second, he was in the kitchen and soon in an empty room. He looked around to try to recognize the place when his mind went back to the kitchen.

"Excuse me" Sasuke said as he left the room.

Sasuke walked to the bathroom as the room kept on changing from reality to another empty place.

A while passed and Sakura began to worry since Sasuke had not returned yet. She stood up and walked to the bathroom. The door was half open and she could hear water running.

"Sasuke?" She said slowly opening the door.

Sasuke had his head in the sink with the water running over his head.

"Are you okay?" Sakura asked softly.

Sasuke did not move. His eyes were closed and was just letting the water run. He turned off the water and just stayed there for a second with his eyes closed.

"Yeah" he answered while taking a deep breath.

"Got a headache?" She asked.

"No, not really, just needed a minute" Sasuke responded calmly.

He looked back at her but all he could see was his brother. He opened his eyes widely but kept his silence.

"You are seeing things, aren't you?" Sakura asked.

"How did you know?" Sasuke asked her.

"Ino told me it could happen. She said you might lose perception of reality for a while" Sakura answered guiding Sasuke with her hand behind his back.

"That makes a lot of sense" Sasuke said.

"How about we just sit through it, or maybe just try to distract you from it?" Sakura asked.

"Sure" He answered.

They went back to the living room and sat to play Shogi. Truth be told neither of them were fans of Shogi, but Sasuke needed to get his mind off.

They played for a while with Sasuke stopping every few minutes and taking a deep breath.

"Your turn" Sakura said.

Sasuke silently played his piece.

"Alright, my turn" Sakura said as she lifted her piece.

Before Sakura could finish playing her move, Sasuke got up punched the table, and pushed the pieces aside and onto the floor.

Sakura did not say anything. She simply waited for a reaction from Sasuke. He did not say anything. He knelt on the floor and covered his mouth and then ran his hand through his head and eventually just covered his eyes. Sakura slowly made her way to him. She put her hand on his back and stayed silent. She knew that he just needed some silence.

"C'mon, let's go to the room" she said while helping him up.

Sasuke did not say anything, he simply followed her quietly. Sakura took him to her room and him got to bed. He lay there silently while she played with his hair. Eventually, he fell asleep although she could tell he had no peace.

Sasuke slept for around 40 minutes and woke up and started hysterically touching the bed as if he was looking for something.

"Are you okay?" Sasuke heard a woman say.

Sasuke turned around and saw his mother.

"I am sorry, I am so sorry" Sasuke said while tightly embracing his mother.

He kissed her face and dropped on his knees grabbing her hand and kissing her.

"I am so sorry" he said touching resting his forehead on her hand.

Sakura was very confused. Sasuke was pleading for her to forgive him but she knew that he was not talking to her. She simply kept silent to let him say whatever he needed to get off his chest.

"Sakura, I… I am so sorry. I thought you were someone else" he said quickly apologizing when he realized he was holding her hand.

"It's okay Sasuke, please don't apologize" she said softly "Come, sit with me".

They both sat on the bed. Sasuke was once again really quiet.

"Do you want to talk about it?" Sakura asked.

"I don't know" Sasuke before taking a deep breath "I did something horrible".

"Okay" Sakura said grabbing his hand so he could feel her support.

"I was very young. I was so scared to sleep alone. I am not sure if wet the bed or if simply had a nightmare, but I wanted to sleep with my parents. I was going to knock on their door when I heard my dad talking to my mom. He was saying that Konoha had done enough against us and it was our turn to rise up and take matters into our hands" Sasuke said while running his hand through his head.

"He sounded so angry" Sasuke said.

"Is that what you saw earlier?" Sakura asked to wish he just nodded.

"I was scared. I went to my brother's room that night. I told him everything. I had no idea what I was saying. All I know is that the next day my parents…. they were gone…It's all my fault" Sasuke said holding back his tears.

*Flashback*

Sakura had disappeared and Sasuke was in his room. It looked familiar yet so different. He realized he was in a memory. Soon he saw himself in the mirror and he was a child.

He began tracing his steps as he remembered them.

He had a nightmare, so next was knocking on his parent's room. He was about to knock when he heard his dad speaking to his mother.

"Do you think it will happen again tonight?" Fugaku asked.

"I can't possibly know. You have to understand, he is just a child" Mikoto answered.

"I know but Itachi never had these nightmares. He never came to sleep with us, Sasuke is too big for that" Fugaku answered.

Sasuke's heart sank and soon he realized that he had become a spectator of his own memory and could see the young version of himself but no longer had control of the memory. He could feel what the child felt but could only watch him.

"He is different. He is a sensitive kid" Mikoto answered "you can't expect him to be as strong as Itachi" she finished.

"I just don't want him to grow up to be weak" Fugaku retorted.

Young Sasuke removed his hand from the door and sat in the rocking chair in the living room. He was too afraid to go back to his room but did not want to disappoint his father.

He sat there and quietly began to cry. Sasuke could remember how much pressure he felt. He did not want to be weak. Why couldn't he be like his brother.

"Hey, you" Itachi gently touched young Sasuke's shoulder "what are you doing here?" he asked.

"I…I was just thinking" Sasuke answered.

"Did you have a nightmare?" Itachi asked.

"No…I am too big to have nightmares" Sasuke answered.

"Oh, okay. Do you want to go back to sleep?" Itachi asked but soon he noticed Sasuke's fear in his eyes.

"You know what? I had a nightmare, and I don't really want to sleep alone right now. Do you mind accompanying me for the night?" Itachi asked sweetly.

Present time smiled softly remembering his loving brother.

"You have nightmares?" young Sasuke asked.

"Yeah, all the time and they are scary sometimes" Itachi said.

"I guess I could sleep with you for tonight" young Sasuke said with relief.

"C'mon" Itachi said.

"But don't get used to it, okay?" young Sasuke said which drew a smile from Itachi's lips as he drew two fingers to gently tap Sasuke's forehead.

"Sasuke! Sasuke! Follow my voice" Sasuke heard Sakura's voice calling him in the distance.

Sasuke was saddened to leave the memory. He finally had recovered the real memory of what had happened on that night. He looked up and saw Itachi looking at his present self. He gently nodded his head in approval for him to go.

Sasuke smiled and followed Sakura's voice until he grabbed her hand and returned to the present.

"Sasuke, are you okay? I was calling your name and you wouldn't respond! Are you okay? Sakura asked worriedly.

"I am…I am at peace" he said with a soft smile as a tear left his eye.