Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto.

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He came back once a year for the memorial festival.

Sasuke stood outside of the gates of Konoha knowing that he needed to thank his lucky stars that he wasn't rotting in prison. Everyday was a miracle in that fact, and he tried to at least enjoy it. With everything there was to reflect on, and the amount of redemption he was seeking, it would be a while before he could walk in the gates without feeling guilt.

Every year there was a festival, which was a joint effort between the Rokudaime and the other kages. A new village was chosen every year to host the festival, and Konoha was up that year. Suna had been the first host, considering that Gaara had been one of the leaders of the world nin army, and it had been a week to remember.

Sasuke had attended that festival too, bot more to pay his respect to the dead than to join in the celebration. In the end, he had ended up sitting in a ramen shop with Naruto and Sakura. He had visited briefly with the rest of his former classmates, but now he felt more like an outsider than one of them. Team 7 accepted him without question, but the rest of his associates treated him with an awkward politeness that was exhausting.

Beside all of that, he had a new problem now.

At least in Sunakagure, he had stayed an inn without any trouble. He had more than enough money from his family and doing odd jobs on his travels that he could stay and do whatever he wanted. But staying at Konoha was a different story. An inn was seem fine, but people were still awkward about him and didn't trust him. His family home was gone, so that was out of the question. The Uchiha compound had been long boarded up and closed, none of the houses were even liveable for the homeless. He supposed Naruto would offer, but Sasuke wanted to avoid that option if possible. As much as they were comrades, there was no way that he could handle Naruto on a full-time basis.

He technically wasn't really a ninja anymore, so the soldier barracks were out of the question.

It was a predicament that he had been contemplating for the last few days. He knew it was a simple problem and something he didn't need to dwell so much on, but it the idea had completely filled his brain.

So, now he was back to square one. Staring at the gates of Konoha, he realized that even though he was home there was really no where for him to go. He figured his only option was to ignore everyone else and just stay at an inn. With a sigh, he headed towards the gates.

"Sasuke?"

He stopped, and turned to face the voice behind him. Sakura watched him with wide eyes, a backpack on her shoulders. "Sakura."

"You came back." She looked tired but there was a small smile on her face, "I just returned from a nearby town. There was a baby born last night and they needed a little help."

"Was everything okay?"

Sakura nodded, "It worked out." She headed towards the gates, "Man, am I tired. I've been up for the last two nights, and then I had to travel quickly to be back here for the festival preparations. At least I have a little time to rest. Did you just get back into town?"

He nodded, walking beside her. "I just arrived myself."

"How have your travels been?"

She knew that he was traveling as a way to see the world and redeem himself. He wasn't really sure if any amount of good deeds would make up for his actions in the past, but he could at least make a difference for the better. It also allowed him to keep an ear to the ground in case any threat tried to resurface against Konoha and it's allies.

"Well."

"That's good," Sakura stretched her arms over her head, "Are you glad to be back?"

It was a loaded question. It sounded innocent, like she was just making conversation, but in reality he knew that she meant many more things by it. Was he really glad to be back in a village he once hated? Was he glad to see the people that now treated him like an outsider? Was he finally getting past all his previous feelings and truly glad to be back in Konoha?

Was he glad to see her?

Sasuke thought for a moment. Among all his past transgressions, he was never a liar.

"Yes, I'm glad to be back."

There was a small smile on her face that he noticed as her barrier. It was like she was happy but didn't want to look too hopeful about it. It was only there for a second, and then it was gone. It was covered up by a grin that he new was just for show.

"So," she chuckled, "Where are you going to stay?"

Sasuke shrugged, "I thought about staying with Naruto-"

She burst out laughing, "That's rich. He'd drive you nuts. You'd think as he gets older it would mellow him out, but..." she chuckled again, "Plus, he has a girlfriend. You can't cramp his style, Sasuke."

"Does he now?"

"Hinata," she grinned, this was a happy grin, "I'm so happy for her. She's been after him for a while."

"Maybe I'll stay at an inn."

She stopped in front of a simple house. It wasn't in the main part of Konoha, but it looked inviting. She glanced back at him, "Here's my place. I moved out of my parent's a few years ago. It made sense considering I was away a lot and sometimes I have to leave at weird times at night."

Sasuke stared at her place. There were gardens in the yard and in the box window. It was nicely kept and well maintained. Not the largest house he had ever seen, or the most expensive, but it suited her and her needs. She was obviously very proud of it.

"Sasuke, you don't need to stay at an inn, you know."

He glanced at her and the small smile was back.

"I don't?"

She turned towards him, "Would you like to stay with me?" she asked, "You're more then welcome to stay."

Sasuke shook his head, "I don't want to inconvenience you. I don't want to interfere with your work."

"You won't be an inconvenience." Sakura told him, "You are always welcome here, Sasuke. You don't need to stay at an inn. You can always come here because you are always welcome in my home."

He looked back at her and the house. There was something about the whole thing that seemed right.

"Okay."

Sakura gaped at him, "Okay? Really?"

"Sure."

She stared a moment, shocked that he had agreed. Sakura slide her backpack off her shoulders, "Okay, then. I'll make us something to eat. It's afternoon and I'm starving."

"That would be good."

She unlocked the door and turned back to Sasuke. He slipped his shoes off and pulled his own bag off his shoulders. "Hey?"

He looked up at her.

"Welcome back, Sasuke."

It had been such a long time since he had a place to come back to. It had been years since anyone had welcomed him home or had even cared that he had come home. Sakura held the door open for him, a relaxed, honest smile on her face.

Maybe, this was a good idea after all.

"Thanks."