Me: SasuSaku story, again!

Everyone: *groan*

Sasuke: Psh, ur all jealous.

Sakura: IN UR FACES!

Me: *sweat drop*

Itachi: Miyumi does not own Naruto. She only owns the word fantastical and blurple berry!

Me: BLURPLE, THE COLOR OF CHAMPIONS!

Gaara: And pimps. *smirks*

You claim to be an avenger for your clan, but even avengers need someone to lean on.

Someone to hold you up when you are weak and someone there when you are strong.

But you were blinded by your hatred and consumed by your thirst for power.

Now, as you abandon your village, your friends, you take the path of coward.

"You're a coward, Sasuke."

Sasuke Uchiha was speechless, for once in his life. Never in his life had he been called out like that, especially by his own teammate, that lovely pink haired girl who was once infatuated with him. After being gone for three years, and succeeding in killing Orochimaru after he had acquired the power he needed to defeat his brother, Sasuke had planned to return to Konoha and resume life as it had been before his betrayal. He missed bantering and confusing Naruto and he missed Kakashi's tardiness. But most of all, he missed his cherry blossom teammate, Sakura Haruno, though Kami knows his Uchiha pride would prevent him from admitting this to anyone out loud. He expected a bone crushing hug and a tearful proclamation of love from Sakura, which he was very willing to accept and give back now that he had the power to avenge his fallen clan. Instead, when he arrived at the bridge where Team 7 used to meet, he was faced with a pink haired kounichi who could possibly kill him if she laid one finger on him and held a nasty grudge against him.

"You've always been a coward. That's why you run, because you're too afraid to face your fears."

Sasuke was not going to stand for this. A frown ornamented his face as he wrapped his fingers around the angered girl's wrist. "Repeat what you said," Sasuke demanded harshly as he glared at his pink haired teammate, who was throwing him a scowl. If looks could kill, Sasuke would be on the ground, having a spasm attack and foaming at the mouth like a rabid mutt. Sakura scoffed and glared up at the stoic Uchiha. She had to fight off the tiny buzz of thrill she felt when she saw a spark of anger in the depths of his onyx orbs, the very eyes that she loved so dearly. Sakura craved emotion, even if it were anger. She needed to know if her favorite teammate was still void of emotion.

"Technically, I called you a weak, spineless coward who knocks girls out and leaves them on benches on a cold night and tries to kill his best friend."

"That just goes to show how little you know about me," Sasuke scoffed as Sakura smirked at the well-controlled anger in his voice. "One, I have only left one girl on a bench in my life, and that was because said girl was standing in my way of power. Two, Naruto attacked me first. Not my fault I almost killed him. And three, I wouldn't be talking about cowards if I were you. Was it not you who used to hide behind me and Naruto when we were genin?"

Sakura gnashed her teeth together angrily as Sasuke brought up her genin past, a past when she would cower behind her boys and let them do the fighting for her, way back when Sakura was weak. Sakura flinched at the thought and shook it away. Never again would she depend on her teammates for help. Sakura, as an apprentice of Tsunade, one of the Legendary Sannin, had the strength and chakra control all at her fingertips. Who needed jutsus when you had super strength?

"Sasuke," Sakura chuckled as she shook her head. "I'm not the one chasing after my past here. Nor am I pursuing my brother in hopes of killing him over a massacre that happened years ago. I'm not the one finding it hard to let go of hate and allowing forgiveness before I get consumed by hatred. I'm not the coward. You are."

Sasuke shook with rage as he looked down with hated in his eyes. Did he hate Sakura for what she said? No, but it still hurt like hell to hear this from his cherry blossom, the girl he had intended to marry and rebuild his clan with. The ring in his pocket seemed to mock him silently now as he stared Sakura down.

"Damnit Sakura," Sasuke cursed as he shook Sakura slightly. Sakura flinched at what she saw on his face. "I took a vow to avenge my fallen clan. He took it all away from me, Sakura. My mother, my father, my family… He took them all away, and for what? For what, Damnit! I don't even know why he would do this! An avenger is what I am, and nobody can stray me away from my path!" Sasuke panted angrily as he glared daggers at Sakura, who seemed to flinch away from Sasuke as he had went into a mad rant.

"You don't know what I've been through."

It was as if a spell were broken when he said that. Emotions flooded into him as images from his past came to mind once more. Sasuke shuddered and looked down at his hands, as if he expected to see the blood of the people he had killed staining his ale skin.

"You don't know what I've had to do."

With a broken, mocking smile on his lips, Sasuke menacingly looked up at the frightened Sakura and had to resist the urge to chuckle darkly into her ear, to make her understand and experience the darkness he had gone through when he had lost those that he had loved.

"And most of all, you don't know what I feel."

Sakura gasped as she watched a lone tear trickle down from those broken black eyes and splash into the river under the bridge. Sakura just wanted to cry with him, wanted to take all that hurt into her own soul, absorb the pain and suffering into her heart, as long as her Sasuke did not have to feel these emotions within himself.

"Sasuke kun, open up your heart to me so I can take your hurt away."

With an open invitation, Sasuke no longer held back his hidden emotions, the façade of an avenger. He kissed Sakura underneath the cherry blossom trees and allowed for her to take his hurt away.

That was the day Sasuke Uchiha realized that Guardian angels do exist and fell in love.

It was also the day Sakura realized that the tin man had a heart all along; it was just a broken heart.

Me: SO CUTE! *sob*

Ino: Hide the icecream!

Me: Bitches!

Itachi: *sigh* Please review!

Me: INO! GIVE ME MY ICECREAM!