Author's Note : Thank you so much for your kind reviews. I've only written fanfiction stories for but a week, and it surprised me to realize how much your encouraging words had fueled my will to write. They were very, very, very much appreciated. :)

I've decided to make the first chapter a prologue. Mm, I don't think the title really matches the story now, but I'll worry about that later. Well, pardon my musings and happy reading! Hope I won't disappoint any of you with this story! :)

Spoiler Alert : This story contains spoilers from Naruto manga chapter 631-635.

Disclaimer : I do not own Naruto.

In which Sasuke was guilty.

The gravely wounded kunoichi was unswervingly relocated to the Medical Division compound shortly after losing consciousness, whereupon she was ushered to the emergency room to be treated immediately. The attempt at blood transfusion had been successful, but her internal bleeding had severely exacerbated that Sakura was forced to undergo several surgical procedures, done directly by The Godaime Hokage and assisted by her first apprentice.

After what seemed like several lengthy hours, Tsunade appeared before him, Kakashi, Sai, and Ino at the aforementioned division's basecamp, clothes streaked in blood and expression unreadable.

"How is she?" Kakashi inquired dimly, voice tinted with concern.

Breathing out a deep sigh, Tsunade had wearily, reluctantly, informed them that Sakura had fallen into a coma.

Sasuke's mouth had gone dry.

Sakura.

Coma.

Because of me?

Nobody in the room spoke for a long time. The pale, shaken expressions tainting everyone's faces had been enough to prompt a tsunami of self-recrimination that seemed to engulf Sasuke's being.

"We can only wait," she finished bitterly, emotional exhaustion now blatantly apparent in her eyes.

So wait he did.

He waited, waited, and waited, wishing desperately with no avail for her to open her eyes.

And it was killing him.

He rarely left the vicinity of her room, only leaving when absolutely necessary – merely for sustenance or a shower. The Sharingan user could almost always be seen sitting at a small chair near her bedside, gazing at the unmoving emerald-eyed medic-nin with a deadened look of hopelessness.

"Please be happy."

"Thank you, Sasuke-kun."

He had broken her, he had injured her, and she had thanked him.

She wished for his happiness.

Sasuke felt disgusted with himself, remorse overflowing his mind that his body started to shake, to tremble agonizingly.

But he was willing to drown himself in agony if it could at least diminish the excruciating guilt painfully wrenching his heart.

I'm sorry, Sakura...

The obscurest part of Sasuke's emotional turmoil had lasted three days, until Naruto, literally, had punched him awake.

Recently woken up after a severe case of chakra depletion, the blonde-haired shinobi was appalled when he learnt of Sakura's heroic deed to protect his life, one that had caused her to lie motionlessly on the bed for three days.

Sakura-chan…

Naruto did not think he had ever felt that remorseful in his entire life.

After guilt, rage came. It rose, so intently, crashing down at him like an endless tidal wave.

Rage, at himself, for failing to protect the sole female member of his team from-

He stiffened, blue eyes widening fractionally in sudden realization.

Sasuke-teme.

It was unbearably easy for Naruto to want to blame Sasuke. His longtime rival was the root of the problem, the source of their conflict, and the origin of why Sakura must suffer even after the Fourth Shinobi War had been won.

Sasuke had been the one who directly dealt the blow to her body.

Teeth gritting in anger, fury threatening to burst out of his vein, Naruto had determinedly sought the Uchiha.

The blue-eyed shinobi dreadfully needed something, anything, to vent up his resentment.

And Sasuke needs to pay for what he's done.

When Naruto appeared at the doorstep of Sakura's room, hands fisting on his shirt to pull him up from his seat and promptly throw a jaw-breaking punch at him, Sasuke relented.

"Are you happy now, Teme? You almost killed Sakura-chan, you bastard!"

Naruto's fierce snarl was almost heart wrenching, filled with so much grief, that Sasuke's onyx eyes widened imperceptibly before he was once again stung with the now familiar feeling of self-loathing.

Still shaking from the volatile emotion, Naruto marched feverishly and threw another punch to Sasuke's face.

"Damn it, what if she never woke up?" Naruto croaked, voice trembling in agonizing distress. Fingers clenching into themselves, he whispered almost soundlessly. "What would our team be without her?"

Sasuke didn't know what to say.

The Uchiha understood the significance of Sakura's presence in both of their life. Sakura, with her bright smile and vivacious nature, had been the closest thing the two had which could even resemble a normal, surrogate, female family member.

Possibly a sister. Or a lover.

Naruto and Sasuke had experienced a tragic past, both never having the opportunity to taste a sample of female companionship in a long, long, while. Sakura, raised in an exultant environment by an adoring family, was a personification of they missed out during their childhood– happiness. They were, intuitively, drawn to her like a moth to flame.

The emeral-eyed girl had offered Sasuke love. She had offered Naruto friendship.

Regardless of Sasuke's indifferent behavior when they were younger, he could not deny that Sakura had occupied an important spot in his heart.

"I'm sorry."

Caught off-guard by the sudden apology, Naruto's head snapped up, looking astounded by the Sasuke's uncharacteristically alien behavior.

"It…" He closed his eyes, recalling his last conversation with Sakura in his mind. How she had graced him with a fond, an affectionate look, as if offering instant forgiveness for all his wrong-doings. How she had gazed at him with so much love, so much longing that he was rendered speechless.

"It was all my fault," Sasuke admitted almost inaudibly, bowing his head before swallowing hard.

The remorse in his soft, hesitant voice was so blatant that Naruto's anger slowly, gradually, started to melt away.

The blonde, frankly, did not expect his teammate to be so conceding of his prior furious attacks, as if Sasuke was willing himself to be punched as a chastisement of his action. Nor did he ever expect the proud Uchiha to ever apologize to anybody, much less his own rival.

It was as if he really felt guilty for what he's done to Sakura-chan. And me.

Considering how the missing-nin had tried to kill both of his former teammates without any qualms but a month ago, Sasuke's unexpected change in behavior, Naruto figured, was glaringly apparent.

Blue eyes growing fractionally, faith started to glimmer within the blonde's chest. Naruto utterly wished that Sasuke's newfound care for team 7 had not been merely his imagination, or just a spur of a moment thing.

That their bonds with Sasuke were still intact, however hard he had tried to sever them.

Lips twitching in a beginning of a smile, Naruto wondered how elated his Sakura-chan would be if she ever found out that their dream of getting Sasuke reinstated as the member of team 7 had not been entirely shattered.

"Yosh! Let's just wait until Sakura-chan's up!" Naruto exclaimed, throwing a one-armed punched to the air excitedly.

Not expecting such a swift shift in his demeanor, Sasuke turned towards the now cheerful shinobi, eyes flickering with surprise for a split second before turning completely stoic after that.

"Thanks, dobe," Sasuke replied in a deceptively flat tone, although the Naruto could have sworn he detected a hint of relief in his face.

Please wake up soon, Sakura-chan…

After their resolved conflict, Naruto had decided to follow Sasuke's step in staying at Sakura's room.

"Can't let the first thing Sakura-chan see to be your emotionally constipated face, eh?" the blonde-haired genin had snickered, rambling about how his Sakura-chan was so going to enjoy his company better than the almost mute Teme.

"Tch. Shut up, dobe."

As infuriating as Naruto could be, Sasuke had welcomed his presence. Being alone brought about a wrenching feeling of self-loathing to his heart. It had resurrected a memory of how blue lighting had landed on her abdomen, of Sakura, as white as a sheet, lying in a pool of her blood.

All because of him.

A pair of onyxes hardened as he stole a glance at the pale kunoichi lying on the bed. He still couldn't chase away the vision of Sakura's emerald eyes out of his mind. The sound of her strained voice as she thanked him kept replaying in his head everytime he closed his eyes.

It made the guilt even more unbearable.

Sasuke closed his eyes, shame rushing through his body.

He didn't think he'd ever deserve Sakura's forgiveness.

Naruto's idea of keeping Sakura company, it seemed, involved slurping at his endless supply of cup ramen at her bedside, all the while blabbering nonsensical conversation noisily to the unconscious girl. The Uchiha sneered in disgust as Naruto chucked another empty cup carelessly, wracking havoc across the room.

Needless to say, Tsunade had not been amused.

The blonde had been kicked out, banned from the medical camp, sporting a black bruise in his eye, courtesy of incurring the wrath of the Godaime.

Such as how Sasuke had been alone again, sitting on his usual chair with his eyes concentrated on the ceiling.

Thinking. Contemplating.

It had been seven days.

His stomach clenched, a tight knot of nausea forming.

When are you going to wake up, Sakura?

Completely absorbed in his thoughts, the stoic, aloof Uchiha never noticed the way her eyelids suddenly fluttered and her hands slightly twitched.

The way her body sluggishly shifted.

The way her eyes slowly, bit by bit, began to open.

After seven long, long days, Haruno Sakura was finally awake.

Author's Note : So, what do you think? Any critics or suggestions are very much welcomed. :)