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It had been just three years since Uchiha Sasuke has returned from his journey. He once left with the twisted ambition- no, dream as he called it, to kill his brother. To kill his own brother to avenge his clan, to raise and revive the Uchiha clan; make it strong once again.

What had once left the Konoha village was nothing more than a cold, distant, yet hurt boy in the age of 12. But the young man that has returned was completely different.

His eyes were no longer cold, rather hurt and sorrowful. He barely spoke, just lived. He was silently walking around the village, not talking to anyone, trying to heal the invisible wounds his soul carried, alone; as always.

What he had been doing when gone, no one knew. Some cherished his silence; for with words of what had happen, they would maybe go far beyond the borders the Uchiha boy had set.

From the day he had return, to this very day, no one aksed. No one asked why he came back badly injured. No one asked why he wasn't speaking of his clan's restoration anymore. No one asked anything. Because they knew they wouldn't get a word from him. The only thing someone asked was how he got his wounds, and this someone was Tsunade.

He had softly and simply said that someone attacked him with chakra stronger than his own one, and has refused to open his mouth more.And so, with no more words, Tsunade had manage to heal him, not asking more. And although, in his silence, Sasuke didn't seem to, he felt grateful to his Hokage. For curing him and for her silence. And then he had left her office without a word. And he headed back to the Uchiha residence.

Now he was like that for three years. He hasn't talked to anyone for anything, merely letting out chuckles, his usual "hn"s. For three years he has been living in the hell he carried inside him. Waking up every morning, going on big strolls in and out of Konoha, coming back late at night. Roaming on a rather big amount of paths only his feet chose, walking on the sliver-laid light the moon spread each night.

Seing him suffering alone in his silence for so long, almost nobody cared. But there were three certain ninjas in the Hidden Leaf village that cared for the Uchiha boy the most. They just didn't know how to reach him, how to talk to him, how to get close to him. They would see him at the trainings, but only then. After those, he would leave; disappear behind the trees that surrounded the training fields.

Hatake Kakashi and Uzumaki Narutocould only start a conversation with him when it came to the trainings. When they would train again, on which jutsus, what times...But with their female team mate, he would not have a word. Not even a single one.

What to tell her, anyway? Was there anything common to discuss? Was there anything that the Uchiha Avenger and the Haruno Cherry Blossom could possibly have to talk about? That's the way everyone else thought. And even though he didn't intend to speak it, the Uchiha boy was thankful to them for being such fools. He would never imagine, though, that the cherry blossom had the exact same thoughts.

For those three years that he was gone, Haruno Sakura has been unbelievably silent and cheerless. Not to mention the neverending sorrow that habited her sapphire green eyes from the moment he had left, back then, before six years. Three years it took him to do what he did and then he returned, and for threee years now he was...Well, if distant and cold-hearted were the three words to describe him BEFORE his departure...Then emotionless and stone cold wouldn't be enough to resemble what he has become.

Sakura was not the one to wonder what have happened back then. But she was the only one who didn't have this question in her eyes. Since he had come back, only once had she looked at him. Then, she wasn;t even talking to him. Not addressing a word to him, the once joyful kunoichi was trying to silently understand if in his frozen heart were any emotions left.

Whether it was the right or the wrong way to do so, Sakura didn't know. But even though in the days she'd say she didn't care, she didn't want to see him, in the nights she wished to have looked at him even once. And if her mind didn't sent her images of him, she wasn't able to sleep at times. She would stretch a hand over her nightstand, grab the framed picture that she had been having there for those six yearsand look at it. She would run her finger across the hurt Uchiha's figure and look him straight in the eye. Well, almost.

This continued from the day he left, till now, six years later. And tonight was one of those nights that Haruno Sakura couldn't sleep, not even when she had the photograph in a tight hold. She would turn from side to side, upside down and lay face-down, kick the blankets and then take them on agian, but nothing worked. So, she gave up trying to get some sleep and sat on her bed, by her window. She let her eyes travel outside, watch everything carefully even though the whole village was asleep. The amazone jems rested unconciously on a silver-laid roof that was shining more than the others.

In the beginning, she didn't notice it and it seemed a roof like the others. But when she got to take her eyes off of it, she noticed the symbol of the clan which owned this house...And froze.

She didn't know she could see the Uchiha residence from her window. Of course it was a bit away from her house, but from her window, it seemed so close! She crawled and curled next to the window frame, leaning carefully a bit out to see more. The Konoha streets and houses were laid with a mysteriously shiny light tonight. And that wouldn't make Sasuke's house an exception. But the silver laid building seemed as if it was shining even more than the others. It was a regular house, just like so manyothers in Konoha, yet so different. It was the only house in the Hidden Leaf village that a murder was committed inside eleven years ago. It had smears of innocent blood.

The cherry blossom remembered that night. She had wake up from a desperate scream that tore her from her pink-clouded dream world and made her wake up suddenly; crying. She was seven years old at that time, and now eighteen. A kid back then, an adult now. But she could still hear the scream that had come from the Uchiha residence.

Sakura ceased her mind from reminiscing the events of that night. She didn't want to wonder once again what had happened, how Sasuke's parents had died. As everyone, she knew Itachi had killed them, but she was kind and emotional enough to not go asking him more details as others did. Maybe, from all those who said they understood, Sakura was the only one who truly understood why Sasuke didn't want to talk about that. But WHY didn't he talk to ANYONE about it?

"Dammit...Sleep's over for me tonight" Sakura whispered and got up. She let the photograph slip from her fingers and fall on her bed, then dressed up and jumped out of her window.

It wasn't that high from the ground as she thought. So, once she landed, she stood up and started walking. She needed some fresh air in her lungs, to take away the thoughts and the questions that no one cared to answer.

She walked around the village for quite a long time, not really caring whre she was going; or where her feet took her. Unconciously she walked up and down in Konoha, wandering around like a homeless cat. In fact, the more she tried to get rid of her thoughts, the more she couldn't stop thinking. And so she was so deeply lost in thoughts, that she didn't notice her feet had taken her go walk near the Uchiha boy's house. And if she hadn't hear what she heard, she would have gone passed it without noticing.

Suddenly, in the silentnight, as she was walking, looking up to see the full moon, a scream tore through the silence and reached her. And since she was that close to the source of the scream, it broke through her thoughts, travelled inside her mind and found its sibling scream, the one that was burried deep down in the cherry blossom's memories.

It was almost the same scream that Sakura had heard eleven years ago, only now, the words were different. It was the same person screaming, only now his voice was not the one of a child, but kinda like a hurt animal's howling. Sakura turned her head and realised she was in front of the last Uchiha's shelter. And the one who let out that scream couldn't be someone other rhan Sasuke Uchiha.

"Sasuke-kun..." Sakura whispered. What was that again? Probably some kind of haunting him as a nightmare, but since she didn't know, Sakura felt she had to know what caused pain to the one she..."Sasuke-kun..." she whispered once again, and made up her mind.

To hell his stupid prohibitions. s**t, she didn't give a damn about them now. Sasuke needed someone beside him, and Sakura wasn't going to leave him go through all alone. She stepped on the stairs and got in. She searched with eyes wide open in the darkness, and saw a curled figure, laying next to a corner under the open window, trembling in his sleep.

She dropped her guard and walked to his side. Kneeling beside him, she placed a hand on his shivering shoulder and whispered softly "Sasuke-kun...Sasuke, wake up..."

But the young man in her hands was deeply lost in his nightmare, not so easily able to drag him out. She noticed that he was holding tight on a kunai in his left hand

"NO! Get away you! It's nothing! DONT COME CLOSE! He DIES tonight! Why do you care? GET AWAY!"

"Sasuke-kun..." Sakura took his right hand in hers and squeezed it.

"NOOOO! Let him go, you stupid!" Sasuke screamed once again, lolding the kunai tighter in his hand. "..." Panting for a breath, lips semi-closed and eyes shut tight, Sasuke shivered as he raised the kunai in his sleep.

"Sasuke-kun...Drop this thing..." Sakura whispered in his ear

"GO AWAY!..." After his last scream, there was a sudden move that Sakura never understood how done. The only thing she knew was that the kunai Sasuke was holding, was now planted inside her left wrist. Her eyes opened wide as a long pause spreaded upon them. In the silence, the only thing that could be heard was Sasuke's endless hard breathing and the sound of Sakura's blood, dripping. As it came out of the wound, it slid down her palm and flowed on the floor by the edges of her fingernails.

Sakura looked at it, surprised. She pulled the kunai out of her wrist and let t fall on the floor. The cut was deep, but she didn't feel pain. She didn't even realise she was bleeding.

"...You...you did it...I...b*****d! You killed her...I didn't do anyhting! She came to protect you...on her own will, I...NO! Leave me alone! GO AWAY! YOU KILLED THEM ALL!" Sasuke suddenly yelled. He curled up and fell in Sakura's hands, burrying his head in his own hands, suddenly shivering hard from sobs.

"Sasuke..." The honorific was gone. He was crying. An 18 year old boy, the one Sakura never thought would see like that, the one Naruto was always calling "cold-hearted b*****d" was now crying hard like an abandoned child in her arms.

"You killed mother and father!" He yelled again, sobs harder this time. He was almost awake, but couldn't understand where he was

Sakura held his hand, and then hugged him tighly. "Ssss...It's ok...That was long ago...Calm down..." she whispered and held him close and tight, trying to stop his sobs.

"He did it...He came with a sword...Pullet it out and...It...I tried to stop him, but he didn't listen...He killed them!" Sasuke cried, sobs so hard now that made even Sakura tremble.

"It has passed...You're a big boy now...Everything's ok...Don't be afraid, Sasuke-..." she said and stopped. No -kun would be over from now on. "I'm here for you. I'll hold you forever so dont worry. I will let nobody hurt you." She whispered and kissed his forehead.

"S...Sakura?" Sasuke opened his eyes, regaining conciousness.

"Yes, Sasuke. I'm here. I'm holding you and I wont let go."

"Why...How...Why are you here?" he asked, afraid of the answer.

"I couldn't sleep so I took a walk...Until I heard you scream, and came to see why. T ell me Sasuke...What did you dream of?"

"No" Sasuke whispered as new tears were filling his eyes. He tightened his grasp on Sakura's cloth and burried his head in her embrace to hide them. "I can't" he said in a voice drown in tears

"Sasuke..." Sakura lowered her head and let it rest on his. She leaned back and suppoerted herself on the wall, taking him with her. Sasuke was still all curled up, and the former tears weren't dried yet. "Look, if it has to do with him..."

"NO! Don't speak of him! That b*****d..." Sasuke said in angsty mood; having his hands wrapped around his head.

But what had happened was a long time ago, and this was different. Sakura knew it was not him who they should blame, it was ...He was just a kid back then, what could he do? What to blame on him? Itachi was the one to hold responsible. "Sasuke it's not your fault. You were just a kid"

"You dont understand!" he yelled and raised his head to look at her straight in the eyes. "I became like him! I killed his..." he said and stopped. No mpore words to come out from him, that for sure.

"You did what?" Sakura was suprised, but she didn't even blink. She wanted to help him, not play inspector with him. And so she embraced him tighter, like he was an infant. "Tell me what happened"

"No" Sasuke growled. "It's not worth it"

"Sasuke...You have to tell what happend, you have to get it out. If you keep on with this silence, if you continue keeping it inside, you will never be ok. And the more a soul is damaged, the body follows. If you dont want to ruin your body, even in the distant future, you have to get your soul healed first. Take those out." Sakura said in an emotional tone on her voice.

"What do you think you know? Just because you're a medic-nin, you have to say those as anyone like you would! Like you truly care..." Sasuke whispered, but still, didn't let go of his wrath on Sakura's clothes.

"Well, Sasuke...In your dreams' madness you cut my veins..." Sakura started and raised her left hand to show him. His eyes opened wide, but before he was able to speak a word, the cherry blossom continued. "...you have always been violent and cruel to me, and even now that I'm holding you, you still say things that collide with my words. We disagree. For what do you think I'd still be here holding you tight, trying to take away all the pain, trying to set your soul free if I didn't have a reason of my own? Why would I still care about you the most after all those things you did to me if I didn't have a feeling for you?" the young kunoichi asked him as she felt him move closer to her. He embraced her from the waist and burried his face in her hair, taking deep breaths as to take in as more of her scent as he could. "I've told you before and I still do feel the same...I love you more than anything" said the cherry blossom.

Sasuke knew that if there was someone in his world to love himj, it would only reveal after he did something terrible himself too. He was alone for eleven years, alienated.Even though he was well aware of the fangirls he didn't care. He was thinking of everyone who would attach to him only as a burdain to his perfect plan. But he felt that deep inside he knew he needed somebody to love him, to care for him. And he waited for this someone to show it. But on one hand, he was stupid enough not to understand it when someone indeed showed him love. Sakura always acted in a way she thought best to make him realise she loved him. But he always pulled her away.

Now he was regretting it bitterly.

"Dont, Sakura" he whispered to her.

"What?" Sakura asked, surprised

"I am not worth your love. Dont love me. I dont know if I'll be able to love you back." Sasuke said, realising it was the truth he was speaking. He wanted to love her, yes, but he knew he wouldn't be able to show it no matter how hard he would try.

"What are you talking about? I don't care if you won't show it. I love you so much that even if you didn't love me, my love would still be enough for both of us! So just quit being like this. I love you more than anything, and whether you like it or not, I won't stop." the young kunoichi said and leaned her head back, to be able to look at him.

"Sakura..." Sasuke said and locked his eyes to hers. The beautiful emerald orbs captured his ebony ones and he couldn't take them away. "Thank you..."

Those words to her, for the second time. The same words given to her. Even if the previous time he didn't mean them, the cherry blossom was told from his hurt ebony eyes that this time he meant what he said. She looked at him, deep into the eyes, as if to assure this. But Sasuke didn't mean to show his gratefulness in such a cold way. His eyes were always cold, the ones to keep her in distance. No, his eyes were definitely not the thing needed to show what he felt.

He let her look at his eyes for some time and then sudden;y leaned his head closer to her face.

"I dont need to look at you in those eyes anymore..." He whispered, his breath travelling on her porcelain face. "Those were what kept you away. No, I can't show feelings through them" Sakura looked at him, her eyes reflecting curiosity for what he may mean.

He didn't leave her wonder for long, though. He leaned even more and covered the kunoichi's lips with his own ones.

On alarm, the cherry blossom felt her body trying to get away, like she was touched by the enemy. It was the instinct of ninja she held deep within her. But the butterflies in her stomach and the feeling of bliss that filled her heart were stronger from the ninja's reflexes, and kept her there, in Sasuke's embrace. She was happy. Not only because she had finally fullfilled her dream, but also, because she had finally made him realise someone was there for him, and in his own way, he himself was thanking her. She kissed him back, grateful to any god who had manage to help her in this most difficult misson of all.

Sasuke never imagined that kissing a girl, especially Sakura would be so relieving. But the feeling released inside him the moment he touched her soft lips was far from what he would ever imagine. He didn't know if he would feel so safe, so relieved so...loved in any toher girl's embrace, but now he was feeling that. Finally. Sher was there for him. She wanted his love, and she offered him her own one. She loved him. She loved him.

For the first time in his life after Itachi killing their parents, he could feel complete. He couldn't name the feeling inside him, but since it made him happy, he didn't care. She was here on her oen will. In his arms because she wanted her. In lip contact with him because she loved him. In his nightmares' madness he had wounded her, but she still was there. With him. The only girl he would ever love. The only girl that was his to hold; to love. Sakura. His Sakura. His cherry blossom. His girl.

His girl

His girl...

His girl. Somehting he owned? No. Absolutely not. Sakura was a human being, not a lifeless object. And he shouldn't take her for granted. But he couldn't help it.

The thoughts swirling up in his mind were driving him crazy, ruining the moment. He broke the kiss and pulled away from Sakura. If he loved her soo selfishly and felt he OWNED her, this was definitely not love. He let his eyes rest on somewhere away from Sakura, and the ebony orbs fell on the kunai. He could see blood staining it, but it was weird. It had some green and yellow shapes.

"Sasuke..." Sakura let out. She had sensed the sudden change in his mood, but why? She didn't find the chance to wonder, though.

A huge pain captured her in its net, starting from her left wrist, spreading till her elbow, then slowly reaching her shoulder.

"Not now, Sakura...Look, I'm sorry. I told you I wouldn't be right, showing you my love..." he said while carefully lifting the kunai and examining it.

"What? Hell with that, I told you I dont care! It's not for..." Sakura said and, as the pain became suddenly harder when it reached her shoulder..."AAAAAAAAHHHHHHH!"

Sasuke turned to look at her, dropping the sharp dagger. A small thud and there she lied on the floor, grabbing hard her left arm and howling in pain. Something flashed in Sasuke's mind and he remembered, this kunai...The yellow and green points staining it...

"No..." he whispered and went close to her. Sakura was now turning from one side to the other, so much in pain that she couldn't control her body. He lifted her from the floor to his embrace, protectively wrapping her in his arms. "...Sakura..." he whispered in a broken voice.

He never told her what have happened while he was missing. Butthe kunai was one thing that remained from what he did. And it was poisoned. Hidden in the outside surfaces of the blade, someone had placed the poison there.

"Sakura...This is all my fault" Sasuke said, holding her tight and leaning to kiss her warm forehead. "The kunai...It's not mine. An it is..." he said and stopped.

"Poisoned..." Sakura said, panting for a breath. "I know this poison...Tsunade-sama and I...had to heal a shinobi from the Sand village once...And it...it was...He was in...the same...condition" the cherry blossom explained, all sweaty now.

"Then, there's an antidote!" Sasuke whispered.

"No." Sakura said. "It is not here...The plant...grows only...in the...Sand village..." she let out, and then screamed again. The pain was so hard and it burned her from the inside, paralysing her left arm completely.

"No..." Sasuke said in realisation of what would happen now. "No, that can't be! I can't lose you too! Not you too, Sakura!" he yelled and held her tighter, as if this would stop the pain, or cease the poison from killing her.

"I'll die, Sasuke..." Sakura said. "I'll die and...there's no way for you...to...save me...Not...this time too" she had a tired smile on her pale now lips. "I...Am at least...glad that...even for just once...I was able...to help you too..." she let out soullessly.

"But why..." Sasuke whispered as he felt his eyes burning. Tears were forming, but he made no effort to stop them. One of them streamed down his face and fell on Sakura's lips.

"Don't cry, evil angel..." Sakura whispered. "It's not your fault..."

"It's my fault, but it is hers the most!" Sasuke growled and Sakura weakly closed her eyes. "I was about to beat him and she got in the way! She...Stupid girl, she used her body as a shield to him, so chidori hit her! I killed her! That wasn't for her, it was for Itachi, damn it!" Sasuke shouted as new tears were coming up. "And now this b*****d is still alive!"

"Smart girl..." Sakura smiled weakly.

"What? What are you..."

"I said...she's...a smart one...I...would...have done the same...to protect you, Sasuke..." she said and opened her eyes. If she didn't have such strength in her, she would be dead by now. "It's obvious...from what you...said that...she loved him...So...to let him...live she...sacrificed herself" the cherry blossom took a deep breath.

"She dropped that kunai...And said...'I'd like to meet your protector, crybaby'...No, she won't take you away from me! I need you in my life, Sakura! I can't live without you, I..." he shouted and looked at her. Her once joyful eyes had almost lost all color, her face was pale, the poison had almost reached her heart and she was dying in his hands. "I love you so much, Sakura..." the Uchuha boy whispered and kissed her.

Sakura was now weaker than ever, but held some strength in her. She kissed him back, as gently as she could, and then felt tears forming. As her last breath was about to be over, they streamed down her cheeks. And then she fell back, laying lifeless in the end. The poison had reached her heart, and as it weakened her left arm's muscles before, it did the same to what surrounded the kunoichi's heart. A heart the cherry blossom had to beat only for her love she had for the Uchiha Avenger.

She was his only hope. Once her pale lips froze and she fell back in his arms, Sasuke had no other reason to live. He never thought that a girl like Sakura would have such a death. And he was responsible for that. It was his fault. And he knew that now he didn't have anyone to hope and wish for him to revive his clan. He decided to let go. He would give up. It was not worth trying anymore. Sakura was dead. The cherry blossom was gone forever.

He couldn't take life anymore. H ehad lost his support, he ad no reason to keep on trying to revive his clan, it was an endless torment to him. If he wanted to feel he was doing something for himself even once in his life, he had to end this torture.

"I will not leave you alone, Sakura..." he said, eyes fixed on the kunai laying a few feets away on the floor. He made it near the dagger, still holfing Sakura's body with his left arm. "I'm coming" he said and grabbed the kunai. He looked at it a bit, then engraved it in his chest. Right on his left side, where his always hurt heart was beating. That way, he wouldn't have to wait for the poison to reach his heart and paralyse it.

That night was meant for them to be together at last. One way or another, in the end, they would be together at last. The full moon travelling on the Hidden Leaf Village's sky was a bit crimosn. Not the red color of blood, no. But the color Love is supposed to have.

Konoha lost its most smart kunoichi and most strong shinobi in one night. The two most needed ninja of the village were dead, and nonone would ever even imagine why. But what mattered the most was that they were together. And the next morning, the clouds that would travel on the sky, were to have the shape of an Avenger's and his Cherry Blossom's faces.