100situations Prompt 96 – Writer's choice: Regret
Title: Regret
Fandom: Naruto
Table: Three
Prompt: #96, Writer's choice (I chose regret)
Disclaimer: Naruto and all characters belong to Masashi Kishimoto, not me/
A/N: Beta-ed by the lovely Ailey-chan. Also dedicated to Ailey as an (early) birthday prezzie! Happy birthday Ailey-chan! Grow old and dream of Sasuke! ;)
Regret.
Everyone has to have at least one regret. For the optimists, one regret will suffice. For the pessimists, there are many regrets.
And for the foolish ones, their whole lives center around regret.
Uchiha Sasuke's life centered around regret.
He had so many regrets. Some were trivial, like regretting the fact he forgot to buy milk that one day. But others were larger. He regretted not doing anything when Itachi killed his whole clan, instead choosing to run away screaming, begging for his nii-san to not kill him, like a coward. He regretted overlooking friendship and love in favor of power. He regretted not listening to Naruto, instead only focused on his vengeance.
Sasuke would never admit he was a fool. But then, why was his life so filled with regret?
Sasuke had always thought that Sakura was pretty. As a young boy, he had never mustered up the courage to tell her that. But every day at lunchtime in the Academy, he had watched her tag alongside Ino, her face shy, her eyes shining behind her curtain of hair.
But then Itachi killed his clan. And Sasuke changed.
Sakura soon morphed into another of his devoted worshippers. Sasuke showed cold indifference and hate to all of them, including Sakura.
But he regretted never telling her that she was pretty.
Sasuke marked up another regret on his ever-growing list.
She had saved him. Sasuke was at the Chuunin exams, after being marked by Orochimaru. He had awoken, his Sharingan burning, a newfound power and hope in beating Itachi one day.
Looking back on it, it had felt like he was walking in a daze. The world blurred at the edges, but faintly, Sasuke could make out Sakuréa's face. She was crying and her body was covered in dirt and blood.
He would kill whoever hurt Sakura like that.
He would kill the cocky Sound ninja who had proudly claimed that he was the one who had inflicted those injuries on Sakura.
In a matter of minutes, Sasuke had sent the Sound shinobi flying twice, and was now twisting the shinobi's arms behind him.
Sasuke liked this feeling of power running through his veins, the thought of having shinobi more powerful and experienced than him screaming for mercy.
"You must be proud of your arms," Sasuke commented casually.
Sasuke broke both of them.
"That was for hurting Sakura," he hissed, eyes glinting, his voice so low that only the Sound ninja could hear. The ninja whimpered in pain, fear reflected in his eyes.
"You scum," Sasuke growled, pulling the ninja up. Sasuke was ready to kill the bastard already, he was capable of it, he knew, his curse mark was feeding him all the power he needed…
… but then Sakura was running up to him, throwing her arms around him.
"No, Sasuke! Don't!" she screamed. "Please Sasuke-kun, come back to us. Please become the Sasuke you were before…"
Sasuke felt Sakura's tears soaking his shirt instead of actually hearing her. He felt her warm arms restrain him from hurting the ninja.
Sasuke turned to glare at Sakura, for interrupting his moment of power and strength. But when he saw the tears spilling from the eyes that he was so used to seeing light up, he balked.
"Please, Sasuke-kun…" Sakura whispered, her grip on him tightening desperately. Sasuke could smell the blood on her; it's metallic scent intruding sharply into Sasuke's mind. But underneath, she still smelled sweet, like the Sakura he had always known…
Sasuke felt something like a cold wind wash over him, erasing the bloodlust he had felt. Instead, now all he saw was Sakura, his Sakura, crying. And what Sasuke regretted was that he had caused those tears.
Only for you, Sakura…
His fingers loosened as he let the Sound shinobi drop to the ground in a heap. Sasuke felt his Sharingan fading away, and the world spun dizzily, before Sasuke collapsed to the ground.
The last thing Sasuke felt was the brush of Sakura's fingers across his cheek, followed by a soft, "Arigato, Sasuke-kun."
It has been seven years. Seven long years since Sasuke had betrayed Konoha to quest for power from Orochimaru. Seven long years since Sasuke had last waited on the bridge, for the ever-tardy Kakashi and the rest of Team Seven.
But now, Sasuke was home again.
The rest didn't matter.
"Sasuke-kun!" Sakura had cried, upon first seeing him again. He had been engulfed in an embrace, before Sakura backed up, just the slightest bit. "Are you… okay now?"
Sasuke stared at Sakura, noting the slight changes that she had undergone as the years had passed. "Itachi's gone, Sakura. My vengeance has been fulfilled, and I'm…fine now."
In truth, Sasuke didn't know how fine he was. He knew that he wouldn't be possessed by Orochimaru again, after having Tsunade-sama successfully block the cursed seal. He knew that most of the townspeople had gradually accepted him back into Konoha again, after Tsunade welcomed him back as the Godaime Hokage, and after the people learned that Sasuke killed Orochimaru to save Naruto, at almost the expense of his own life.
But how could he start over with Sakura again?
It was spring, and Sakura and Sasuke continued to wait in silence for Naruto and Kakashi. It was like the old times of Team Seven, when it had only been Sasuke and Sakura at the bridge in the mornings, sometimes waiting for two hours for Naruto and even longer for Kakashi to show up.
I've got to tell her…now…
"I've always thought cherry blossoms were beautiful," Sasuke remarked uncharacteristically. "My mother used to love them, and she collected them to dry and scatter over the table. I never thought I'd meet anything more beautiful than them, how fragile and beautiful they are…yet so perfect."
It was springtime, and sakura trees blossomed on the banks of the river, their petals floating onto the bridge or on the gently lapping surface of the water.
It was then when he became uncomfortably aware of her eyes on him, confusion swirling around her, and he couldn't bring himself to look at her, instead gazing intently at his hand.
A cherry blossom spiraled onto Sasuke's palm. "But, I have. Someone who surpasses even a cherry blossom in beauty."
Sasuke let the wind carry away the cherry blossom, as he watched it dance in the air, eventually carrying the pink blossom out of sight.
He dared to steal a glance at her.
"You, Sakura."
Sakura simply stared at him, mouth agape, for a few seconds, before throwing her arms around Sasuke, a simple gesture that Sasuke had missed for so long.
"Oh, Sasuke-kun," she whispered, her voice muffled against his shirt.
Slowly and hesitantly, Sasuke wound his arms around the kunoichi too.
I regret not having told you this sooner, Sakura.
But, there was one thing that Sasuke would never regret.
Sasuke and Sakura were sitting in a clearing, in the old Team Seven's training grounds.
Everything was so…perfect. His life had never felt more promising, with merely the presence of Sakura by his side.
"Sakura," he murmured, taking her hand. Her vibrant green eyes stared questioningly into his dark ones.
"Marry me."
For when Sakura said yes, Sasuke knew that asking her to marry him was something he'd never regret.
-fin-
A/N: Reviews are the equivalent of chocolate. Flames shall be used to heat up ramen for Naruto.